A class act by Polish conductor Grzegorz Nowak at PPO concert

Violinist Vincent Owen Romanban and the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra

The Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra season concert for October saw a class act performance by Polish conductor Grzegorz Nowak making the big stage debut of young violinist Vincent Owen Romanban a memorable one.

Vincent was a bundle of nerves at the start, as if the task of playing Felix Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto in E flat minor, Op. 64 with the orchestra would overwhelm him. But Nowak's exemplary conducting guided the inexperienced soloist with such care and sensitivity, enabling him to gain more confidence with every measure. By the time of the second movement, Vincent was clearly more at ease up until the end of the concerto.

It is the same deft touch that Nowak exhibited in the service of the other pieces in the program. Without any unnecessary flashiness, Nowak's take on Lucio San Pedro's Lahing Kayumanggi and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture highlighted the flowing narrative as well as the clarity of the form and structure of these two programmatic pieces.

Conductor Grzegorz Nowak and the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra 

With Igor Stravinsky's Firebird Suite (1919), Nowak displayed a mastery of the piece's complexity showcasing the wide range of dynamics and different rhythms of this suite He remained unfazed despite the wailing of a young boy who got rattled by the sudden, jolting bass drum. Just like how he managed to make the nervous Vincent feel at ease with the violin concerto, Nowak was also successful in making the audience feel the same with Firebird.

The way Nowak worked with Vincent, despite the latter's inexperience, bodes well for the Polish conductor's chances to be the next Music Director/Principal Conductor of the PPO.