Travellers transiting through Changi Airport on Tuesday (Jul 11) were apparently given a spontaneous performance by an American choir crooning a Tamil song called “Balleilakka”. Clad in casual clothes and holding up song sheets, the group enthusiastically belted out the tune to curious onlookers, good-naturedly grinning at the multiple phone cameras pointed their way.
It seems the talented singers are part of the Portland State Chamber Choir — an ensemble from Portland State University — and they were rehearsing the piece during their layover in Singapore before heading to Bali for the Bali International Choir Festival.
The song, by Indian composer A.R. Rahman, was recorded by S.P. Balasubrahmanyam, A.R. Reihana, Benny Dayal for Sivaji, a Tamil film. Netizens were duly impressed by the choir’s rendition, praising the singers for nailing the tune in what’s probably a foreign language to most of them — although it seems the track is pretty popular among Western choirs (a quick search on YouTube will throw up countless versions by choral groups across the world).
Check out the performance below.
In case you were wondering, here’s the original.
