String Master

MANILA, Philippines - A notable musician once said: “The love of classical music is only partially a natural response to hearing the works performed, it also must come about by a decision to listen carefully, to pay close attention, a decision inevitably motivated by the cultural and social prestige of the art.”

The time will soon come to make that decision as music circles and patrons of the arts in Manila anticipate the performance of one of the greatest living violinists in the world, Uto Ughi, in a one-night only concert at the Cultural Center of the Philippines on June 2, 2010.

Consistently praised for his “fine sense of form with excellent technique and perfect aplomb,” Uto Ughi set the bar in the field of classical music with his colorful career, matched only by the complexity of the pieces that he brings to life on the violin.

Born in Italy, Uto showed remarkable talent at quite a young age, playing in his first public concert when he was just 7 years old.

Such skill earned him the privilege to receive further tutelage from the great Romanian composer and musician Georges Enescu.

In 1959, at the age of 15, the unstoppable Uto started touring and giving concerts in Italy and around Europe, while regularly playing on radio and appearing with almost all the major European and American orchestras including the Boston Symphony, the Royal Philharmonic, the London Philharmonic, the BBC Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic, Filarmonici di Roma, and the Bolshoi Theater Orchestra.

His performances were so successful that he made headlines in the international press, and consequently, requests for concerts came flooding in from all over the world. He even performed at the Salzsburg and Vienna Festivals in the double role of soloist and conductor.

Predictably, he has a long list of albums and live recordings that span all the classical greats, utilizing his Guarnieri del Gesù of 1744 – which, with its deep, warm sound, is probably one of the most beautiful Guarneris in existence – and Stradivarius of 1701 to their fullest potentials.

Uto will be accompanied by the very talented and noted Italian pianist Alessandro Specchi, who has had an important career playing in the major musical institutions in Italy and abroad both as a soloist and as a collaborator with famous musicians and singers, as well as recording solo and chamber music works.

A highly respected piano teacher, he presently shares his craft at the Florence Academy and at the International Academy in Portogruaro.

The repertoire for the gala concert includes all three movements of Beethoven’s long and intensely emotional Sonata op 47 in La Maggiore, better known as the “Kreutzer” Sonata; the darkly sweet Fantasia Su Temi del Faust op 20 by Wieniawski; the brisk and technically challenging etude La Campanella from Paganini, and Introduzione e Rondò capriccioso by Camille Saint-Saens.

This very rare event is being brought to Manila by the newly appointed Ambassador of Italy to the Philippines Luca Fornari and his wife Madame Silvana Novelli to celebrate their arrival and the Republic Day of their homeland.

The concert is held in partnership with Metrobank Card Corp., Rustan Commercial Corp., Italian Maritime Academy, Elburg, Crewtech, and Sofitel Philippine Plaza.

Tickets are available on a first come first served basis through the CCP, tel 832-1125 loc 1800 (Susan Ortiz). Show starts at 8 p.m. and formal dress code applies.