PPO embarks on UK concert tour with send-off performance
The Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra (PPO) embarks on a concert tour in the United Kingdom’s nine key cities between May 13 and May 24. This was officially announced in a press conference held recently at the Metropolitan Theatre, that was followed by a send-off concert of the PPO.
In her opening remarks, Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) president Kaye C. Tiñga said that the PPO, composed of around 70 musicians, “showcases musical excellence.” In pursuit of the CCP’s mandate, they have become “tireless ambassadors of music appreciation afforded to the Filipino people through their numerous concerts that include outreach performances in the provinces.”
In addition to their being cultural ambassadors, the PPO, through this concert tour, also assumes the role of “economic catalysts, opening doors for cultural exchange, tourism, and global collaboration.”
As the PPO travels and performs in selected cities in United Kingdom, she said, they carry with them not just sound but the “music of our nation’s spirit, creativity, and excellence.”
British pianist Mark Bebbington and Filipino violinist Diomedes Saraza Jr. were also introduced and gave short remarks. They grace PPO’s program as featured soloists.
Maestro Grzegorz Nowak led the PPO in the send-off concert that followed.
More than a send-off concert, however, it was a “tribute performance; a way of saying thank you for the gift of PPO’s music, a reminder that Filipino artistry knows no boundaries,” said Tiñga and artistic director Dennis Marasigan in their joint message in the souvenir program.
Two sets
The PPO played two sets of symphonic works. The first included Edward Elgar’s “Nimrod” from “Enigma Variation’s Op. 36.”; Frederick Delius Piano Concerto in C minor (revised edition in one movement) with pianist Mark Bebbington as soloist; and Felix Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 4, in A Major, Op. 90, “Italian.”
The second included a new work by PPO composer in residence Jeffrey Ching, “Il Maestro Di Cappella”; Ralph Vaughan Williams’ “The Lark Ascending,” with violinist Diomedes Saraza, Jr. as soloist; and Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67.
Intelligently curated, the pieces included in the program show an unmistakably British affinity, with Elgar, Delius, and Williams being British, while Mendelssohn’s “Italian” symphony was written for the Philharmonic Society of London. Beethoven’s symphony is famous for its four-note opening that signifies “V” for victory, which was adopted by the Allied forces during World War ll. It was a favorite piece played by the London Symphony Orchestra during its initial concert in 1904.
Jeffrey Ching, a prolific Filipino composer of Chinese descent, studied at the London University after his sojourn at Harvard University. He is the PPO’s composer-in-residence for the current season.
Solid performance
The PPO, under the solid command of Nowak, gave a solid performance. With its meditative ambiance, “Nimrod” served as a doxology, perhaps a sort of a thanksgiving for this current PPO undertaking.
Hearing Delius’ piano concerto condensed into one movement was engaging. Here, pianist Bebbington carved out massive chords and arresting running passages that showcased the posture of a virtuoso. Violinist Saraza, Jr., meanwhile, etched a serene, idyllic singing tone to blend with the pastoral ambiance the orchestra sounded in Williams’ work.
A poetic counterpoint was provided by Ching’s new work that “remakes” Domenico Cimarosa’s operatic intermezzo, “Il maestro di Cappela,” into a contemporary piece. It mimicked the stubbornness of the musicians who disregard the authority of the composer-conductor and play on their own, until the latter assumed the gesture of a policeman so that the musicians had to obey to produce the desired musical result.
Such gestures, assumed by Nowak, elicited laughter from the audience. But beneath the comical gestures towered the truth: The conductor on the podium wields authority. Soon the audience quieted when the orchestra intoned a tutti, a soft melodious web of symphonic sound, a conjunct chord picked up from the initial playing of arpeggios (playing of the notes of a chord) by the harp that ended the piece, all to the delight of the audience. This piece will be played as an opening number in each concert at the United Kingdom.
Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 capped the program. Here, as in Mendelssohn’s Symphonic opus, the orchestra gave a solid performance, surging through the entire four-movement opus with formidable dispatch.
Nowak stood on the podium with supreme command, conducting the orchestra sans scores for both symphonic works.
The slated UK performances of the PPO are: Bristol Beacon, May 13; Cadogan Hall, London, May 14; Symphony Hall, Birmingham, May 15; G Live, Guildford, May 16; Theatre Royal. Norwich, May 18; Bridgewater Hall, Manchester, May 19; City Hall, Sheffield, May 21; St. George’s Hall, Bradford, May 22, and Perth Festival, Scotland, May 25.
