Cecile Licad performs with Russian State Orchestra

MANILA, Philippines - Cecile Licad, the country’s most celebrated pianist, makes history when she debuts in Russia with the Russian State Orchestra at the famous Tchaikovsky Hall as soloist in Brahms No. 1 in April next year.

Her first Russian engagement came after she appeared with a touring Russian orchestra in Germany as soloist in Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 3 last year.

Licad will arrive today as the headliner in Ayala Corporation’s “Bravo Filipino” series and as one of the highlights of Chopin Manille 2010 Bicentenaire sponsored by the French Embassy, Alliance Francaise, Philamlife and ROS Music Center.

The acclaimed Filipino pianist is also slated to jam with famous saxophone player Wynton Marsalis in a program inspired by the era of silent films and will be highlighted with both jazz and classical music.

Last February, Licad was in Syracuse in celebration of the Chopin bicentennary. Playing Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 2 in F Minor with the Syracuse Symphony Orchestra (SSO) under conductor Kazuyoshi Akiyama, Licad received a rousing standing ovation and drew praise for her “masterful” second movement.     

Last month, Licad figured in a special fund-raising concert at the Philippine Center and drew raves not only for her Chopin but also for her Buencamino numbers.

Licad’s all-Chopin program at the Philamlife Theater on March 27 consists of the 4 Scherzos and the 24 Preludes. On March 29, she will be soloist of the Manila Symphony Orchestra under Arturo Molina in Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 2 in F Minor. The same concerto will be heard in Science City of Muñoz, Nueva Ecija on March 23 under the auspices of Mayor Nestor Alvarez.Another solo outreach concert in the Atheneum School in Noveleta, Cavite will take place on March 30.

For inquiries, call 748-4152, 357-3811 or SMS 09065104270.