Music & Mayhem

Manila, Philippines - It’s May 18 at an invitational night of music to commemorate Manila Symphony Orchestra’s 85 years. MSO executive director Jeffrey Solares and I had pictured this evening as a romantic night of music under the stars, reminiscent of the Concert in the Park series popularized by the orchestra decades ago. 

But as fate would have it, the stars were not out that night and mayhem poured down as a deluge wiped out our garden scenario. But that’s as far as mayhem reigned. After all, at 85 years of age and being the first symphony orchestra ever established in South East Asia, MSO has weathered more than a downpour. And the music must go on. And oh, go on it did, and what music we were treated to that night! 

Never mind that the rain was blowing in from the open entry to the Arts in the City’s performance hall. Down to the last man and woman, not a single musician skipped a beat, playing through the rain, bravely shielding their instruments as kind-hearted guests stood by them with umbrellas aloft.

When the orchestra swept into the first notes of Beethoven’s Egmont Overture, we were oblivious to the rain’s mayhem. It was only the music we heard: the crescendos and diminuendos, the allegros and the adagios, the music of an orchestra that played its first symphony in 1926 and who, after 85 years, is thankful that its music plays on!

Cellist Wilfredo Pasamba guests at the MSO’s concert on June 4.

In the hall were MSO Board members Tony Cojuangco with the ever-lovely Gretchen Barreto, Maan Hontiveros, Francis Sebastian, Greg Yu, Cora Alvina and I. Cecilia Manalo, whose late husband Professor Basilio Manalo had established MSO, was unfortunately unable to attend the concert.

With us was Dr. Benito Legarda whose family has staunchly supported MSO from its inception. In the 1930’s, when there was no xerox or Internet, the Legardas would have the musical scores painstakingly copied by hand, hundreds of pages of them individually hand copied, for the orchestra to play. To this day, the Legardas remain stalwart patrons, sponsoring the musicians of MSO.

We listened in rapt attention to music that spanned the orchestra’s lifetime. Under the masterful baton of conductor Professor Arturo Molina, we were swept by the boldness of Toreador, from the popular opera “Carmen,” audaciously adapted by the MSO in Tagalog in the 1950’s. 

Showing its mastery of range, the orchestra moved from playing grand symphonies to Broadway. To the delight of the audience, Cocoy Laurel serenaded us. He opened with Some Enchanted Evening and, to much applause, enlivened Man of La Mancha’s Impossible Dream.

As a nod to the younger talents in the orchestra, among them Sara Maria Gonzales, NAMCYA 1st prize winner, and Jonathan Livioco, Asian Youth Orchestra delegate, a concerto for two violins was played. Encores included highlights from John Williams’ Soundtrack. 

MSO violinists Sara Maria Gonzales and Jonathan Livioco.

On display that night were the versatility and range of MSO and a sneak peak at their 2011 Concert Season. Yes, the MSO is back with a vengeance! And it opens its season in grand style, playing in the CCP’s Main Theater on June 4. 

They will be playing the technically demanding Cello Concerto No. 2 in D Major by Franz Haydn and Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 5. 

It’s a big musicale…literally. The 60-man orchestra has to be augmented to 85, with additional trumpets, oboes, flutes, clarinets, bassoons, contrabassoons, a harp and a larger string section brought in for the Mahler piece. As an extra treat, US-based cellist Wilfredo Pasamba goes solo on the cello and Professor Molina conducts.

It’s an event not to be missed. And if the night’s music was an appetizer, I cannot wait for the “mains” to be played on June 4.

As I savored the last strains of the night’s music, I headed to the bar and asked for more of the deliciously deep and rich wine from Straits Wine Company. Riveted, I gripped the bottle and looked at the wine’s label, Mischief and Mayhem. How apt! 

Photos by Rick Lopez

The rain played mischief and mayhem on the night’s logistics. But because of the mayhem, the music of the Manila Symphony Orchestra stood out even more – pure, soaring, soul-elevating, inextinguishable, memorable. Encore!  

Tickets for the June 4, 8 p.m. concert are available at Ticketworld, CCP Box Office or MSO office at 523-5712. Season subscriptions are available through Jedi Villar at 0916-7015628.