PPO PERFORMS BACK-TO-BACK IN CONCERT WITH MADZ IN PASIG CITY

 

THE Cultural Center of the Philippines, the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Philippine Madrigal Singers will perform in the Pasig Cathedral on September 22, 2023, at 7 p.m.  The concert is free and open to the public.

The event, dubbed "Musikang Handog kay Inmaculada Concepcion sa 450 Taon ng Simbahan at Bayan ng Pasig," is part of the CCP, PPO, and Madz's commitment to foster music appreciation through outreach concerts in various communities and regions across the country.

The PPO will perform classical compositions as well as modern OPM and Broadway music under the direction of Maestro Herminigildo Ranera, while the Madz will steal the show with their vocal talent.

Both the CCP and the PPO hope that this concert will bring comfort and warmth to a wide range of audiences. Despite the continuing reconstruction of the CCP Main Building, CCP's programs, shows, and projects have expanded beyond the complex's boundaries to bring world-class creative experiences to an increasing number of Filipino audiences while promoting and preserving the finest of Filipino arts and culture.

Immaculate Conception Cathedral - Diocese of Pasig, Comite de Festejos de Pasig 2023, Office of the Lone District Representative of Pasig, City Government of Pasig; Bishop Mylo Hubert C. Vergara, Bishop of Pasig; Hon. Pasig City Congressman Roman T. Romulo; Hon. Pasig City Mayor Vico N. Sotto; Hon. Dodot B. Jaworski, Vice-Mayor of Pasig and Members of the 11th Sangguniang Panlungsod; Rev. Fr. Mariano L. Baranda, Rector & Parish Priest of the Immaculate Conception Cathedral; and Jovito V. Gertes & Marinella A. Salem, Presidente & Presidenta of the Comite de Festejos de Pasig 2023.

The Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra is the country’s leading orchestra and is widely regarded as one of the top musical ensembles in the Asia-Pacific region.  The PPO has performed with many of the world’s renowned conductors including Mendi Rodan, Piero Gamba, Enrique Batis, Sebastian Bereau, and Nicholas Koch.  It has also performed with the best foreign and Filipino artists such as Van Cliburn, Renata Tebaldi, Judith Engel, Anthony Camden, David Benoit, Cecile Licad, Raul Sunico, and Lea Salonga.

On the invitation of the Association of Japanese Symphony Orchestras, the PPO toured Europe in 2001 and took part in the Asia Orchestra Week in September 2002 at the Tokyo Opera City Hall.  Her Royal Highness Princess Galyani Vandhana of Thailand invited it to perform at Bangkok's National Theater in September 2004.

The PPO has premiered Filipino compositions as well as works by foreign composers that have not before been performed in the Philippines.  It continues to promote music enjoyment through outreach concerts in Metro Manila and other parts of the country in schools, parishes, government offices, and marginalized areas.

National Artist Professor Andrea O. Veneracion founded the Philippine Madrigal Singers, better known as the Madz, in 1963.  The group is made up of students, faculty, and alumni from the different colleges of the University of the Philippines (UP). The choir is one of the world’s most awarded, having consistently won all the top prizes in most of the world’s prestigious choral competitions: Concorso Polifónico Guido d’Arezzo (Arezzo, Italy); Concorso e Festival Internazionale Di Canto Corale “Seghizzi” (Gorizia, Italy);  International Chamber Choir Competition (Marktoberdorf, Germany); International Chorwettbewerb (Spittal, Austria); Festival Choral International de Neuchatel (Neuchatel, Switzerland); Florilège Vocal de Tours (Tours, France); International May Choir Competition Prof. G. Dimitrov (Varna, Bulgaria); Béla Bartók International Choir Competition (Debrecen, Hungary); Festival Internacional de Música de Cantonigròs (Cantonigros, Spain), Certamen Coral de Tolosa (Tolosa, Basque Country, Spain) and Certamen Internacional de Habaneras y Polifonia (Torrevieja, Spain).  They hold the distinction of being the first choir in the world to win the European Grand Prix for Choral Singing twice (1997 and 2007).

The ensemble performs a wide repertoire of various styles and forms: renaissance music, classical music, Filipino and international folksongs, contemporary and avant-garde music, opera, and even popular music.  Their specialization and focus on the madrigal idiom have inspired their unique set-up of singing while seated in a semi-circle, without a conductor.

 

Visit the CCP website (www.culturalcenter.gov.ph) for more information.  Follow the official CCP and PPO social media accounts on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok for the latest updates.