RAd’s Page Turners | Daytripper

Whenever someone asks me what comicbook I would recommend to someone who has read little or no comics at all, I almost always recommend Daytripper by the Brazilian wonder twins Fábio Moon and Gabriel Bá. Published by Vertigo, a mature titles imprint of DC, Daytripper is available in one nifty volume that remains perennially in print, collecting all ten issues of the limited series. So one gets a complete story at once without needing any commitment to get succeeding volumes. And if it turns out to be not their cup of tea, well I have yet to encounter someone who was disappointed with this recommendation.

At the heart of Daytripper is Brás de Oliva Domingos, a newspaper obituary writer living under the shadow of his father who is a leading literary figure in Brazil. Each chapter highlights a brief moment in Brás life and then always ends with his death punctuated by an obituary that could’ve been written by Brás himself.

Brás unexpected death at the end of the first issue along with the second installment jumping back to years earlier with another snapshot of his life and then the issue ending at his death once again baffled monthly readers back then. But by the third issue, readers knew what to expect and continued to savor the glimpses of Brás life and that of his lovers, family and friends knowing that his death looms at the last page.

During one of the latter chapters, Brás was never seen and yet his presence was still greatly felt. Those with the coldest of hearts will be the only ones left unmoved by this portion of the book.

I can’t stress how essential this graphic novel is. The lush art of Fábio Moon and Gabriel Bá transports the reader to numerous exotic locales while delivering a very human story that shoots straight to the core. It is also remarkable how the two managed to maximize the serialized nature of the work and yet retaining an elegant pace when read as a collected whole.

13th Spring Festival: Epic scale weighs down A Tale of Three Cities

One of the film selections in this year’s 13^th Spring Film Festival is the period romance A Tale of Three Cities from 2015 directed by Mabel Cheung. This sprawling epic tells the love story of Charles and Lee-Lee Chan, parents of action superstar Jackie Chan.

Starring Ching Wan Lau as Fang Daolong (Charles Chan) and Wei Tang as Chen Yuerong (Lee-Lee Chan), this movie heavily reminded me of David Lean’s Doctor Zhivago wherein the horrors of the war/revolution also took its toll on the love affair of the protagonists.

Probably to avoid offending Jackie Chan who was reported to have cried and cried upon seeing the film, Daolong and Yuerong’s story appeared to have been greatly romanticized. What was left are lead characters whose edges have been dulled to the point of being too sentimental and saccharine. And these edges were instead given to the supporting pair of Hailu Qin as the street smart Qiu and Boran Jing as the mysterious intellectual Hua. These characters were more intriguing but their side stories that also included a love story of their own served as an unnecessary distraction from the main love story.

  

A Tale of Three Cities was meant to be a sweeping epic, a moving story of love’s triumph despite the turbulence of war. But the ambitious scale that spans decades and three cities came at the expense of well rounded characters. Without fully realized and truly engaging characters, it was hard to feel the way that Jackie Chan did while sitting through this movie. Stretched to over two hours due protracted storytelling, the film still left some questions unanswered like what happened to Daolong’s sons. The separations and eventual reunions felt repetitive and the coincidences were too forced to be believable.

Catch A Tale of Three Cities and five other Chinese films at the 13^th Spring Film Festival running up to February 5, 2019 at the Shangri-La Plaza’s Red Carpet.

Sunico's historic Rachmaninoff repeat: memory over musicality

Pianist Raul Sunico and PPO violist Claudinia Ronquillo

International pianist Raul Sunico brought the audience to its feet after performing all the four piano concertos of Sergei Rachmaninoff in a single evening for the second time, fifteen years after making history as the first on record to achieve this feat.

Since his historic performance back in September 2003, no other pianist has ever attempted to tackle the four fiendishly difficult pieces in one night, until Sunico himself had this repeat performance with the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra led by Yoshikazu Fukumura and Herminigldo Ranera that served as a fund raiser for the Sunico Foundation for Arts and Technology, Inc. in which he is a trustee.

This rare occasion brought out a distinguished audience that included former First Lady Imelda Marcos, National Artist for Literature Virgilio Armalio, Education Secretary Leonor Briones, US Ambassador Sung Kim, TV host Korina Sanchez, and fashion designer Josie Natori just to name a few. Of course, Sunico’s colleagues and notables from the classical music scene were there in full force to witness the event dubbed as A Rach Concert.

Initial announcement had Yohiskazu Fukumura slated to conduct the first half of the concert consisting of Piano Concerto No. 1 in F sharp minor, Op. 1 and Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Op. 18 and Herminigildo Ranera leading the PPO during the latter half with Piano Concerto No. 3 in D minor, Op. 30, and Piano Concerto No. 4 in G minor, Op. 40 to be performed in reverse order. But due to unforeseen circumstances, Fukumura had to lighten his load conducting only the mega popular second concerto leaving Ranera to conduct the remaining three. Back in 2003, Ranera conducted during the entire performance.

I would’ve been extremely delighted had the audience been treated to an exceptional performance that night. Instead, the evening felt more of hoping that Sunico would get through all four piano concertos rather than a showcase of musicality from an experienced concert pianist. Instead of gaining new artistic insights regarding these pieces, it was an anxious experience for me waiting for both pianist and orchestra to get back on track after dicey moments that occurred far too often than I would’ve liked. The evening became more of a testament to Sunico’s impeccable memory (he performed without scores) and his ability to remain unfazed despite circumstances that would’ve crumbled a less able pianist.

This may be an unpopular opinion but now that Sunico has come full circle with a repeat performance of the Rachmaninoff piano concertos in one night, may this mark the end of programming that seems more like a stunt rather than an artistic endeavor. Granted that feats like this gain more publicity, eventually drawing in more audience members, but I’d rather have one piano concerto performance that is technically brilliant, exquisitely nuanced, and emotionally affecting.

An emotional moment happened during the curtain call when Sunico acknowledged retiring viola player Claudinia Ronquillo who just had her final performance with the PPO at that concert.

I have no doubts that this concert was a success in audience turnout and also in raising funds for the Sunico Foundation for Arts and Technology Inc., and I do hope that the scholars who will benefit from this concert will greatly contribute to the enrichment of the arts and advancement of technology here.

Fukumura conducts Mozart and Brahms symphonies for PPO’s February concert

Conductor Yoshikazu Fukumura

Major changes have come to the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra’s next concert happening on February 8, 2019 at the Cultural Center of the Philippines (Tanghalang Nicanor Abelardo) as Music Director/Principal Conductor now takes over conducting duties with a music lineup consisting of works by Carl Maria von Weber, Wofgang Amadeus Mozart, and Johannes Brahms.

When the 36th concert season was initially announced, the February concert originally featured Hungarian pianist and conductor Tamás Vásáry through the auspices of the Embassy of Hungary in the Philippines in what is geared to be a major music event for the year. But due to unforeseen circumstances, Vásáry is unable to perform in the country. That concert’s lineup would’ve included Frédéric Chopin’s Andante spianato et grande polonaise brillante in E-flat major, Op. 22, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Symphony No. 39 in E flat major, K. 543, and Zoltán Kodály’s Variations on a Hungarian Folksong, "The Peacock".

The updated program retains the Mozart symphony while Carl Maria von Weber’s Overture to Der Freischütz, Op. 77, J. 277 and Johannes Brahms' Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 73 replace the other pieces with Fukumura now leading the orchestra.

Interesting to note that this will be Fukumura’s second time to conduct Brahms second symphony with the PPO with the first happening way back in November 2012 during his first guest conducting stint with the orchestra..

I would've preferred to have Fukumura programmed the fourth instead since that remains the only symphony of Brahms that he has yet to conduct with the PPO. He was scheduled to conduct it back in March 2018 but wasn’t able to due to unforeseen circumstances. Time will tell if Fukumura will be able to complete the Brahms symphony cycle with the PPO. But for now, better enjoy what Fukumura has in store for February.

A romantic night with Japanese guitarist Kozo Tate at the Ayala Museum

The Ayala Museum and the Guitar Friends present Japanese classical guitarist Kozo Tate in The Romantic Guitar on February 7, 2019, 6:30 PM at the Ayala Museum.

Kozo Tate studied guitar under Yasumasa Ohara, Takao Kaneko and Harmony Studies with Shimizu Kan. He won in the 18^th Tokyo International Guitar Competition sponsored by the Japan Guitar Federation, and won the Minister of Education and Spain ambassadorial cup. He has been invited all over the world as competition judge and masterclass lecturer, including in Spain, Prague, Chile, Bolivia, Peru, Russia, and Argentina.

The Romantic Guitar with Kozo Tate, the first GuitarNights concert for 2019, will also feature local guitarists Iqui Vinculado and Aaron Rafael Aguila III.

Pasinaya 2019 expands into a 3 day festival

The 15^th edition of the Pasinaya Open House Festival expands to a three day event, on February 1 to 3, 2019 at the Cultural Center of the Philippines. With the theme of “Karapatan, Kalayaan, Kultura”, the largest multi-arts festival in the country adds another day of performances.

Pasinaya 2019 begins on February 1 with the Palihan, a day devoted to the workshops. Various 30-minute workshops in various art disciplines like dance, theater, music, arts appreciation, and even Filipino sign language will be held at various locations at the CCP that everyone can avail of with just a minimum donation of P50.

On February 2, the first day of Palabas, the spotlight shines on artists and groups from the regions like Bulacan, Quezon, Boracay, Laguna, Cavite, Tarlac, Batangas, Bicol, Rizal, Pangasinan etc. performing at the CCP Main Theater and other venues at the building.

The performances continue on February 3 with the CCP resident companies namely the Ballet Philippines, the Philippine Ballet Theatre, the Philippine Madrigal Singers, the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra, the Ramon Obusan Folkloric Group, Tanghalang Pilipino, the UST Symphony Orchestra, and the National Music Competitions for Young Artists taking the center stage at the CCP’s Tanghalang Nicanor Abelardo. More performances are in store at various zoned venues of the CCP for just a minimum donation of P50 (per day).

The museum tour component of the Pasinaya welcomes two new additions namely CSB Center for Campus Art and Calle Wright. Hop on one of the shuttle vans to avail the tour of participating museums and galleries in Pasay and Manila that include the Met Museum, Museo Marino, Museo Pambata, National Museum’s National Art Gallery, Museum of the Filipino People and Museum of Natural History, Intramuros Administration’s Casa Manila and Fort Santiago, Mono 8, Bahay Tsino, Destilleria Limtuaco, FDCP Cinematheque, Galleria Duemilla, UP Manila’s The Museum of A History of Ideas, Avellana Gallery, 98B Collaboratory, and NCCA Gallery.

There are so many to things to see, experience and explore at the Pasinaya since every possible venue at the CCP is utilized. Aside from the various performances, there are also film screenings, art exhibits, Arts Market and a bazaar as well.

As usual, my tips to maximize the Pasinaya experience is to avail of the Fast Pass ballers for priority access to performance venues. Have a plan B or C in place just in case that seats are already filled up. Be on the lookout for special deals and promos like huge discounts on tickets at upcoming productions by these resident companies and various CCP publications that can be availed only at the Pasinaya.

For those who are from far away or even overseas, fret not for one can still be at the Pasinaya through the CCP’s facebook page as the Main Theater performances and the People’s Gala have been streamed live in recent years and I expect that this year will be no exception.

RAd’s Playlist | 91st Academy Awards Best Original Score Nominees

Nominations for the 91^st Academy Awards have been announced and while most are either rejoicing the recognition or protesting the snubs, I’m here in my own little corner leaning towards the nominees for Best Original Score.

These nominated scores will be up for a spin although I wouldn't dare figure out who will take home the Oscar on February 24 (February 25 Philippine time).

Black Panther

by Ludwig Goransson

BlacKkKlansman

by Terence Blanchard

If Beale Street Could Talk

by Nicholas Britell

Isle of Dogs

by Alexandre Desplat

Mary Poppins Returns

by Marc Shaiman

Sustainble fashion exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum

The rise of fast fashion brands have made it easy for people to dress in the trendiest clothes at a fraction of the cost of signature brands. But of late, fast fashion has been getting a bad rap for unethical business practices and the harmful effects to the environment caused by their easily disposed clothes.

To address these concerns, the Embassy of Sweden in the Philippines, in partnership with Swedish fashion brands H&M Philippines and BabyBjörn, presents the Fashion Revolution: The Future of Textiles, an exhibit on conscious and sustainable fashion running from January 30, 2019 to April 30, 2019 at the upper galleries of the Metropolitan Museum of Manila.

The exhibit showcases the progress done in making the Swedish fashion industry more circular in both production and consumption. It aims to show how conglomerates, start-ups, consumers, and research centers in Sweden work together towards their goal make the industry fashionably sustainable.

RAd’s Page Turners | Planetes

One of my favorite manga titles of all time is Planetes by Makoto Yukimura. This science fiction seinen series does not follow the swashbuckling adventures of space explorers, but instead follows a small crew of space debris collectors.

Set in the 2070’s, the world of Planetes has space flight and exploration fully realized. Just like on Earth, the garbage problem has already reached space and the smallest of junk hitting a space craft can cause tragic accidents. Hence the need for debris collectors. And despite the dangers of the job, they unfortunately are not the most respected kind of astronauts out there. And it is this seemingly unglamorous and mundane world of the Toy Box’s crew consisting of Hachirota “Hachimaki” Hoshino, Fee Carmichael, and Yuri Mihairokov.

What I love about this series is the plausible exploration of how world politics and economy and human society have essentially changed once space has been conquered. There aren’t any aliens or other civilizations to meet/fight/conquer in here. Even if the stories are set in outer space, they are still rooted in the human experience. And despite the series wrapping up in 2004, the pressing issues presented in Planetes still feel relevant and very urgent given our current concerns.

Tokyopop released the series in English in five volumes from 2003-2005. In 2015, Dark Horse acquired the license and has subsequently released the entire series in two omnibus volumes. Planetes was also adapted into a 26 anime series with Bandai Entertainment releasing the DVD’s from 2005-2006. Unfortunately, with the exception of the more recent Dark Horse releases, they have essentially gone out of print.

Planetes may not have achieved the immense popularity of Naruto or One Piece, but it is still worthwhile to revisit this series once in a while not just because of nostalgia, but also to see how it holds up throughout the years.

A joyous Beethoven, Hiyas Hila's elegant Schumann give PPO a promising start

Pianist Hiyas Hila and the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra

The 2019 performance season is off to a promising start as a noticeably larger number of audience members attended the resumption of the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra’s subscription concert series at the Cultural Center of the Philippines.

It looked like people, myself included, were eager to go back to the symphony after the holiday season. I, for one, was eager to see the PPO’s Music Director/Principal Conductor Yoshikazu Fukumura at the podium once again since the last time he led the orchestra back in October 2018 felt like ages ago.

Pianist Hiyas Hila

The opener, Richard Wagner’s Prelude to Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, had the orchestra sounding crisp very much helped by the clear structure of the piece. Pianist Hiyas Hila gave an elegant and bright rendition of Robert Schumann’s Piano Concerto in A minor, Op. 54. This piece gave her more range and depth compared to the Mozart she performed during her previous collaboration with the orchestra. But the intricate weaving of the piano and the orchestra especially during the first movement caused for some slight timing hiccups. For an encore, Hila delivered Frederic Chopin’s Nocturne Op. 15 No. 1 in F major, eloquently highlighting the contrasts between tranquil outer sections and the fiery middle part of this piece.

Yoshikazu Fukumura and the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra

The symphony for that night, Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7 in A major, Op. 92, is a favorite and I was kept on the edge of my seat to hear if the tempo would be to my liking. The joyous piece, made popular over a decade ago by the drama series Nodame Cantabile, could be performed at blistering pace especially when excitement takes over. Thankfully, Fukumura took control of the reigns never letting the tempo go haywire. It was almost a moment of pure joy had I not been jolted by the horn section’s wild moments a handful of times. Also, there were parts when I struggled to hear clearly the middle strings especially during the build-up before the finale of the symphony.

This concert, my first for 2019, was still a promising start to the year despite the slight stumbles which may be due to some dulling brought about by the long holiday break. I hope that the PPO will be at their sharpest in future concerts and one, touted to be a major music event, is just around the corner.

13th Spring Film Festival at the Red Carpet

The countdown for the Year of the Pig begins at the 13^th Spring Film Festival, a celebration of the Filipino-Chinese community, happening this January 30 to February 5, 2019 at the Shangri-La Plaza.

Presented by Ateneo de Manila University’s Ricardo Leong Center for Chinese Studies, together with Shangri-La Plaza and Red Carpet Cinema with the cooperation of Film Development Council of the Philippines, Ateneo Celadon, ChinoyTV, and Credit Suisse, this year’s edition will feature a main selection of six contemporary Chinese films free of charge at the new Red Carpet at Shangri-La Plaza.

The festival kicks off with the Gala Night on January 30 with a special program featuring the traditional dragon and lion dance, the Little Mr. and Ms. Chinatown Cultural Costume Parade, saxophonist Joshe Tiu and, the one-time screening of the film Our Time Will Come/明月幾時有. Directed by Ann Hui and starring Zhou Xun, Eddie Peng, and Wallace Huo, this 2017 war film is set in Japanese-occupied Hong Kong, where a schoolteacher and her would-be-fiancé link up with Chinese guerrilla fighters to forge their own path to freedom.

While Our Time Will Come is not part of the regular free film screenings, the six other films that actually are include Detective Chinatown/唐人街探案, I Belonged to You/从你的全世界路过, Lost in Hong Kong/港囧, Lost in White/冰河追凶, A Tale of Three Cities/三城记, and The Third Way of Love/第三種愛情. But the 13^th Spring Film Festival isn’t all about just the films. As always, there will be other events promoting Chinese culture happening throughout the festival.

Kicking the festivities off will be the Kim Hwa Chinese Ensemble with a unique performance of their contemporary repertoire on traditional Chinese musical instruments on January 27, 7:00 PM, at the Grand Atrium. 

Running through the entire run of the 13^th Spring Film Festival from January 30 to February 5), the Confucius Institute Chinese Painting Exhibit, presented by the Ateneo Confucius Institute and Shangri-La Plaza, will feature a collection of Chinese paintings in scrolls and fans on display at the Grand Atrium.

From February 1 to 10, the Chinese Bazaar at the Grand Atrium will be the place to be for traditional Chinese delicacies and items.

On February 2, at 2:00 PM, the Ricardo Leong Center for Chinese Studies and Shangri-La Plaza present the Spring Serenade: A Chinese Musical Event. This afternoon of music will feature the musical talents of Chinese-Filipinos that include singers Venisse Nicole Siy and Aleksandra Sofiya Mari Y. Sy, the Philippine Tenors, and the Kim Hwa Chinese Ensemble. Later at 8:00 PM will be the highly-anticipated Chinese New Year Fireworks Show along with dragon eye-dotting ceremony and ceremonial blessing and a dragon and lion dance.

The festival will not be complete without the popular Chinese Painting Workshop presented by the Ateneo Ricardo Leong Center for Chinese Studies and Shangri-La Plaza. Happening on February 3, 2:00 PM, the free demonstration and workshop will be conducted by President of Art Association of the Philippines, Master Fidel M. Sarmiento together with Vice President Roger Santos.

Capping the celebrations is the Dragon & Lion Dance Exhibition by the Philippine Ling Nam Athletic Federation on February 10, 2:00 PM at the Grand Atrium

Here are the six main selection films to be screened at the festival.

Detective Chinatown/唐人街探案 (2015)

Director: Chen Sicheng

Cast: Wang Baoqiang, Liu Haoran, Tong Liya, Chen He

A budding Chinese Sherlock Holmes meets his partner Watson in Bangkok and solves a locked-room murder in singer-actor-director Chen Sicheng’s “Detective Chinatown,” a carefully constructed mystery that blends screechy comedy and crazed action in high-spirited but somewhat ungainly fashion. This eclectic genre mash-up reps quite a novelty in mainland Chinese commercial cinema, and its instant  success points to further opportunities for cerebral, plot-driven concepts to be injected into crowd pleasing hits. 

I Belonged to You/从你的全世界路过 (2016)

Director: Zhang Yibai

Cast: Deng Chao, Bai Baihe, Yang Yang, Zhang Tianai, Yue Yunpeng, Du Juan, Liu Yan

Based on the bestselling series of short stories by renowned Chinese writer Zhang Jiajia, I Belonged To You is a touching romantic tale revolving around two radio disc jockeys and the world they inhabit. They find the audience they reach reflects their own love and heartbreak, and forces them to deal with issues larger than just their own lives.

Lost in Hong Kong/港囧 (2014)

Director: Xu Zheng

Cast: Xu Zheng, Zhao Wei, Bao Bei'er, Du Juan

The film follows Xu Lai, a former artist whose dreams were dashed when the responsibilities of life set in. With his life now revolving around his wife Cai Bo who is obsessed with having children, the quirks of his eccentric family and his mediocre, ordinary existence, Xu Lai hopes to reconnect with his first love Yang YIi on an upcoming vacation. However, his hopes are dashed when he finds himself wrapped up in a murder investigation that proves truth is often stranger than fiction.

Lost in White/冰河追凶 (2016)

Director: Xu Wei

Cast: Tony Leung Ka-fai, Tong Dawei, Zhou Dongyu, Deng Jiajia, Vision Wei, Cao Weiyu

In a small village, where the land was covered with thick snow, a dead body was found in an iced river. Detective Zhou Peng and Wang Hao went to the village searching for perpetrator. What they found is a much more complicated truth.

A Tale of Three Cities/三城记 (2015)

Director: Mabel Cheung

Cast: Ching Wan Lau, Wei Tang, Hailu Qin

The film is about the real love story of Charles and Lee-Lee Chan, parents of Jackie Chan who met in Wuhu during the Second Sino-Japanese War in the 1930s, separated in Shanghai during the Chinese Civil War in the 1940s, and finally reunited in Hong Kong in the 1950s while their children from previous marriages were left behind in mainland China (whom they would not see again until 38 years later).

The Third Way of Love/第三種愛情 (2015)

Director: John H. Lee

Cast: Liu Yifei, Song Seung-heon

The love story of Lin Qi Zheng (Song Seung-Heon), who is from a rich family, and Zhou Yu (Yifei Liu) who is a smart and beautiful lawyer.

Here is the screening schedule of the 13^th Spring Film Festival at the Red Carpet.

January 30, 2019

1:00 PM Lost in White

3:30 PM Lost in Hong Kong

7:30 PM Our Time Will Come (Gala)

January 31, 2019

2:00 PM The Third Way of Love

4:30 PM I Belonged to You

7:00 PM A Tale of Three Cities

February 1, 2019

2:00 PM Lost in Hong Kong

4:30 PM I Belonged to You

7:00 PM Detective Chinatown

February 2, 2019

1:30 PM Lost in Hong Kong

4:00 PM Detective Chinatown

7:00 PM A Tale of Three Cities

February 3, 2019

1:30 PM A Tale of Three Cities

4:30 PM Lost in White

7:00 PM The Third Way of Love

February 4, 2019

1:30 PM The Third Way of Love

4:30 PM I Belonged to You

7:00 PM Detective Chinatown

February 5, 2019

1:30 PM Lost in White

4:00 PM A Tale of Three Cities

7:00 PM Lost in Hong Kong

The 13^th Spring Film Festival is presented by Ateneo Ricardo Leong Center for Chinese Studies, Shangri-La Plaza, Red Carpet Cinema, Embassy of The People’s Republic of China in The Republic of The Philippines, Film Development Council of the Philippines, Credit Suisse, Ateneo Celadon, ChinoyTV, Flexo Marketing Corporation, Richprime Global Inc, Ateneo Confucius Institute, Auto Nation Group Inc. Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chambers of Commerce & Industry Inc., When in Manila, What’s Happening.PH, Asian Dragon Magazine, Philippine Primer, adtig.ph, Spark Up, The Philippine Star, and ChinatownTV.

Pianist Raul Sunico to repeat rare Rachmaninoff feat

International pianist Raul Sunico is on course to make history once again with A Rach Concert, a rare performance of all four Rachmaninoff piano concertos in a single evening happening on January 26, 2019, 6:00 PM at the Cultural Center of the Philippines (Tanghalang Nicanor Abelardo).

Presented by the Cultural Center of the Philippines in cooperation with the Sunico Foundation for Arts and Technology Inc., this concert of epic proportions will also feature the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra with Music Director/Principal Conductor Yoshikazu Fukumura and Associate Conductor Herminigildo Ranera sharing conducting duties.

Pianist Raul Sunico

Sunico first achieved this historic feat performing Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 1 in F sharp minor, Op. 1, Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Op. 18, Piano Concerto No. 3 in D minor, Op. 30, and Piano Concerto No. 4 in G minor, Op. 40 in a single concert back in September 2003.  At that time, there had been no record of anyone who had done this before and since the historic 2003 performance, no one has yet to replicate this achievement. In 2015, Sunico also performed the three piano concertos of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky in a single concert which is also said to be the first in the world.

Fukumura will conduct the first and second piano concertos while Ranera will lead the third and the fourth to be performed in reverse order. That means that the audience will have to sit through the lesser known/performed first and fourth piano concertos before getting to the popular pair of the second and the third.

When I asked Sunico for advice on how to be more appreciative on the first and the fourth concertos, he answered to listen to them prior to the concert especially now that performances and recordings are more accessible thanks to the internet and video/music streaming sites. He emphasized that no one falls in love with the fourth at the first listen so it will take multiple hearings to warm up to it. Interestingly, Sunico considers the second, the most popular one, to be more difficult for him compared to the third which is considered as one of the most difficult in the entire piano repertoire. He finds the second to be technically awkward. In preparation for the concert, Sunico claimed that he’s been clocking six hours of practice daily.

Raul Sunico with Sunico Foundation and CCP officers

A Rach Concert serves as a fundraiser for the Sunico Foundation for Arts and Technology Inc. (SFATI), founded in July 2002 by the combined families and descendants of Hilario Sunico, Teodoro Sunico, and Julio Sunico. The foundation aims to help and develop young gifted scholars in the fields of arts and technology. Notable scholars of the foundation include sculptor Leeroy New and singer Aizel Izza Prietos.

Sunico was the former president of the Cultural Center of the Philippines and Dean of the UST Conservatory of Music. He currently serves as the chair of the doctoral program in music of St. Paul University in Manila and continues as faculty member at the UST Conservatory of Music.

RAd’s Playlist: Yuja Wang | Ravel

A performance of Maurice Ravel’s Piano Concerto in G, M. 83 is on the horizon by the end of the month and that’s reason enough to put this jazz influenced piano concerto in heavy rotation once again. The cracking whip at the start of this piece always bring a smile to my face (when done right).

This piece was performed most recently by pianist Monique Duphil at the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra’s season opener that I sadly missed. Now, the Manila Symphony Orchestra is giving me another chance to have a go with this at their upcoming season finale concert with Victor Asuncion as the featured soloist.

The recording that I’m putting for a spin in preparation for the upcoming concert is Yuja Wang’s album of the two Ravel Piano Concertos with Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich under the baton of Lionel Bringuier. These pair of concertos (the other being the Piano Concerto for the Left Hand in D major, M .82) couldn’t be more different. But it’s worth hearing them one after the other to grasp how great Ravel’s orchestration is and to explore fully the light and shade and the range of emotions and moods in these two works.

RAd’s Page Turners | Gotham Central

DC’s Gotham Central is one of the comics from the big two publishers (the other being Marvel Comics) that I’ve read and collected from the beginning up to the very end.

Written by Ed Brubaker and Greg Rucka with art primarily by Michael Lark, later succeeded by Stefano Gaudiano and Kano, this series ran for just 40 issues to critical acclaim.

Several factors led me to digging this series big time. One is the comics having the same gritty, ground level feel with my favorite drama series NYPD Blue. Another is finding the silver lining from my disappointment with the Bruce Wayne: Murderer?/Bruce Wayne: Fugitive storyline several months before Gotham Central hit the shelves. This storyline had me stumbling upon Detective Comics’ backup feature Lost Voices by Judd Winnick and Cliff Chiang.

This backup feature follows Josie MacDonald, a Gotham City cop who uses her superpowers in a more realistic manner despite the presence of Batman. These reasons, along with my evolving tastes in comics, convinced me to check out further the lives of the Gotham City Police Department Major Crimes Unit detectives in Gotham Central.

And boy, I wasn’t disappointed. There was so much in it that got me hooked like the dynamics between the detectives, the police procedure, the very solid art, I could go on and on showering this series with praises. I loved how the department has a very complicated relationship with Batman and that each detective has a different view of him.

Each case that the department had to solve had me rooting for the detectives and I sensed their frustration when they had to call on Batman for help. Or worse, when they got caught in the middle between the Bat and whichever super-powered villain he was up against with. Speaking of villains, Gotham Central probably has the creepiest comic panel featuring the Joker that I’ve ever seen.

I have the singles issues and the five trade paperbacks that were first released. These trades, namely In the Line of Duty, Half a Life, Unresolved Targets, The Quick and the Dead, and Dead Robin that are now out of print, do not include all of the issues. The initial plan with the trades was to collect only those drawn by Michael Lark and subsequently by Stefano Gaudiano and Kano. Although Half a Life included material that further explored the dynamics between Renee Montoya and Two-Face that weren’t part of the Gotham Central series but it looks like that this was a Greg Rucka decision.

The entire run was eventually reprinted in four hardcovers namely In the Line of Duty, Jokers and Madmen, On the Freak Beat, and Corrigan which were then released in trade paperbacks. A few years ago an omnibus collecting all 40 issues in one hardcover was released. The omnibus and the latter soft covers remain in print.

I am tempted to get these latter four trades since nothing beats having all the issues in book form. And also, Unresolved Targets also had a printing error that I hope was already corrected in Jokers and Madmen. But I somehow remain hesitant since I already have the five earlier ones with the first volume actually signed by Greg Rucka. It boils down to me choosing between a set of books having the complete run versus having a signed volume.

Finally, even though it is very unlikely, I also want to see the Josie Mac backup features Lost Voices and Trading Up from Detective Comics collected just for the sole reason that it features art by Cliff Chiang. An Italian edition has been published and I think I will settle for that if DC never reprints these stories.