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| Violinist Bùi Công Duy |
Featuring:
Bùi
Công Duy, violin
Philippine
Philharmonic Orchestra
Jae-Joon
Lee, conductor
Programme:
Johannes
Brahms Academic Festival Overture,
Op. 80
Max
Bruch Violin Concerto No. 1 in G minor,
Op. 26
Hector
Berlioz Symphonie Fantastique, Op.
14
As
previously announced, pre-concert lectures given by associate conductor,
Herminigildo Ranera is back and he did give one to the people who were there
early. I wasn’t able to listen much but I heard him talking about the
contrabassoon to be used later. Going to the concert proper, the show started with Johannes
Brahms Academic Festival Overture, Op. 80 which is really a piece that is
filled with drinking songs that were popular with students during the time of
its composition. Unfortunately, the inside joke was lost as time went on but current
listeners like myself can still appreciate the magnificent orchestration, contrabassoon included, by
Brahms. And the orchestration did shine since the PPO, under the baton of Jae-Joon
Lee, sounded a lot better which I think was spurred by the inspiring performance
of the Taipei Symphony Orchestra a week before.
And
speaking of weeks, the Violin Concerto in G minor, Op. 26 by Max Bruch was
heard once again a the CCP exactly a week later. This time around, Vietnamese
violinist Bùi Công Duy was the featured soloist and thankfully, I wasn’t sick
and tired of this piece yet. His rendition showed restraint and a great deal of
control giving emphasis to key moments throughout the piece. And I got a lot of what he
said during the masterclass like playing the notes distinctly and not rushing
them. It was definitely a treat for those who find this violin concerto among
their favorites if they were able to watch both performances.
The
number of people during the first half of the evening didn’t look too promising
and I suspected that a lot got stuck in traffic due to the 11-11-11 events. A lot did arrive late and was
relegated to the back of the hall in order not to disturb the other members of
the audience during the first half. By the second half of the concert, there was already a good sized
audience who were ready for the final piece of the evening which was Hector
Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique. This piece has a very interesting origin and
one really had to know it to fully understand, appreciate and feel the music.
As always, love has been the driving force for a lot of enduring works in music
and art in general and this piece is no exception. Composed by a young,
irrational Berlioz for actress, Harriet Smithson when his previous love letters
for her were left unanswered, this piece is a monumental undertaking from
someone who was hopelessly smitten and it manifested in the grandeur of
the piece. For almost an hour, the PPO transported me to a fantasy realm of
obsession, desperate longing, dazzling balls, ominous march, and a wild dance.
And seeing and hearing an Eb clarinet made me want to have one to add to the Bb
clarinet that I already own.
For
many in the audience, the most memorable part of the concert was the encore
which was Danzón No. 2 by Arturo
Márquez. I wasn’t able to get what Jae-Joon Lee said when he announced the
encore but upon hearing the opening clarinet line, I knew right away what the
piece was. And I quickly recalled the encore that the PPO did during their
previous concert, Huapango, which was by yet another Mexican composer and a
piece that also recently became closely associated with Gustavo Dudamel and the
Orquesta Sinfónica Simón Bolívar back when they were still a youth orchestra.
And for a moment, the PPO and Jae-Joon Lee seemed to be transported back to the
time of their youth. The orchestra enjoyed themselves very much while playing
this and Jae-Joon Lee even swayed and danced to the beat and also urged the
audience to clap along.
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| Maestro Jae-Joon Lee in a post concert discussion with Raul Sunico, CCP President and violinist Gilopez Kabayao |
The
concerts keep on coming and the bar is being raised for every performance and
I couldn’t be happier. What also made me very glad after this concert was
seeing a number of Korean kids among the audience who mobbed Maestro during the
meet and greet. I do hope that these kids will grow up and be regular concert
goers as well.
The Masterclass
I
really prefer it when a masterclass happens before the concert since I am able
to appreciate the performance a lot more when this occurs. Experiencing a
masterclass, seeing how it was conducted, taking notes of the points made and
having a glimpse of the musician’s off stage persona can really make a
difference in the viewing of the actual concert. And I did get to experience
this during Bùi Công Duy’s masterclass. He had some difficulty in articulating
himself in English since he is not a native speaker of the language. But that
didn’t hamper him in giving specific instructions regarding the technique in
order to bring the optimum and desired sound from the students. Someone with a
weak constitution may find his teaching methods a bit too harsh especially if
there are a lot of corrections to be done. But after the masterclass, it was a
different and a friendlier Bùi Công Duy who gamely posed for photos and invited
everyone to watch his concert the day later.
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