Happy New Year everyone! 2016 was indeed music filled and and it definitely helped me get through such a tension filled year. I apologize that updates for the past year had been scarce, there is no excuse for that. But I believe that the arrival of the new year will whip me up back to shape literally and figuratively resulting in more regular updates. To start the 2017 ball rolling, here are just a few music events to look forward to this year.
The remainder of Yoshikazu Fukumura’s debut season with the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra resumes with violinist Diomedes Saraza, Jr., cellist Renato Lucas, pianist Monique Duphil, and the orchestra’s former music director Olivier Ochanine as the featured guest artists. May there be no more snags this time so that I will finally see Olivier conduct Dmitri Shostakovich's Symphony No. 10 in E minor, Op. 93.
Fukumura will also lead the PPO in select Gala performances of Ballet Philippines’ production of Swan Lake which will be running this February 24-March 5, 2017.
The Manila Symphony Orchestra now adds another night and venue for their 2017 gala concerts. Sunday concerts will happen now at the Henry Lee Irwin Theater, located at the Ateneo de Manila University campus in Loyola Heights Quezon City, just a day after the Saturday concerts at the Power Mac Center Spotlight in Circuit, Makati. This is good news for residents from the northern part of Metro Manila who find Makati too far a venue. The additional date also gives avid concertgoers the choice whether to catch the Saturday or the Sunday performance which is a godsend during a concert/event packed weekend. A definite highlight of the MSO’s upcoming season is a performance of Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana this October 7, 2017 at the Meralco Theater that aims to follow in the footsteps of the recent sold out season finale concert that featured Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 in C major, Op. 120.
For a limited time only, discounted subscription rates of P4000 (Henry Lee Irwin and Meralco Theater package) and P4500 (Power Mac Center Spotlight and Meralco Theater package) are available through info@manilasymphony.com or by calling 523-4712.
Gerard Salonga and the ABS-CBN Philharmonic Orchestra, on the other hand, will be part of Tatlo 3 Nations. 1 Voice. happening this January 14, 2017 at the Theater at Solaire. In this concert, the Ateneo Chamber Singers, led by conductor Jonathan M. Velasco, will be joined by the Gaia Philharmonic Choir from Japan and the SYC Ensemble Singers from Singapore. Gerard hasn't been able to contain his excitement in having Leonard Bernstein's Chichester Psalms included in this concert. Apart from this, Gerard will be shuttling back and forth to Hong Kong as he continues his stint as an Assistant Conductor for the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra under Maestro Jaap van Zweden.
Happening just a few weeks from now is the 60th anniversary staging of Felipe de Leon and Guillermo Tolentino's Noli Me Tangere the Opera at the Cultural Center of the Philippines this January 28-February 3, 2017. New York based events and floral designer Jerry Sibal will be having his directorial debut with this opera. With Sibal also handling the set and costume design duties, it's been said that this production will feature the largest set that the CCP has ever had for an opera.
Three years after taking Manila by storm, Korean soprano Sumi Jo returns for a one night concert this February 7, 2017 at the Meralco Theater. She will be joined once again by collaborating pianist Najib Ismail. I have yet to see what she has in store for this evening but I'll be very pleased if she includes the Academy Award nominated Simple Song #3 in her song lineup.
These are just a few of what's on the horizon this 2017. More details about the concerts listed above and more will be coming in future blog posts. I'll also document in here what I've been listening, watching, reading, learning and playing at the moment. By sharing my experiences and ongoing journey in the world of classical music, I hope that I'll be able to entice more people to watch classical music performances in here.
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