Pianist Kate Liu makes Philippine debut on May 2 at Ayala Museum

Classical piano music lovers in Manila can't help but feel spoiled as yet another Laureate of the XVII International Chopin Piano Competition makes their way to the country. After Tony Yike Yang and Szymon Nehring's performances some months ago, it's now Kate Liu's turn to dazzle audiences in her Philippine debut on May 2, 2026, 7:00 PM at the Ayala Museum

Presented by Veniccio.com, in partnership with MA Piano Academy, Kate Liu's concert will see her perform Frédéric Chopin's 4 Mazurkas, Op. 30 and Piano Sonata No. 2 in B-flat minor, Op. 35, Robert Schumann's Arabeske in C major, Op. 18, and Johannes Brahms' Piano Sonata No. 1 in C major, Op. 1.

Kate Liu

Rising to international acclaim after winning Third Prize at the XVII International Fryderyk Chopin Competition in Warsaw, Kate Liu also received the Best Mazurka Prize and the Audience Favorite Prize through the Polish National Radio. Since then, she has toured extensively, performing at world-renowned venues including the Seoul Arts Center, Tokyo Metropolitan Theatre, Warsaw National Philharmonic, La Maison Symphonique de Montréal, Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall, and many more.

Kate Liu has collaborated with esteemed orchestras such as the Warsaw Philharmonic, Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal, Cleveland Orchestra, and Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra. She is a regular invitee to the Chopin and His Europe Festival in Warsaw, and in 2024 she was awarded the Olivier Berggruen Prize at the Gstaad Menuhin Festival.

Born in Singapore, Kate Liu began piano studies at age four and trained at the Curtis Institute of Music and The Juilliard School, earning her Bachelor’s, Master’s, and Artist Diploma. In 2025, she released her debut album featuring Beethoven and Brahms sonatas with Orchid Classics.

Here is a video of Kate Liu from the 3rd round of the XVII International Chopin Piano Competition performing my favorite Chopin piece ever.

Tickets for Kate Liu's concert are available at:

https://www.veniccio.com/products/kate-liu-in-recital

Szymon Nehring's Chopin dazzles at PPO's 2026 opener

Jeffrey Ching, Glober, Calambro, Andión Fernandez, Diomedes Saraza Jr.
Grzegorz Nowak, Szymon Nehring, Jonathan Velasco, and Dennis Marasigan

Back in October 2025, music lovers had their fill of Frédéric Chopin's music while the XIX International Chopin Piano Competition was underway. The devoted were glued to the livestreams during unholy hours while those valued sleep opted to watch the uploaded videos later on. But nothing still beats watching a well performed Chopin, especially one of his piano concertos, live. Thankfully, Polish pianist Szymon Nehring was recently in town for the latest concert of the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra (PPO), thus able to fulfill that craving for a live Chopin performance.

For his stint with the PPO, Nehring harkened back to his days as a finalist at the XVII International Chopin Piano Competition back in 2015 by performing Chopin's Piano Concerto in E minor, Op. 11, the same piece he played at the competition's final round. Under the baton of Maestro Grzegorz Nowak, Nehring dazzled with his familiar and comfortable take on Chopin. He generated excitement through his impeccable musicality especially with his elegant phrasing of the second movement Romanze. His technical mastery was also on full display at the third movement Rondo that prompted some audience members to applaud even before the final note of the orchestra ended.

An étude or any of Chopin's miniatures would've sufficed for an encore, but Nehring felt very generous performed Chopin's Grande polonaise brillante, Op.22 instead. This felt like received a belated Christmas gift even though it's halfway past January already.

Fortunately, the PPO stepped up to the plate and kept up with Nehring. Gone are the tiny slips that occasionally plague the orchestra and ultimately distract from the overall performance. There were no indications that the PPO came from the long holiday break.

The PPO were on top form probably because they were kept on their toes by the Jeffrey Ching piece that opened the concert. Ching's avant-garde works, to put it lightly, have challenged audience and orchestra members alike with their complex musical language that local audiences aren't used to. Surprisingly, the Ching work that opened the concert, Fenghuang Singing, is one of his more accessible works.

Grzegorz Nowak and the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra

The piece had soprano Andión Fernandez and trumpeter Glober Calambro, positioned among the audience at the orchestra section, engage in a musical conversation while accompanied by atmospheric strings. Both Fernandez and Calambro then moved, always in symmetry, to different parts of the orchestra section, as their conversation continues. A handful of musicians were also positioned at the upper boxes and their interwoven flourishes gave this piece a more spatial, immersive experience.

More interesting was the second part that had a fugue played by muted strings. The muted sound combined with an ever lingering but faint dissonance gave the music an incorporeal quality. This was made more evident with the unexpected beats from the drum set that felt a lot more palpable.

Overall, the visual element provided by the soprano and trumpeter, coupled with the discernible architecture of the fugue, made this Ching work a lot more palatable compared to the ones that have been performed by the PPO for the past couple of seasons.

Fernandez performed an encore, Wuxingming lao huashi an aria from Ching’s soon to be premiered opera The Butterflies which is based on the Chinese legend The Butterfly Lovers. Sung in Chinese, the aria was surprisingly tonal for a Ching work.

All of this made up for a front loaded program with only Franz Liszt's Les Préludes S.97 listed for the second half. While the PPO performed this symphonic poem competently, it eventually felt like an afterthought. But after Nehring's splendid Chopin, as well as a surprisingly accessible Ching, there was no reason to complain.

Pianists Carmencita Sipin-Aspiras, Inna Montesclaros join MSO for benefit concert

The music doesn't stop for the Manila Symphony Orchestra (MSO). Just a few days after the orchestra's 100th Anniversary Concert, the MSO gears up for Legacy on January 25, 2026, 7:30 PM at the Proscenium Theater at Rockwell, Makati.

Presented by the Manila Symphony Orchestra Foundation Inc. and the HSTL Foundation, Legacy features pianists Carmen Sipin-Aspiras and Inna Montesclaros as well as conductor Darrell Ang performing works by Frédéric Chopin and Johannes Brahms.

Carmencita Sipin-Aspiras

Carmencita Sipin-Aspiras gave her first orchestral performance as soloist in Manila at the age of 10, and her subsequent performances earned her a scholarship grant from the Philippine government to study at the prestigious Vienna Musik Hochschule in Austria. She obtained her Concert Artist Diploma and pursued a concertizing career in various countries in Europe, the Philippines, and the United States, where she now resides. Her artistry has received critical acclaim, with the Stuttgart newspaper Rheinische Volksblatt describing her as “a pianist of extraordinary capabilities and refinement of taste.”

Inna Montesclaros

Filipina multi-awarded pianist, Inna Montesclaros, has made waves in the music scene since her premier recital at age 8 at the Molina Hall, and her orchestral debut at age 11, performing Mozart’s D minor Concerto with the Manila Symphony Orchestra. Noted for her warm tones and sincere musicality, the piano prodigy turned Promil Kid has developed her love for her craft into a fulfilling concert career.

Darrell Ang

One of Asia’s most sought-after conductors, Darrell Ang conducted orchestras in over twenty countries across the globe in just one season. He is the Artistic Director and Chief Conductor of The Sichuan Orchestra of China since December 2016 and is a regular guest conductor at the Mariinsky Theatre by invitation of Maestro Valery Gergiev. Born in Singapore, Darrell has become the youngest Associate Conductor of the Singapore Symphony Orchestra to date.

Legacy sees the MSO perform for the very first time at the Proscenium Theater in Makati. The concert's program, a combination of works for solo piano, piano with orchestra, and orchestra, is a perfect vehicle to experience the theater's highly touted natural acoustics designed by Müller-BBM.

Manila Symphony Orchestra

Pieces to be performed include Johannes Brahms' Academic Festival Overture, Op. 80, Intermezzo in A minor, Op. 118 No. 1, Intermezzo in A major, Op. 118 No. 2, Rhapsody in G minor, Op. 79 No. 2, and Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat major, Op. 83 as well as Frédéric Chopin's Nocturne in E-flat major, Op. 55 No. 2 and Barcarolle in F-sharp Major, Op. 60.

MSO's Legacy is for the benefit of the MSO Foundation’s Basilio Manalo Scholarship Program, supporting the next generation of young Filipino musicians.

Szymon Nehring performs Chopin with PPO

Back in 2017, the Chopin Institute livestreamed a concert by the Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century under the baton of Gustavo Gimeno that included a performance of Frédéric Chopin's Piano Concerto No. 1 in E minor, Op. 11 with Szymon Nehring as the piano soloist.

This live broadcast made me stay awake way past my bedtime but that's a price I was willing to pay to see a performance by Nehring, a first prize winner at the 15th Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Competition (2017) and also a finalist at the XVII International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition (2015) when he was just only 19 years old.

Never did I imagine at the time that almost nine years later, I will have the chance to see Nehring perform the same concerto live here in the Philippines. 

Come January 16, 2026, 7:30 PM at the Samsung Performing Arts Theater, Polish pianist Szymon Nehring joins the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra (PPO) and Maestro Grzergorz Nowak in Preludi, the fifth concert for the orchestra's 41st Versatile concert season.

Szymon Nehring
Photo ©Bartek Barczyk

Jeffrey Ching's Fenghuang Singing, a work commissioned by the IMPULS Festival für Neue Musik in Sachsen-Anhalt to commemorate the 30th anniversary of German unification, will also be performed. Through music, this work describes the destruction and eventual rebirth of the cities of Magdeburg and Braunschweig while blending motifs from East and West German hymns. The piece also paints the image of the fenghuang or the phoenix bird from the Chinese ideographs in Mao Zedong’s calligraphy.

Andión Fernandez

Fenghuang Singing will also feature soprano Andión Fernandez. A soloist at the Deutsche Oper Berlin, Fernandez was last seen with the PPO performing in Ching's opera Before Brabant at the CCP's Children's Biennale back in November 2024.

Capping the concert is Franz Liszt's Les Préludes, his third and most popular symphonic poem. Initially conceived as an overture to the choral cycle, Les quatre élémens, Liszt later reworked this into his most familiar symphonic poem inspired by French poet's Alphone de Lamartine's Ode from Nouvelles méditations poétiques.

Tickets to PPO Concert V: Preludi, priced at P3,000, P2,500, P2,000, and P1,500 are available at TicketWorld. Subscription packages, where one can enjoy a 20% discount for the remainder of the PPO's 41st Concert Season, are still available. E-mail  salesandpromotions@culturalcenter.gov.ph or call the CCP Box Office at (+63)931-0330880 to be a subscriber.

Cecile Licad holds solo piano concert at Gallery MiraNila on October 1

Whenever world-renowned pianist Cecile Licad performs piano concertos with an orchestra, the final note is always greeted by deafening applause by a dazzled and enthralled audience. The combination of a large theater packed to the brim, a full symphony orchestra, technically demanding pieces, and Licad's larger than life stage presence all add up to a grand experience.

The above paragraph is mainly why the switch to a solo concert, with Licad and just a piano, at an intimate venue surrounded by the garden of an historic heritage house, make Cecile Licad Up Close, happening on October 1, 2025, 6:30 PM at the Gallery MiraNila, a must see.

Presented by the MiraNila Heritage House & Library in partnership with the Erehwon Center for the Arts and the P. Ilusorio Foundation and in collaboration with Gallery MiraNila by The Blue Leaf, Cecile Licad Up Close sees Licad performing Ludwig van Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 14 in C-sharp minor, Op. 27, No. 2 Quasi una fantasia or more popularly known as the Moonlight Sonata, Robert Schumman's Carnaval, Op. 9, Franz Liszt's St. Francis of Paola Walking on the Waves, a handful of Scott Joplin's ragtime pieces namely The Entertainer, Rose Leaf Rag, Stoptime Rag, and Easy Winters, and Frédéric Chopin's Ballade No. 1 in G minor, Op. 23.

A recipient of the Leventritt Gold Medal, Grand Prix du Disque, and Pamana ng Pilipino Award, Ms. Licad has also worked with esteemed orchestras and distinguished conductors, including the Philadelphia Orchestra under Eugene Ormandy, the New York Philharmonic under Zubin Mehta, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra under Claudio Abbado, as well as Sir Georg Solti, the National Symphony Orchestra under Mstislav Rostropovich, the Boston Symphony Orchestra under Seiji Ozawa, the London Symphony Orchestra under Kurt Masur, the London Philharmonic Orchestra under Andre Previn, and the Russian Academy State Orchestra (Moscow) under People’s Artist of Russia Mark Gorenstein.

Cecile Licad
Photo ©Patrick Diokno

She continues to captivate audiences at the Carnegie Hall and, most recently, on tour with famed Wynton Marsalis and his brass band playing alongside Louis, a modern silent film based on the early years of the legendary trumpetist Louis Armstrong.

The Gallery MiraNila concert offers a rare opportunity to hear this most decorated of Filipino classical artists in the intimate setting of the hall.

Tickets for her one-night-only solo concert in Metro Manila are priced at P3,500 (premium) and P3,000 (regular).

For tickets, text Bern at 0906-547-8268 or email miranilaheritage@gmail.com.

Apart from the concert, guests can avail of pre-concert cocktails and post-concert dinners on offer. The pre-concert sunset cocktail hour from 5:00-6:00 PM, serving cocktails and charcuterie with panoramic sunset views is priced at P1,000 per guest. While the post-concert dinner, a curated late dinner under the stars by Bizu on the rooftop cost P2,000 per guest.

Spots can be booked at: https://bit.ly/3JvaG9q

Other guests can avail of the Bizu pasta station and light snacks for sale during the intermission and after the concert.

MiraNila Heritage House & Library is located at 26 Mariposa Street, Brgy Bagong Lipunan Crame, Q.C. Facebook: MiraNila Heritage House Events.

Cecile Licad Up Close is presented by the Benitez-Tirona MiraNila Foundation in partnership with the Erehwon Center for the Arts, P. Ilusorio Foundation, and Gallery MiraNila by The Blue Leaf.

Cellist Damodar Das Castillo excites in Strings of Gold series opener

Mariel Ilusorio and Damodar Das Castillo

With a remarkable combination of youthful vigor and artistic maturity, cellist Damodar Das Castillo continues to excite as he and the ever reliable pianist Mariel Ilusorio officially christened the MiraNila Heritage House and Library as Metro Manila's newest classical music performance venue.

The concert also served as the unveiling of the newly restored Steinway 1904 grand piano.  With its dark brown finish and various ornate accents like the rococo-styled feet, the rare piano is a welcome change to the dominant stark black concert grand pianos that have dominated the scene for decades. 

But the audience had to wait a bit to hear the piano as the program began with a solo by Damodar performing the Prelude from Suite No. 3 in C major, BWV 1009 by Johann Sebastian Bach. Right off the bat, Damodar, exuded a level of confidence and security that is beyond his 17 years.

And when joined by the seasoned Ilusorio in Frédéric Chopin's Cello Sonata in G minor, Op. 65, he held is own and the two played as equals as if longtime collaborators. The meaty Chopin sonata could've served as the concert finale piece but this just wrapped up the first half.

The second half was a mixed selection of pieces starting with Faye Miravite's Transcendence that uniquely incorporates Damodar's meditative chants. This was followed by Nicanor Abelardo's Cavatina, Henry Mancini's Moon River, and Richard Rodgers' Edelweiss, a trio of pleasant tunes. The familiarity of the latter two pieces unfortunately prompted some audience members to hum along with a few doing so severely off key.

To close out the program, Damodar performed the first movement of Antonín Dvořák's Cello Concerto in B minor, Op. 104, B. 191. With such aplomb, Ilusorio showcased the newly restored Steinway's brilliance effectively, laying aside whatever misgiving an audience member who longed for an actual orchestra might've had. The longing would've been for the complete concerto being performed instead.

Post performance Q&A

The MiraNila audience couldn't get enough of the duo and they were rewarded with Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's Pezzo capriccioso, Op. 62 and Ennio Morricone's Gabriel's Oboe from The Mission as encores that kept the mix of standard classical repertoire with the more recent, crowd-pleasing music presented in the concert.

The high ceiling of MiraNila house provided natural amplification and reverb, but making it very unforgiving even with the slightest intonation error. Thankfully, Damodar was very secure with his cello, showing no signs of hesitation. The only hesitation he had was during the post-performance Q&A section wherein he responded with just brief words compared to the more Ilusorio who gave eloquent answers as well as annotations throughout the evening.

The MiraNila Heritage House's inaugural Strings of Gold concert once again proved that Damodar Das Castillo is one of the country's most exciting young artists who has the potential to be a headliner on the international stage. And that Mariel Ilusorio remains one of the most reliable pianists who let her collaborators be at ease and truly shine on stage as well.

Roustem Saïtkoulov delivers exceptional Chopin at PPO concert

Roustem Saïtkoulov, Grzegorz Nowak, and the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra 

Despite all the behind the scenes drama that surrounded the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra's latest outing, guest pianist Roustem Saïtkoulov delivered a noteworthy performance that turned the concert into a resounding success.

Even before the first note was played, there was already a figurative dark cloud hovering within the Samsung Performing Arts Theater as the Cultural Center of the Philippines and the PPO were mourning the passings of Zenaida R. Tantoco, former CCP Board of Trustee Member and a patroness of the orchestra, and of Leonardo "Ding" Malazo, former PPO Asisstant Principal Cellist.

Grzegorz Nowak and the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra 

Add to the atmosphere the disappointment that lingered still in some audience members who for months leading into the concert were anticipating a different pianist. So to say that Saïtkoulov's take on Frédéric Chopin's Piano Concerto No. 2 in F minor, Op. 21 would be more scrutinized than usual was no exaggeration.

Roustem Saïtkoulov, CCP President Michelle Nikki Junia,
and Grzegorz Nowak 

Thankfully, Saïtkoulov presented a Chopin that more than just satisfied. It was a rendition that was well within expectations (no eyebrow raising, radical deviations from the norm) yet still brimming with excitement. With his hands, the ornamentations in the second movement Larghetto were crystalline and he undoubtedly made the Fazioli piano sing. His performance has been the most moving of the season so far evidenced by the resounding cheers and applause from the audience. And by the time he played the last chords of his encore, Chopin's Étude Op. 10, No. 12 in C minor, Revolutionary, he most likely have already swayed the most jaded audience member who clung on to a Zimerman performance up to the last minute.

Polish Amb. Jarosław Szczepankiewicz, Roustem Saïtkoulov,
and Grzegorz Nowak 

So remarkable was Saïtkoulov's Chopin that the other pieces namely Karol Kurpiński's Dwie Chatki (Two Cottages) Overture, Mieczysław Karłowicz' Powracające fale, Op. 9 (Returning Waves), and Stanisław Moniuszko's Bajka (The Fairy Tale) Overture were rendered forgettable. With Grzegorz Nowak at the podium, the picturesque music by these Polish composers captured the audience at the moment but it was the Chopin that still lingered and elicited the conversations at the lobby long after the final note has died down.

PPO announces Roustem Saïtkoulov as guest pianist for February concert

Roustem Saïtkoulov 

A statement posted by pianist Krystian Zimerman on his Facebook page last Thursday clarifying his participation at the upcoming Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra concert caused a stir in the classical music circle here.

Too say that people who were looking forward to seeing him live in Manila got disappointed by how things unfolded (no Zimerman in Manila) is an understatement.

Now, the dust has somewhat settled and the Cultural Center of the Philippines has finally announced that Roustem Saïtkoulov is now the pianist performing with the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra at the next concert happening on February 9, 2024, 7:30 PM at the Samsung Performing Arts Theater in Circuit, Makati.

Instead of a Beethoven piano concerto (either the 4th or the 2nd, depending which info one has), Saïtkoulov will perform Frédéric Chopin's Piano Concerto No. 2 in F minor, Op. 21 which means that this concert can still be billed as Piano Rapture. It remains to be seen though if the other pieces in the program would still be Stanisław Moniuszko's Bajka (The Fairy Tale) Overture and Sergei Rachmaninoff's Symphony No. 2 in E minor, Op. 27. But one thing for sure is that Grzegorz Nowak will be conducting.

More information about Roustem Saïtkoulov can be found at the press release reprinted below.

PPO CONCERT VI PUSHES THROUGH WITH PIANIST ROUSTEM SAITKOULOV

The Cultural Center of the Philippines and the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra wish to inform the public that the Concert VI of its 39th season, slated on February 9, 2024, will no longer have pianist Krystian Zimerman as its guest performer due to logistic concerns and technical requirements needed for the performance.

“We know that this announcement has come as an enormous letdown, not only to our subscribers, patrons, and stakeholders, but also to the whole music community who were looking forward to the said performance,” said CCP president Michelle Nikki Junia.

The concert will push through on February 9, 2024, at the Samsung Performing Arts Theater in Circuit Makati. The CCP and PPO are very grateful to celebrated pianist Roustem Saitkoulov for being able to step in at short notice.

Under the baton of Maestro Grzegorz Nowak, pianist Saitkoulov will perform F. Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 2 in F minor.

Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra
Photo ©Rodel Valiente

Born in Kazan (Republic of Tatarstan), Roustem Saitkoulov studied at the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow and at the University of Music in Munich.

He is the prizewinner at numerous international competitions and the winner of the Rome Piano Competition and Grand Prix of the Montecarlo World Piano-Masters in 2003. Roustem Saitkoulov is frequently performing with world’s renowned orchestras, such as Royal Philharmonic Orchestra London, Monte-Carlo Philharmonic Orchestra, Prague Symphony Orchestra, Sinfonia Varsovia, RAI Symphony Orchestra Torino, Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, Tokyo New City Orchestra or Beijing Symphony Orchestra. He has made many concert tours with the St-Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Yuri Temirkanov in Europe and Asia.

His concerts and recitals take him all over the world: to Russia (International House of Music, Moscow and Philharmonia Hall of St Petersburg), China (NCPA Beijing and Guangzhou Opera House), Japan (Great Hall of the Metropolitan Art Space and Osaka Symphony Hall), Chile (Frutillar), Argentina (Teatro Colón and CCNK), Mexico (Palacio de Bellas Artes), Australia (Sydney Opera House), the United States (Carnegie Hall), Canada, South Africa and throughout many of the most important venues in Europe.

He is invited in world’s leading festivals including Montreux, La Roque d’Anthéron, Yokohama, Bologna Festival, Merano, Rimini (Sagra Malatestiana), Ravello, Brescia-Bergamo, Edinburgh, Piano aux Jacobins (Toulouse, France), Festival de Radio France-Montpellier, Menton Festival or Printemps des Arts de Montecarlo.

He recorded several solo piano CD albums for EMI Classics and Dinemec Classics. In 2012, Master Chord Records released with him the two Chopin Piano Concertos with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. More recently he has recorded Shostakovich Concerto n° 1 and the Concerto for Piano and Trumpet by the contemporary Estonian composer Jaan Rääts. His last Chopin recital CD has received highest acclaims including “Choc” of the Classica Magazine.

Grzegorz Nowak

“Moving forward, the CCP and the PPO will continue to work hard to bring the Filipino audiences the unique events they will surely love and enjoy. We are not closing our doors to have Mr. Zimerman perform with the PPO in the near future. Though it’s true that PPO Concert VI will no longer take place in the way that we intended, we continue to strive to fulfill our mission as the leading art institution in the country,” said CCP artistic director Dennis Marasigan.

Pianist Zimerman leaves the doors open for possible collaboration in the future with the CCP and the PPO. “My dear Philippine friends, I understand that this is disappointing news for you, as it also is for me, I will be happy to come at some other time,” he said in his Facebook post.

For ticket concerns and subscriptions, contact the CCP Sales and Promotion at salesandpromotions@culturalcenter.gov.ph.

Cecile Licad performs in post-Valentines online concert

A post-valentine online recital by world renowned pianist Cecile Licad is all set this February 22, 2022, 5:00 PM streaming through Zoom.

Presented by Megaworld and Rustan's for the benefit of the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra Society, Inc. (PPOSI), the event, dubbed as Amore: A Post-Valentine Hour with Cecile Licad in New York, will feature performances by Licad interwoven with an interview by David Dubal filmed at the Lotos Club in New York.

Licad will perform piano favorites that include Frédéric Chopin's Étude Op. 10, No. 3, in E Major "Tristesse", Scherzo No. 2 in B-flat minor, Op. 31, and Ballade No. 1 in G minor, Op. 23; Ludwig van Beethoven’s Piano Sonata No. 14 in C-sharp minor, Op. 27, No. 2 Quasi una fantasia more popularly known as the Moonlight Sonata; Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Prelude in G minor, Op. 23, No. 5, Prelude in E-flat Major, Op. 23, No. 6, and Prelude in A minor, Op. 32, No. 8, and Francisco Buencamino Hibik ng Diwa (Soul’s Lament).

Amore is presented by Megaworld and Rustan's along with sponsors SSI Group, Inc., Starbucks, San Miguel Corporation, BPI, and Mr. Danny Dolor.

To purchase tickets priced at P1500 each, contact Lulu Casas (0917) 570-8301, lgcasas@rgoc.com.ph or Maricar Alamodin (0917) 538-4508, esalamodin@rgoc.com.ph. A purchase of 10 tickets will get 2 complimentary passes. One can also visit https://bit.ly/3I6r2Qy.

Ballet Manila's Deux: A lot more than just Chopin and The Beatles ballets

Ballet Manila's Deux

Even before the first step was made on stage, Ballet Manila's CEO and Co-Artistic Director Lisa Macuja-Elizalde explained that their season ender Deux is more than just a pairing of the classical and the contemporary. Deux also means a pair of dancers in a Pas de deux which also the show features, the two sexes highlighted in their respective numbers, and as a side note, a birthday celebration of the company's very own Dames twins.

Joshua Enciso and Akari Ida in La Bayadere

The show got off to a good start with La Bayadere that showcased danseur Joshua Enciso who showed more maturity with greater control since I saw him last. As Solor, he danced with more polish and kept his tendency to go wild in check. His presence on stage is still so dominant that it takes an effort to keep an eye on his partner Akari Ida. There is a certain comfort and flair in her dancing as Gamzatti that makes me feel at ease, but sometimes she was dwarfed figuratively by her very imposing partner.

Sayaka Ishibashi and Rafael Perez in Flames of Paris

Such an opener was a tough act to follow that Sayaka Ishibashi and Rafael Perez had to step up to keep the momentum with their Flames of Paris Pas de deux. While the two managed to execute the steps, the polish and the character still need to be developed. I just have to remind myself that this is a young pair and that Ballet Manila has always shown guts by letting their junior/new company members do demanding numbers such as this that is usually reserved for more seasoned members.

The next couple of variations were an odd insertion. While it was great to see more of Hyuma as a rather haughty Ali in his variation from Le Corsaire, I wished that Alvin Dictado had more exposure since before I knew it, his Albrecht variation from Giselle is already done and over with.

Elpidio Magat as the Poet in Chopiniana

The main anchor of the first part was Chopiniana, a picturesque showcase that had the corps holding such unusual and intricate angles with their necks, arms, and torso and making them look easy in the process. It made me wonder how groundbreaking these unusual alignments were, in contrast to the classical vein of being always up and vertical, around a century ago when this ballet premiered This was also a showcase for Elpidio Magat as the sensitive poet, and the lead muses composed of Joan Sia, Nanami Hasegawa, and Rissa May Camaclang.

Gerardo Francisco as the soloist in Aramica

The second, contemporary half of the show began with Bam Damian III's Aramica, a slow crescendo that had the male company members parade on to the stage with music from Aram Khachaturian's Spartacus that surged into a powerful display of testosterone exemplified by Gerardo Francisco, who was the soloist for this signature piece. Ballet Manila is distinct for the number of its danseurs it has and it knows how to highlight them.

Pia Dames and Hyuma Kiyosawa in Diane et Acteon

Guest danseur and winner of the silver medal in the Junior Category of the USA International Ballet Competition in Jackson, Mississippi, Hyuma Kiyosawa returns for the Diane et Acteon Pas de deux with one of the night's birthday twins, Pia Dames. Pia showed character, spunk and grit not allowing a slight misstep towards the end of her fouettés dampen her disposition. While she looked diminutive besides the tall and technically impressive Hyuma, she proved that she was a match in intensity.

The Winding Road

The show reached its climax with the world premiere of Martin Lawrance's The Winding Road, a fun ballet set to the music of legendary band, The Beatles. Once again, this highlighted the strength of the danseurs especially the quartet of principals namely Rudy de Dios, Gerardo Francisco, Romeo Peralta, and Elpidio Magat. I admit that I never really gravitated towards The Beatles and was never really crazy about their music. But seeing how Lawrence (who admits to be a huge fan of the Fab Four) choreographed the selection of songs gave me an opportunity to appreciate the music in ways that I never thought possible. Seeing how he told the story visually through dance made me notice elements of The Beatles music like the song structure, rhythms, arrangement, and influences (I was caught off guard with the Greek music in Girl) that I sadly never took notice if before. It was a revelation for me to sit there watching the dancers go through the highs and lows of life while scrutinizing and deconstructing the music and that pleased me a lot.

It pleased some audience members too since more than a few were eager to hit the dance floor to The Beatles' tunes right after the company took their bows. And having dancing audiences leaving the Aliw Theater is a fine way to cap a season.

Catch the final weekend of Deux this March 9, 2019, 6:00 PM and March 10, 2019, 3:00 PM at the Aliw Theater.

RAd's Playlist | Chopin Ballets, The Beatles 1

In preparation for the upcoming Deux by Ballet Manila that features the music of Frédéric Chopin and The Beatles, it's time to listen to a couple of recordings to be more familiar with the music. Like what I've said before, doing this makes me anticipate, appreciate, and enjoy the performance more.

The ballet Les Sylphides has undergone some changes throughout the years but everything began when Alexander Glazunov orchestrated some of Chopin's piano music and published it as Chopiniana, Op. 46 in 1894. Michael Fokine set this selection of music into choreography, subsequently adding and removing different music by Chopin while other arrangers then made different orchestrations of these selections.

Eventually, the most used and most recorded version of Les Sylphides/Chopiniana music is the one orchestrated by Roy Douglas and I believe that this will be what will be heard in Deux.

As for The Winding Road featuring the music of The Beatles, one might think that it's a no brainer to start elsewhere other than the 1 compilation album. But some of the excerpts of this new work that were previewed did not feature music included in this compilation. So one either has to dig into the extensive discography of the Fab Four or just be surprised to see which tracks makes it to the finished ballet.

Ballet Manila goes from Chopin to the Beatles in Deux

Ballet Manila caps its 23^rd performance season with Deux, a twin bill showcasing classical and contemporary ballet, on March 2-3,  9-10, 2019 at the Aliw Theater.

Pia Dames and Joshua Enciso

Pas de action from La Bayadere

Elpidio Magat and Joan Sia

Waltz from Les Sylphides

The first half of the program, featuring the classical portion of the show will highlight Les Sylphides or Chopiniana as it is more popularly known in Russia. Set to the Romantic music of Frédéric Chopin with lyrical choreography by Michel Fokine, Les Sylphides is an almost plot less ballet wherein the Poet is surrounded by his muses that are white-clad sylphs or air spirits, dancing in the moonlight. Ballet Manila CEO and Co-Artistic Director Lisa Macuja-Elizalde likens the atmosphere of the ballet to a trance like state when one is most creative. But there's more to the first half than just  poet and sylphs as other vignettes from the classical ballet repertoire will be performed also.

Hyuma Kiyosawa and Sayaka Ishibashi

Diane et Acteon Pas de deux

Girl from The Winding Road

Girl from The Winding Road

For the second half, the dancers switch gears and go contemporary with the world premiere of Martin Lawrance’s The Winding Road a new contemporary ballet set to the immortal music of The Beatles. For Lawrance, each of the nine songs he chose for this ballet tells a little story and he will weave these stories together through a winding road before they eventually coming together in the end. The Winding Road will be Lawrance's fifth choreographic work for Ballet Manila after Misfit or Maverick (2014), Rebel (2016), Amid Shadows (2016), and Aria (2018).

Osias Barroso, Rudy de Dios, Joan Sia, Martin Lawrance, Lisa Macuja-Elizalde,
Gerardo Francisco, Romeo Peralta, and Elpidio Magat

Ballet Manila's season ender Deux not just brings out the best of both styles of ballet featuring music by Chopin and The Beatles that has definitely stood the best of time. There is no question that I'll have for a spin recordings of the music to pump myself up in time for this show.