Eiga Sai 2011 Opening Night

Cellist Renato Lucas and pianist Naomi Sison perform

A couple of years ago, during a classical music concert, a violinist introduced to the audience their encore piece: the theme to the movie Okuribito (おくりびと). The violinist asked the audience if anyone had seen the film and she was met by a puzzled response indicating that the audience had no idea what she was talking about. Unfortunately, the film didn't have a commercial run in local theaters here despite being an Academy Award Winner for Best Foreign Film .Finally, two years later, the film which has Departures as its English title had its Philippine premier during the opening of the Eiga Sai 2011, the Japanese Film Festival which is part of the Philippines-Japan Friendship Month celebrations.

The Eiga Sai, the much awaited annual Japanese Film Festival organized by the Japan Foundation, Manila had its opening night at the Shangri-La Plaza Mall. Invited guests gathered at the mall’s Grand Atrium for the cocktails prior to the screening of the opening film. Ambassador Toshinao Urabe of the Embassy of Japan and Japan Foundation Executive Director Shuji Takatori both delivered welcoming remarks which was followed by a special musical performance by cellist Renato Lucas accompanied on the piano by Naomi Sison. Those who are aware of what Okuribito is all about would find it pretty obvious what the duo played. It was nice talking to both Renato Lucas and Naomi Sison prior to their performance. They were both surprised to see me there since we normally see each other during music related events and this was a film event. I was also able to see some familiar faces, many whom I've met in previous events.

Okuribito (おくりびと)/Departures

Shortly after that, the guests ascended to the upper floors to the cinema to see the critically acclaimed film. Departures is a remarkable film about a cellist, Daigo Kobayashi (Masahiro Motoki) who lost his job and had to resort to a very unusual line of work: preparing corpses to be placed inside their coffins. Daigo trying to deal with his eccentric boss Shoei Sasaki (Tsutomu Yamazaki) while keeping the job secret from his wife, Mika Kobayashi (Ryoko Hirosue) and his mishaps during his first few outings with his new work provided laughs. And then things took a serious turn when the film focused on another aspect of death which is the grief that comes with mourning. Daigo then had to deal with his own grief when death came very close to him. There was a very emotionally packed scene at the end which resulted in people coming out of the cinema with red, misty and swollen eyes with either denials or admissions that they did indeed cry. People, including myself, came out of the cinema feeling emotionally exhausted but I am glad to have gone through it since I came out appreciating life and quite surprisingly, death more. One thing that I really liked about the movie is the excellent musical score of Joe Hisaishi and I won’t be surprised if some people who watched the film eventually find themselves humming the theme during their unguarded moments.

The Eiga Sai 2011 opening night was indeed a huge success and it clearly set the tone for the rest of the festival which never failed to draw in not only movie buffs but also fans of Japanese language and culture. Before I forget, the classical music concert that I mentioned at the beginning was actually organized by the Japan Foundation also and it featured Japanese musicians. I guess that the violinist, Ayako Ishikawa, would be very glad to know that despite the two year delay, the movie Okuribito finally has been shown here.

Lorenzo Medel Solo Piano Recital

Lorenzo Medel and the Manila Symphony Orchestra

Featuring:

Lorenzo Medel, piano

Manila Symphony Orchestra

Jeffrey Solares, conductor

Programme:

Johann Sebastian Bach Keyboard Concerto No. 5 in F minor, BWV1056

Ludwig van Beethoven Rondo in G major, Op. 51, No. 2

Frédéric Chopin Scherzo No. 3 in C sharp minor, Op. 39

Claude Debussy Reflets dans l'eau from Images 1

Sergei Prokofiev Sonata No. 3 in A minor, Op. 28

Franz Liszt Piano Concerto No. 1 in E flat major, S.124

The last piano concerto accompanied by an orchestra that I saw was way back in April. No wonder that I’ve been itching to go back to my comfort zone although I’ve been having the ride of my life with all these events for the past month or so. Thankfully, I was able to satisfy my piano concerto craving when Lorenzo Medel, a 15 year old piano phenomenon, had his solo recital at the Philam Life auditorium. Postponement due to bad weather and still a wet and rainy evening on the rescheduled date didn’t hinder people from arriving in droves for this free concert that also featured the Manila Symphony Orchestra conducted by Jeffrey Solares.

The concert programme was a nice mix of keyboard/piano music from different eras which meant that I had to listen to some pieces that don’t normally appeal to me. The concert started with Johann Sebastian Bach’s Keyboard Concerto No. 5 in F minor, BWV1056, in which Lorenzo was accompanied by a small number of string players from the MSO. Baroque keyboard music is something that I find difficult to appreciate and during this performance, I found myself wondering instead on how the piece would sound if Lorenzo played on a harpsichord instead. The Classical era was represented by Rondo in G major, Op. 51, No. 2 by Ludwig van Beethoven. Unfortunately, this is another piece by Beethoven that I never learned to appreciate since I prefer his longer pieces like his sonatas. And I confess that I just wished to have this piece done and over with so that the concert would just move on to the next pieces.

Then Lorenzo’s concert arrived at the Romantic era which is my favorite and he played Frédéric Chopin’s Scherzo No. 3 in C sharp minor, Op. 39. This scherzo has now overtaken the No. 2 in B flat minor as my favorite among the four scherzi that Chopin composed. He played this extremely well and was able to handle with relative ease the difficult octave passages that have been the bane of many pianists who attempted to play this piece. But my favorite part of this piece is the delicate, cascading notes that require much finesse and my fickleness regarding this part makes me difficult to be extremely satisfied by anyone playing this. He then played Claude Debussy’s Reflets dans l'eau from Images 1 which is one Impressionistic piece typical of the composer. Again, Lorenzo was able to play this piece comfortably but he has yet to achieve the subtle nuances that make a piece like this mesmerizing. But I need to be reminded that he is still just 15 years old and that artistic maturity comes with age and experience. It would be very interesting to hear him play these two pieces after some years and see how far he’d gone.

But I do believe that the next piece, Sergei Prokofiev's Sonata No. 3 in A minor, Op. 28 really suited him well. The Prokofiev piece was played with such attack, flair, energy, excitement and with reckless abandon that he seemed to blast off the piano bench at certain moments. It surprised no one that he was met with equally bombastic applause from the audience when he finished this piece which ended the first half of the concert.

Franz Liszt's Piano Concerto No. 1 in E flat Major, S.124 was the sole piece of the second half. This piece is very flamboyant and cheerful devoid of any of the heavy drama of most concerti from the Romantic era. I think that it also suited Lorenzo’s style very well. He nailed this virtuosic piece full of fireworks which is characteristic of Liszt’s compositions. I was glad that the Manila Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Jeffrey Solares, was able to match the piano without drowning each other especially during the thunderous bravura passages. But I felt that during the finale with the descending octaves, he had an urge to surge and I got a bit worried that he might outpace the orchestra. But the MSO really manage to keep up with his pace. And it was exciting to hear the people already applauding even if the last note of the concerto was still being played.

Pianist Lorenzo Medel

The cheers coming from an enthusiastic audience who gave Lorenzo a standing ovation went on for quite some time. Lorenzo responded the call for an encore by playing Nocturne in G major by Rodolfo Cornejo which was indeed a nice change of pace after that explosive concerto. Lorenzo is indeed a phenomenon and is still very young so he still has a long piano career ahead of him. He has nowhere to go but up and it would be very nice to see him continue to develop artistically and add more pieces to his concert repertoire. Lastly, it would also be very nice of him to polish his walk whenever he enters and exits the stage.

Swiss Duo Amrein and Henneberger headlines Manila Composers Lab 2011

July 5, 2011, 7:00 PM Concert I: Duo

Abelardo Hall Auditorium

College of Music, University of the Philippines

Diliman, Quezon City

July 8, 2011, 7:00 PM Concert II: Filipino and Swiss Music

Annex Garden

College of Music, University of the Philippines

Diliman, Quezon City

July 9, 2011, 7:00 PM Concert III: Young Composers’ Concert

Abelardo Hall Auditorium

College of Music, University of the Philippines

Diliman, Quezon City

Featuring:

Dirk Amrein, trombone

Jürg Henneberger, piano/conductor

Concerts featuring Swiss-German trombonist Dirk Amrein and Swiss pianist-conductor Jürg Henneberger will be the highlights of the Manila Composers Lab 2011, a series of composition workshops to be participated by young composers from the Philippines, Taiwan, Singapore, Indonesia, and New Zealand. This event is organized by the Manila Composers’ Lab in cooperation with Prohelvetia, the University of the Philippines College of Music, the UP Musical Arts and Research Management Foundation, Inc. (Musarfound), and the Embassy of Switzerland.

Pianist Jürg Henneberger and trombonist Dirk Amrein

There will be three concerts for this event all happening at the UP College of Music. The opening concert on July 5, 2011 at the Abelardo Hall Auditorium will feature the Swiss duo of Amrein and Henneberger along with music from young Filipino composers. The second concert on July 8, 2011 to be held at the Annex Garden this time will feature performances of Filipino and Swiss music, namely Jose Maceda’s Udlot-Udlot, Jonas Baes’ Ganding ni Napi, traditional Swiss Alphorn music and traditional Maguindanao Kulintang music by kulintang master Kanapia Kalanduyan et al. The last concert on July 9, 2011 and returning to the Abelardo Hall Auditorium will feature sketches for trombone, piano, and other instruments done by the workshop participants throughout the workshop period.

I’ve been to a handful of concerts before organized by the Manila Composers Lab in cooperation with the Goethe Institut. The music included in the programme is very modern, avant-garde, atonal, dissonant and yet sometimes mesmerizing. I sometimes felt like I was at a different planet trying to listen to the works but I do like to experience new things so I try as much as possible to watch performances like this.

Tickets:

Free admission

For inquiries:

Ara Janelle Foronda (0906) 910-0467

Mr. Reis Luke Aquino (0927) 555-7137

Pinilakang Tabing: Handog sa Pelikulang Pilipino

Silver Screen: Tribute to Philippine Cinema

I found myself once again at the Cultural Center of the Philippines and this time it was for the the Pinilakang Tabing: Handog sa Pelikulang Pilipino event. This grand production, staged by the Movie Workers Welfare Fund (Mowelfund), together with the Film Development Council of the Philippines, the Cultural Center of the Philippines and TV5 is in celebration of the 92 years of Philippine Cinema.

Celebrating the 92 years were a number of major stars headed by former President Joseph Estrada, National Artist Eddie Romero. Senators Jinggoy Estrada and Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. were among the actor-politicians there. Some celebrities who were there that served as narrators at the show were Jun Urbano, Aljur Abrenica, Bella Padilla and Cesar Montano. Celebrities in the audience who didn’t have any active role in the production were few and were only limited to veterans. I think that it’s a shame that other celebrities, especially the young ones, weren’t present. I guess that it reflects on the apathy of these stars on the history of Philippine cinema.

Nevertheless, the show was indeed a grand production and a very nice tribute to the rich history of Philippine cinema. A number of film clips, stills, photographs and other videos chronicling the early days of Philippine cinema were shown followed by musical numbers. It was so refreshing to see the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Josefino “Chino” Toledo providing all Filipino music to the whole event especially when they accompanied during the song and dance numbers.

Pinilakang Tabing: Handog sa Pelikulang Pilipino finale

Tex Ordonez, Justin Quirino, Tanghalang Pilipino Actor’s Company, Mitch Valdez, Bituin Escalante, DJ Lady Trinity, Dingdong Avanzado, Jessa Zaragoza, Gian Magdangal, Ciara Sotto, Jolina Magdangal, Dulce, Tonipet Gaba, Jake Macapagal, Carlo Orosa, Arnold Reyes, JM Rodriguez, Aiza Seguerra and the Hail Mary the Queen Children’s Choir were the performers during that evening. Without a doubt, it was Dulce who stood out the most for me. Her first song, Matud Nila was in Cebuano and I didn’t understand a word and yet she conveyed such emotion to the song that it got through me. This, along with her very solid vocals and her stage presence really resulted in one of the most applauded numbers of the night. And she also sang a second number that Janno Gibbs was supposed to sing according to the programme. I don’t know what happened to him but I don’t mind having Dulce sing a second song during that evening..

But for me, the show went into a bit of a depressing turn when Boots Anson-Roa, president of Mowelfund, said that Dalagang Bukid (Country Maiden), the first locally produced movie is lost forever since no print remains. That and the fact that the same fate awaits a lot of the older films if they’re not archived properly was the hard reality that the entire film industry has to face. I know that it’s supposed to be a tribute and a celebration but that realization, along with the declining number of locally produced films in recent years, as pointed out by former President Joseph Estrada during his opening remarks, made the occasion a sort of wake up call for the film industry.

Boots Anson-Roa with guests

I did find it very interesting that a few weeks back, I was at the Cinemalaya press conference which showcased what’s new and upcoming in local cinema and then this event highlighted the past. So in just a span of a few weeks, I was able to get a very wide view of the Philippine cinema and I’ve been learning a lot. And learning always leads me to appreciate things more.

Definitely the most memorable moment of this event for me was meeting THE Ms. Bella Flores who is already a pop culture icon as one of the premiere villainess in Philippine cinema/television. I couldn’t let the evening end without meeting and having my photo taken with her. I even told her that I actually waited for years for me to meet her and when the opportunity came, I grabbed it with no hesitation at all.

RAd and THE Bella Flores