Tribute to composer Peña / Chamber music, jazz concerts / 2 artists in exhibitions

Filfest paid tribute to legendary Filipino composer Angel Peña at a concert in the Insular Life auditorium, which event Peña honored with his presence.

His mastery of both the classic and jazz idioms is considerably influenced by Western music. After all, the Philippines was colonized by Spain for over 300 years and by the US for 50, with subservience to American culture continuing in many obvious ways. Further, our education in Western music began in 1908.

The biographical notes aver that Peña is self-taught, a fact which makes his music all the more admirable, as also his stint as bass player of the Honolulu Symphony Orchestra and, more significantly, his uninterrupted activity as composer.

A remarkable diversity underlies his works. The classic and Filipino portion of the program consisted of ‘Sketches for Three Guitars,’ a kundiman, a kumintang, pieces for double bass and piano; cello and piano; violin, cello, piano and poetry; violin, cello, piano and double bass; violin, cello and piano.

The prolific Peña seamlessly shifts from exquisite, melodious, tonal music to atonalities, especially in the finale ‘For Louise Emery’ whose second movement is based on a Korean folk song. It ended with cellist Renato Lucas and violinist Gina Medina engaging in a fast, fierce and furious interaction or dialogue with pianist Sheryl Ann de Dios playing a notably executed but almost secondary role.

Edgardo de Dios, Chito Cariño and Phil Valdez of the Kasilag Guitar Trio were the other excellent instrumentalists as also double bass player Rommel Cruz in the quartet ‘Arigato Guzaimasu (Japanese for Thank You), about which Peña admits to Japanese influence and “a little touch of bossanova.”

Jonathan Arevalo Coo, widely known as a pianist, sang as a tenor in the lyrical kundiman and kumintang, and recited ‘A Poem by Swami Vivekamanda,’ with violinist Gina, cellist Lucas and pianist Sheryl performing splendidly.

In the jazz section, Mel Villena of the A.M.P. Band conducted (while dancing to the infectious rhythms) and occasionally playing a “giant” saxophone, beating the gansa with a stick in ‘Igorot Jazz Fantasy,’ this proving the presence of ethnic modes and rhythms. This fact was made evident earlier in ‘Igorot Rhapsody’ filmed at the CCP, and rendered by the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra under Olivier Ochanine.

Tots Tolentino and Michael Guevarra on alto sax and Nestor Gonzaga on trumpet awed listeners with their amazing dexterity.

In sum, Peña represented the best in East and West music.

Filfest president Vicky F. Zubiri gave prefatory remarks; director Martin Lopez was an engaging emcee.

Art exhibits

Grace Katigbak opened her exhibit “Kaivalya: Liberation” Feb. 16 at Alliance Francaise Total Gallery. The exhibit runs until March 8.

At the opening, soprano Tata Poblador sang three French songs to lusty applause.

Maria Victoria Rufino (Marivic) will hold her 17th exhibit of new mixed media, “Romanza Dream-scapes,” at the Pen Gallery from Feb. 22-27. The earlier exhibits were romantic, luminous water color and mixed media paintings of landscapes, seascapes and nature mounted at UNESCO, Paris, the US, Spain and Manila.

Marivic’s ‘Dreamscapes,’ series started with “Romanza”, the book of poetry by National Artist Virgilio S. Almario launched in 2008 in Manila and Madrid in 2011, and mounted at the Pen in 2009 as an art exhibit “Dreamscapes Romanza”, and later presented in Spain’s Museo Natural de Antropologia.

“Romanza II” will feature 20 original art works from the Madrid exhibit, with surprise elements ensuing from experiments with new materials in collage — spiritual and romantic dreamscapes painted from memory.

Chamber Music, Jazz Concerts

On Feb. 25, 8 p.m. at the Philamlife Theater, two chamber music works of the Romantic period — Anton Arensky’s First Piano Trio in D and Ernest Chausson’s Concerto for Piano Violin and a string quartet will be played by the Quartetto Expressivo (consisting of violinists Joseph Cimafranca and Sarah Gonzales, violist Rey Concepcion and cellist Gary Gonzales), pianist Mary Anne Espina, violinist Gina Medina and cellist Wilfredo Pasamba.

On Feb. 24, 5 p.m. at the CCP Little Theater international pianist Raul Sunico joins Clarion Chamber Ensemble (founded by flutist David Johnson) and soprano Joanna Go in a chamber music concert.

“Jazz Meets Classical” is set for tonight at 7 p.m. in the BDO F. Santiago Hall with Israeli guest musicians and conductor Yaron Gotfried.