Violinist Diomedes Saraza, Jr. in PPO’s January 2017 concert

For the second year in a row, violinist Diomedes Saraza, Jr. ushers in a new year of performances at the Cultural Center of the Philippines as he headlines the upcoming Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra concert this January 20, 2017, 8:00 PM at the Tanghalang Nicanor Abelardo (CCP Main Theater).

Maestro Yoshikazu Fukumura returns to the podium in this concert featuring Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Symphony No. 28 in C major, K. 200, Edward Elgar’s Variations on an Original Theme, Op. 36 “Enigma Variations”, and Felix Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64 with Diomedes as the soloist.

Diomedes opened CCP’s 2016 performance season with a solo concert along with pianist Greg Zuniega last January 16, 2016. And in June 18, 2016, he and pianist Cecile Licad were the featured soloists at the PPO’s triumphant US/Carnegie Hall debut under the baton of the orchestra’s former principal conductor/music director Olivier Ochanine.

Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra 34^th Concert Season 2016-2017

Timeless Classics, New Beginnings Concert V

January 20, 2017, 8:00 PM | Tanghalang Nicanor Abelardo (CCP Main Theater)

Featuring:

Diomedes Saraza, Jr., violin

Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra

Yoshikazu Fukumura, conductor

Program:

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

     Symphony No. 28 in C major, K. 200

Edward Elgar

     Variations on an Original Theme, Op. 36 “Enigma Variations”

Felix Mendelssohn

     Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64

Ticket prices:

P1500 | P1200 | P800 | P500 | P400 | P300

50% discount for students
20% discount for senior citizens, PWD, government and military personnel

For inquiries:

CCP Marketing Department 832-1125 local 1806

CCP Box Office 832-3704

TicketWorld 891-9999

Award winning composer Jesse Lucas celebrates 20 years with free film/tv music scoring masterclass

In celebration of Jesse Lucas' 20 years in the industry, Jesse Lucas Music and Artist Playground present a masterclass by the award winning composer on the art of writing music for film and television happening this January 29, 2017 at 1701 Little Rooms Upstairs, Landsdale Tower at 86 Mother Ignacia St., in Quezon City.

Only a maximum of 20 masterclass participants will get to learn from two decades’ worth of experience in scoring for film and television (he has also composed music for theater and ballet) and will touch upon topics such as having the mindset for composing music, the creative process from pre-production to post-production, guidelines in composing for various genres, the differences between scoring for film versus television, dealing with directors and tight deadlines, and applying cultural sensibilities to musical choices.

Jesse’s most recent works include the television series Magpahanggang Wakas and the recent film box office hit The Unfaithful Wife. He recently won an Aliw Award for Best Musical Director for his work in the play Happiness is a Pearl. Other awards he has received throughout the years include the Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciendes (FAMAS) Hall of Fame (2010) after bagging five Best Music Score FAMAS awards for 9 Mornings (2003), Filipinas (2004), Mano Po 3 (2005), A Love Story (2008), and Kasal, Kasali, Kasalo (2007); Gawad Urian Best Music Score for Babae sa Breakwater (2004); Young Critics Circle Awards for Best Sound and Aural Orchestration for Phone Sex (2000), Sugatang Puso (2001), Minsan May Isang Puso (2002), and Anghel sa Lupa (2004); Star Awards for Best Music Score for Filipinas (2004); Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) Award for Best Original Song for Babae (1997); MMFF Best Music Score for Luksong Tinik (1999); and Gawad Tanglaw for Batanes (2008). On the international front, Jesse won the Best Music at the 2005 Screamfest International Film Festival in Los Angeles, California USA for Sigaw (2005).

Participants for the masterclass are required to have basic knowledge of Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI)/Digital audio workstation (DAW)/virtual instruments, music theory and harmony, and music arrangement and orchestration (MIDI/live instruments). Interested parties can register at The Music of Jesse Lucas facebook page or can contact Kim at (0975) 919-3179. The masterclass will be FREE of charge.

Jumping into ZOFO's Mosh Pit and the world of 4 Hands, 1 Piano

Whenever a new year begins, I always find myself having an extra spring in my step. This is reflected by the music that I heavily play around this time. And as I welcome 2017, I have ZOFO’s sophomore album Mosh Pit, released by Sono Luminus, currently on heavy rotation. This album may not be a new release but it’s perfect for me to keep the adrenaline pumping hoping that this upbeat mood will last me throughout the year.

The piano duo ZOFO, a shorthand for 20-finger orchestra (ZO=20 and FO=finger orchestra) is made up of Eva-Maria Zimmermann and Keisuke Nakagoshi. With Mosh Pit, the duo featured high energy music of from 20^th century American composers like George Gershwin, Conlon Nancarrow, Samuel Barber, John Corigliano, Allen Shawn and Paul Schoenfield. Various dance styles and rhythms ranging from Carribean, blues, tango, boogie, and even rock and roll make this CD more edgy and sensual than the usual classical/romantic piano fare.

George Gershwin’s four hands arrangement of his Cuban Overture was still able to retain the festive Caribbean flavor despite the absence of the percussion instruments highlighted in the orchestral version of the piece. The Sonatina by Conlon Nancarrow is a short highly syncopated piece venturing into blues and ragtime.

Samuel Barber’s Souvenirs, Op. 28, with the different dance in each movement, one couldn’t help but sway to the beat which can be embarrassing to do while aboard the light railway trains. Speaking of trains, the various movements of John Corigliano’s Gazebo Dances and Allen Shawn’s Three Dance Portraits are light, short, and breezy enough to keep me from getting too stressed if ever the train rides get too jam packed. And the moderately fast tempo would keep me going whenever I walk considering that travelling by foot is often times faster than riding something nowadays.

Paul Schoenfield’s Five Days from the Life of a Manic Depressive is the longest piece and the chunky meat of the CD. The music here does not really plunge to the depths of despair as the title suggests. It does skim the surface occasionally but remains triumphant in the end which is what I want my 2017 to be. Overall, high energy abounds in this album but there’s still enough contrasting material as to not make it sound monotonous.

As I listen to the CD, I couldn’t help but imagine how the parts were divided between Eva-Maria and Keisuke. And also how fun and enjoyable it must be to play these pieces. One thing that really fascinates me about four hands performances is how close the two pianists can get. Not only there is physical intimacy, there are also moments of theatricality especially when the hands of both pianists cross to the other’s section. I guess that both really have to like each other to be comfortable playing that close to one another. Because of this, I’ve been trying to think of an extremely dark and aggressive piece in the four hands repertoire. And I’m digging up nothing so far. It would be very difficult to play such a piece with someone that close and such proximity may feel like an invasion of personal space already.

All these thoughts do entice me to one day try to play pieces for four hands. I know that it would take a lot of digging to get my hands on scores of pieces that would catch my fancy. Ultimately, the bigger question is which pianist will be up to the task to sit by my side and play four hands music with one piano.

ZOFO has released four albums to date: Mind Meld, Mosh Pit, Zoforbit: A Space Odyssey, and ZOFO Plays Terry Riley. Their debut album Mind Meld earned them two Grammy Award nominations back in 2013.

Welcoming 2017 on a high note

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 60^th 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.