Sunday, September 14, 2014

HKPO Cellist Richard Bamping returns for ABS-CBN Philharmonic Orchestra concert


September 20, 2014, 8:00 PM
Francisco Santiago Hall
South Tower, BDO Corporate Center
Makati

Featuring:
Richard Bamping, cello
ABS-CBN Philharmonic Orchestra
Gerard Salonga, conductor

Programme:
Johannes Brahms Tragische Ouvertüre, Op. 81
Edward Elgar Cello Concerto in E minor, Op. 85
Johannes Brahms Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Op. 68

The ABS-CBN Philharmonic Orchestra Spotlight Series’ final offering this year features the return of Richard Bamping, the Principal Cello of the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, this September 20, 2014, 8:00 PM at the Francisco Santiago Hall at the BDO Corporate Center in Makati.

Richard Bamping joins the orchestra and its principal conductor/music director Gerard Salonga in a performance of Edward Elgar’s Cello Concerto in E minor, Op. 85, one of the most performed cello concertos ever. Two of Johannes Brahms works, Tragische Ouvertüre, Op. 81 and Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Op. 68 will also be performed on this night as well.

Richard plays with a cello made by Andrea Guarneri from year 1674, one of the only eight surviving of his work. And it will be fascinating to hear how this priceless instrument sounds when he plays the Elgar Cello Concerto.

Cellist Richard Bamping

In an e-mail interview, I was able to ask Richard a few questions about the concerto he is scheduled to perform.

I was able to see you back in 2010 when you performed Dvořák's Cello Concerto with FILharmoniKA. What were your memories regarding that concert? And what are you looking forward to in your return performance in Manila?

What I remember from my last visit to Manila was really dedicated music making from a bunch of really friendly people! As a musician who is still a music lover, this is an ideal recipe from which to create a tasty dish! I can't wait to hear what we can cook up this time...

What can you say about Elgar's Cello Concerto? What makes this piece very special and what does it mean to you?

The Elgar concerto is very special to me in that it was the piece of music which made me want to play the cello when I was 6 years old.  It was Jacqueline du Pré’s recording which I heard on my 6th Birthday and I begged my parents for a whole year to buy me a cello which I got for my 7th Birthday.

This piece has long been associated with THE Jacqueline du Pré. How does a cellist approach this piece knowing that it could possibly be measured against du Pré's definitive performance?

I LOVE Jacquie's recordings of the Elgar, but I don't really see any recording or performance as definitive. Great music is by its own durability going to be interpreted many times by many people.  For instance, Jacquie takes many famous liberties with tempi and rubato where Elgar specifically asks for something else. In fact it’s very interesting to learn the concerto from an academic standpoint. Elgar was an amazingly accurate composer who notated every tiny detail of interpretation in his music. Often, when one listens to Elgar one thinks it is one gigantic piece of romantic rubato but to see it written down, you realise that he had an idea for every micro second of the piece. It’s almost like Mahler or Stravinsky in this respect.  I've been living with this piece for the past 35 years - I definitely have something to say about it :)

I learned from Gerard Salonga that the Elgar Cello Concerto was the first item to be programmed for this concert. And rather than frame it, he chose pieces that would offer the biggest sense of resolution at the end of the concert. Hence, by the last movement of Brahms Symphony No. 1, Gerard hopes that the first time the orchestra plays the theme in C major, everyone (orchestra and the audience) will be hit by an overwhelming feeling of joy (pun intended by Gerard).

The Spotlight Series is the ABS-CBN Philharmonic Orchestra’s chain of concerts highlighting masterpieces from world renowned composers, performers and music masters.

Ticket Prices:
P1200 Orchestra Premium
P1000 Orchestra Regular
P600 Balcony

For inquiries:
Karlo Cea 415-2272 local 2409, (0937) 410-3242
TicketWorld 891-9999

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