Manila Symphony Orchestra commemorates 70th anniversary of Liberation of Manila

March 13, 2015, 7:00 PM

Meralco Theater

Ortigas Avenue

Pasig City

Featuring:

Manila Symphony Orchestra
Arturo Molina, conductor

Programme:

Ludwig van Beethoven

     Symphony No. 3 in E flat major, Op. 55 Eroica

Antonín Dvořák

     Symphony No. 9 in E minor, Op. 95, B. 178, From the New World

Back in May 1945, the Manila Symphony Orchestra, led by conductor Herbert Zipper held a concert at the Santa Cruz Church which was in ruins. This historic concert, the first by the orchestra since the liberation of Manila saw them perform Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3 in E flat major, Op. 55 Eroica and Antonín Dvořák’s Symphony No. 9 in E minor, Op. 95, B. 178, From the New World in honor of those who perished during World War II and to usher in the new post-war era.

Almost 70 years later, the same music will be replayed by the Manila Symphony Orchestra, led by principal conductor/music director Arturo Molina in a concert presented by the Ortigas Foundation, Inc. to be held on March 13, 2015, 7:00 PM at the Meralco Theater. This commemorative concert entitled Music of Peace will also feature Katrina Legarda reading the introductory speech that was recited by her grandmother, Mrs Trinidad F. Legarda, who used to head the Manila Symphony Orchestra Society.

Ticket prices:

P700 Regular

P200 For first 100 students with valid ID, senior citizens, and PWD

For inquiries:

Ortigas Foundation Library 631-1231 local 187/228

X-Factor Israel winner Rose Fostanes' concert reaffirms Philippines Israeli friendship

Rose Fostanes

During the annual Philippine International Jazz Festival, the Embassy of Israel usually brings to the country music acts from Israel enabling Filipinos hear their own brand of jazz music. But for this year, a truly special music act was brought instead: X Factor Israel winner Rose Fostanes, the former caregiver who emerged triumphant in the televised reality talent competition.

RoseFostanes headlining the concert is even made more significant as the Embassy of Israel, in line with the 70^th anniversary of the liberation of Manila, is embarking on a Thank You, Philippines campaign to express gratitude to the Philippines in opening her doors to Jewish refugees during the time of President Quezon and also to the country’s vote in UN Resolution 181 that established the State of Israel. So what better way to celebrate a great friendship between the two nations than a concert featuring a Filipina who made it big in Israel?

Opening the show with her X-Factor Israel audition piece, This is My Life, Rose belted out You and I, Purple Rain, The Best, Beautiful, Valerie, I (Who Have Nothing), and Born this Way, that captured the hearts of the competition judges and the Israeli public paving the way for her to advance to the show’s succeeding rounds. Backed up by the Sesame Band, Fostanes also performed If I Ain’t Got You, the Freddie Aguilar classic Anak, and Schma Israel which she sang in Hebrew.

Special guest Arthur Manuntag joined Rose in a duet of Endless Love before singing a medley of standards. Pinoy Dream Academy 2 winner Laarni Lozada breezed through a Whitney Houston medley as the concert’s opening act.

Israeli Ambassador Effie Ben Matityau and Rose Fostanes

In between songs, Rose recalled and shared moments of her life to the audience. She confessed that she was bullied as a child, came from a broken family, and had to work at an early age. And through it all, she found solace in singing. She then narrated her stint as a caregiver in Egypt and Lebanon before ending up in Israel. It was in Israel where she resumed her singing and this eventually led her to join that country's X Factor. And the rest as we all know is history.

Rose wrapped up the concert with her winning song My Way. This song may be notorious as the cause of brawls (even deaths) during drunken videoke sessions but for Rose, this song sealed her victory instead. She admitted that since winning the competition, she hasn’t done anything major yet in the country until this concert at the Music Museum.

After the concert, Israeli Ambassador Effie Ben Matityau presented Rose with a certificate naming her as an Ambassador of Goodwill.

Sunico tames 3 Tchaikovsky concertos in single concert

Pianist Raul Sunico with the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra

Featuring:

Raul Sunico, piano

Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra

Herminigildo Ranera, conductor

Programme:

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky

     Polonaise from Eugene Onegin, Op. 24

     Piano Concerto No. 2 in G major, Op.44

     Piano Concerto No. 3 in E flat major, Op. 75

     Piano Concerto No. 1 in B flat minor, Op. 23

Pianist Raul Sunico accomplished an unprecedented feat as he performed three of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s piano concertos in a single concert held at the Old Senate Hall of the National Museum of the Philippines. Accompanied by the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra led by its associate conductor Herminigildo Ranera, the fundraising concert presented by the Asian Institute of Management (AIM) raised more than P6 million in donations and pledges for the AIM-Felipe B. Alfonso President’s Fund.

The National Museum of the Philippines

The concert featured an all Tchaikovsky lineup opening with the orchestra’s rendition of the Polonaise from Eugene Onegin, Op. 24, a great piece to start the event since the stateliness of the polonaise dance perfectly matched the historic Old Senate Hall that was just restored to its full glory back in 2012. Then pianist Raul Sunico went on stage to perform the first of the three Tchaikovsky piano concertos to be performed which was the Piano Concerto No. 2 in G major, Op.44. Rarely performed, this concerto has one of the most unique middle sections as the concertmaster and the principal cellist play significant solos alongside the piano making it almost a concerto for a piano trio.

The second half of the concert had Sunico and the PPO performing the one movement Piano Concerto No. 3 in E flat major, Op. 75. Posthumously published, this concerto originally started as a symphony in E flat before abandoning that work together. If the second piano concerto is rarely performed, the third is even more so and I bet that majority in the audience got to hear this piece for the first time during this concert. The very popular Piano Concerto No. 1 in B flat minor, Op. 23 served as the evening’s finale. If the audience didn’t recognize the third concerto, I’m pretty certain that they’ve heard some parts (the descending horn intro, the ascending chords by the piano, the string melody one can hum to, the tranquil middle section with the flute solo, and the exciting final movement introduced by an accented timpani) of the first before. Probably owing to fatigue, the less than ideal acoustics, and also the weight of the pieces being performed, there were instances where the music wasn't as tight and precise as it could've been, as if the ends were starting to get frayed. But the VIP-filled audience didn't mind for as the piece reached its rousing and exhilarating end, they were immediately up on their feet showering Raul Sunico, the PPO, and Herminigildo Ranera with thunderous applause that reverberated throughout the Old Senate Hall.

I just have to say that the reverb was too much in the hall. I felt that the microphones used to amplify the sound were unnecessary as it brought about an overpowering sound. From where I was seated at the left side of the balustrade level, the lower strings were drowning out the violin sections. And the solo cello during the second movement of the second concerto was hardly audible. On several occasions, the piano parts especially during cadenzas, sound very muddled as if the damper pedal was always pressed.

RAd and Raul Sunico

I have to admit that the Old Senate Hall is not an ideal space in terms of acoustics to stage a classical music performance. But the architecture, the artwork/sculptures inside, and most importantly, the history surrounding the hall made for a very fascinating experience.

Superb female voices power up Ballet Philippines’ Manhid

Kim Molina, Sandino Martin, and Teetin Villanueva

Ballet Philippines’ latest production, Manhid: The Pinoy Superhero Musical, featured a bunch of characters who each possess a unique superpower. But one superpower, if I may call it that, that definitely stood out during the show’s opening night was the amazing vocal chops displayed by the production’s female leads namely Teetin Villanueva, Kim Molina, Jean Judith Javier, Ronah Rostata, KL Dizon and Mayen Estañero.

Sandino Martin

I am not saying that the male leads Sandino Martin and Fred Lo lacked in the vocal department. It’s just that the women who sang, outnumbering the men who did six to two, exhibited more variety, range, texture and depth.

Teetin Villanueva

Kim Molina

As Lam-Ang, Teetin sang with a soothing voice that sometimes showed a mean streak just like the wind that she commands. Kim, as the slum bred Allunsina, displayed spunk and power that made each expletive she threw sting a lot more. Jean Judith soared with her haunting soprano voice as Dilim, the nightclub singer who acted as one of the narrators. Playing Lagrimas, Ronah’s voice sounded as if she was indeed always in tears. KL, as Urduja, was a force of nature with her strong classical singing background and her opening duet was one of the highlights of the entire show. Lastly, Mayen’s vocal stylings showed how cunning and manipulative Mamalahi-ma is. As I’ve said above, Sandino, the dreamer Bantugan and Fred, the seducer Radia Indarapatra actually did pretty well. It’s just that they were outnumbered and out powered by the very vocally strong female leads.

Fred Lo

KL Dizon

Plot wise, I struggled initially with Manhid, as the opening songs didn’t seem to follow a narrative thread to me and it became difficult to identify who’s who, how each character is related to the others, and what set them into motion. And since they’re superheroes/villans, there was an added task of figuring out their individual powers, who are the heroes of Maragtas and the villains of the Tulisan ng Bayan. Even more, the world of Manhid is set in an alternate reality where the 1986 EDSA Revolution failed, so the origin section had to show the kind of world the characters are living in. All this was too much to take in that I think the plot suffered a bit. What’s notable is that the same problem of introductions at the expense of the plot moving is also encountered in the first issues of comicbooks. It was only during the second act that things started looking more together plot wise although things just got bleaker for our heroes as they get rounded up by the scheming Mamalahi-ma with the help of her henchmen. The heroes, earning themselves a second wind and hungry for a payback, set up the third act which was the final, all-out battle in which the outcome I won’t spoil in here.

Jean Judith Javier

Of course, my ears were all on the songs composed by Kanakan Balintagos (when he was still Aureaus Solito), Vincent de Jesus, and the Eraserheads along with Carina Evangelista writing some of the lyrics. It was not that easy trying to figure out which song was composed by who if I just had to rely on the music arrangement by Francis de Veyra of Radioactive Sago Project, the live band accompanying the shows. De Veyra did a swell job in giving the musical a streamlined sound. A heavy dose of the brass section provided a packed punch during upbeat numbers while a muted trumpet gave a cool and sexy vibe in some of the slow paced songs. And it was a delight to hear Kailan by the Eraserheads in its original context which is actually tinged with treachery.

Buddy Zabala and Ely Buendia

It amused me to see some of the Ballet Philippines dancers having spoken lines namely Richardson Yadao, playing Apolaki with an Amboy accent, Victor Maguad as Gawigawen, and Jean Marc Cordero as Sarimanok. Cyril Fallar, as Sidapa, even sang for a couple of measures. Other company members like Earl John Arisola as Malyari, Katherine Trofeo as Gonongleda, and Rita Winder as Rasagadang were just limited to dancing and yet came out as very creepy as the silent villains.

Vincent de Jesus speaks during the post-show press conference

With the guest artists/singers taking a more prominent role in this production, Manhid felt like a typical musical but one that has very strong and competent dancers. In comicbooks, a hero who just acquired his superpowers often struggle in using and controlling them, and often fumbles at his first fights. In the same way, Manhid also encountered the same problem especially with its large cast and a larger than life story.  The opening night was plagued by problems concerning lapel microphones and unsure blocking, a typical problem encountered during the first shows. It would be very interesting to see how the production gets more polished and put together towards the end of the run. I am also curious to see how the alternates namely Regina de Vera, Ricardo Magno, Gold Villar and especially the theater newbie Mark Anthony Grantos will fare in their respective shows.

Manhid: The Pinoy Superhero Musical runs until March 8, 2015 at the Cultural Center of the Philippines’ Tanghalang Nicanor Abelardo (CCP Main Theater) capping Ballet Philippines' 45^th Anniversary Sapphire Season.