The NYPO in Manila: Two nights of pure magic

Berthold Auerbach once said, "Music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life." This straightforward quote, inspiring in its simplicity, couldn’t be truer. There is something about music that washes away even the most pressing hardships of daily living. When the multitude of different voices in the world – bills, stress, deadlines – is screaming in our ears, music soothes the savage beast within and elevates the soul to a higher plane of existence. This was especially true last Oct. 18 and 19 when Citigroup and the Cultural Center of the Philippines presented the New York Philharmonic in a much-awaited two-night concert in celebration of Citibank’s 100 Years in the Philippines.

Under the baton of the New York Philharmonic’s new musical director, Lorin Maazel, the opening night show, Citibank’s invitational evening, featured Beethoven’s Leonore Overture No. 3, Debussy’s La Mer, and Sibelius’ Symphony No. 2 in D Major.

The Leonore Overture No. 3 was a fitting start for the evening’s performance, highlighting Beethoven’s passion. The NYPO impeccably pulled off the German composer’s romantic orchestration without overpowering the softer yet tense and romantic moments in the score. The brasses in particular were used to heighten these tense moments with exact precision.

Debussy’s La Mer, inspired by the composer’s love for the sea, is commonly refered to as Three Symphonic Sketches. As to whether or not the three disparate movements do add up into a symphony is still a matter of musical debate. However, under Maestro Maazel’s baton, the audience could see with their mind’s eyes Debussy’s waves unfold before them. The basses were fully exploited in delineating the last moments of night and the clean, clear notes notes of the rising sun. The music painted a magnificent tonal picture of the sea, the sun, the wind and the waves.

The evening’s concert concluded with Sibelius’ Symphony No. 2 in D Major. A passionate piece of music, the orchestra was magnificent in painting a romantic mood. The strings opened softly with a series of gently repeated notes that merged into piece’s opening movement.

Needless to say, thunderous applause with the full house giving the orchestra a standing ovation ended the evening, as Maazel and the New Yorkers took their bows. So deafening was the applause that a smiling Maazel had to tell the audience how glad he and the orchestra were to be back in Manila. A fun and fast-paced encore, an excerpt from Bizet and the unmistakable Hungarian March in G-minor by Brahms followed, leaving the audience tapping in time to the dancing beat and still wanting more.

The superlative first night performance only heightened the public’s excitement for the second night concert. I had already heard several good things about 20-year-old Chinese pianist Lang Lang, the evening’s featured soloist, from good friends in New York. As a matter of fact, most of the guests that night, the gala show for the benefit of the CCP Arts for the People program, were just as excited, having heard wonderful things about the prior evening.

Russian music was the evening’s theme, with a program composed of Mussorgsky’s A Night on a Bare Mountain, Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 and Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 5.

The excitement was palpable as Maestro Maazel took his place before the orchestra. The audience quieted down as the opening notes to Mussorgsky’s tone poem was played. The furious speed of the violins and violas immediately captured the audience’s attention, as the picture of a midsummer night’s gathering began to take shape. Strong percussion and fierce brass playing added the right amount of sorcery as the witches’ sabbath took place. With the bells of morning intoning to signal the end of night, the piece subsided into quietness, a clever piece of orchestration that Maazel pulled off with finesse.

When the pianist Lang Lang strode onstage, in perfect posture and his head held high, the audience recovered its enthusiasm. His little-boy smile was instantly endearing. Rachimaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 is not a short piece, but as soon as he gently caressed the first notes out of the piano, one barely noticed the passage of time. He made the music rise from the piano, whether it be in the intricate passagework, the soft lyrical movements or the strong harmony. It was as if Lang became one with the music. As the finale came to its close, he performed his last notes with strength and passion. A deafening applause ensued followed by several curtain calls for the conductor and the smiling young pianist. It was disappointing that the Chinese pianist did not give in to the audience’s demand for an encore. Maybe next time.

The evening’s finale, Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 5, quieted all worries that Rachmaninoff’s ultra-romantic concert would overshadow it. Tchaikovsky’s Fifth has fate as its theme, rising out forcefully from the orchestra from the brass section. This motif would reappear in various guises, passed around the different instruments, during the duration of the piece. The NYPO executed this emotionally-charged piece perfectly.

As it did the previous night, the audience showered Maestro Maazel and the orchestra with roaring applause and a standing ovation. Not to disappoint their public, they performed the overture to Glinka’s opera Ruslan and Lyudmila and a softer, slower version of another Hungarian Dance by Brahms. However, two encores did not suffice this time. The smiling Maazel was only willing and gave in to another encore, a repeat of the previous night’s Hungarian Dance in G-minor. This only had the audience clapping until their hands hurt and still clamoring for more.

I know it must be a cliché, but at the risk of sounding contrived, it truly was a night of pure magic. Words fail to justify the feelings the two evenings’ music evoked in me. I feel honored and lucky to have been there to witness it, and even luckier that, by a twist of fate, I found myself at the after-concert cocktails shaking hands with the unassuming Lang Lang and getting him to sign my program. Music truly does have the power to be transcendental, even more so if it is music that comes from the hands of the New York Philharmonic.