Sentosa Musical Fountain, also known as the Magical Fountain of Sentosa, or as the Musical Fountain by locals, was a former musical fountain water feature and entertainment venue on Sentosa Island in Singapore.
It was located on a now-demolished portion of the Imbiah Lookout entertainment zone on the island. The Musical Fountain was officially opened on 11 June 1982, and ceased operations 25 years later on 26 March 2007, and was demolished that same year.
The venue arena could accommodate more than 5000 people. It hosted five different shows through the 25 years it had been in operation, including the famous Magical Sentosa show which ran during the last 5 years of the fountain’s operations. (Source from Wikipedia)
Musical Fountain in the PAST (Until 2007)
Small musical fountain until 2007
Fountain Display Show
The first programmed show at the Musical Fountain was the “Fountain Display Show” and it’s programmed by Venus Enterprises Pte Ltd, running through the 1980s and early 1990s. It was inspired by the synchronized water dance of the Fountains of Bellagio on the Las Vegas Strip. Usually, the show used computer choreographed Broadway show tunes and other famous songs. The show ran thrice nightly with an additional show during Sundays and Public Holidays. In the late 1990s, the show was repeated during the day from 4 pm to 5 pm but without the colourful lights. Between 2000 and 2002, the show was repeated in the evening until Magical Sentosa permanently replaced the show.
Rise of the Merlion
Running period: 1994 – 1997 and 2000 – 2002
“Rise of the Merlion” is considered the first show to use laser animation and graphics at the ‘Musical Fountain’. The show gave a fictional History of Singapore that included the outcome of the Merlion (country mascot). In 1994 the show’s lighting was improved by Laservision Mega Media Pty Ltd, before the show was shut down a year later. This show was return in 2000-2002 to fill the gap during the upgrade for the upcoming Magical Sentosa Show that will debut on 2002.
Spirits of Sentosa and Journey Around the World
Running period: 1997 – 2002 In 1997 came two shows, the first part of the show was Journey Around the World, which has disputed origins. The second part was “Spirits of Sentosa”, developed by Laservision Mega Media Pty Ltd designers, Simon McCartney, Lloyd Weir, and Richard Tan.
Magical Sentosa
Running period: 2002 – 2007 “Magical Sentosa” was the fifth and final show staged on the fountain and arguably the most recognizable among the other shows that staged on Sentosa Musical Fountain. The show was created in 2000, when Yves Pépin (designer of the Songs of the Sea show and its upcoming replacement show Wings of Time) designed a show to fit the Imbiah Lookout zone’s theme of fantasy.
After using ideas from earlier production in France and restoring the fountain again which took about two years, engineers installed new equipment to create an all-new nighttime show that placed Kiki the Hyperactive Monkey of Sentosa, the official mascot of Sentosa Island at that time, as the host. It was also the first time that the audience saw him in CGI—Computer Generated Imagery.
Musical Fountain before & now
Song of the SEA
After demolition works began on the old musical fountain on 26 March 2007, the development plans for Sentosa included a new musical fountain entertainment venue, to be named Songs of the Sea.
The new musical fountain is sited at Siloso Beach, near Sentosa Express’s Beach Station. Construction work on Songs of the Sea began in January 2006, and was completed in February 2007. The show made its debut on 26 March 2007. Between 26 March 2007 and 31 December 2007, the “Songs of the Sea” program had been watched by 992,000 visitors.
Musical fountain in other countries
