Raul Sunico takes the ultimate Rachmaninov test

Pianist Raul Sunico is taking on the exceptional challenge of performing all of Russian composer Sergei Rachmaninov’s four piano concertos in a one-night benefit concert for the Sunico Foundation for Arts and Technology on Sept. 14 at the Main Theater of the Cultural Center of the Philippines. Performing just one Rachmaninov concerto is enough to challenge even the most dexterous of pianists, but performing all four in one night? What madness, some might say.

Sunico is quite calm about the test he is about to face. He has played the Third Piano Concerto countless of times in concerts here and abroad. He has tried his hand at the First, so he believes it will not be a difficult task. However, this is the first time he will be publicly playing the popular Second Piano Concerto. On the other hand, the Fourth Piano Concerto is new to him; it will be receiving its Philippine orchestral premiere on this night, since the only other time it was performed in the country was in its version for two pianos.

Will his audience be equally up to the daunting program he proposes to offer them?

"We will find out that night," he quips.

"I originally planned to do all four concertos in two nights," he admits. "However, I realized that not many of these people will show up again for the second night. I might as well play all four concertos in one go."

Rachmaninov’s music is considered by many to be the epitome of Romantic music. Its surging melodies and the outpouring of orchestral emotion make it one of the most passionate music ever written.

However, Rachmaninov stated in 1941 that he never set out to write passionate or Romantic music.

"I am a Russian composer and the land of my birth has influenced my temperament and outlook," the composer said. "My music is the product of my temperament, and so it is Russian music; I never consciously attempted to write Russian music, or never, to the best of my knowledge, imitated anyone. What I try to do, when writing down my music, is to make it say simply and directly that which is in my heart when I am composing. If there is love there, or bitterness, or sadness, or religion, these moods become a part of my music, and it becomes either beautiful or bitter or sad or religious."

Rachmaninov’s Second and Third Piano Concertos are the most challenging in the piano repertoire because the composer wrote them to display his technical prowess.

The Second Piano Concerto was written following the catastrophic performance of his First Symphony. The passionate intensity of the opening theme of its first movement, the melodic invention and its craftsmanship have made it a lasting success. On the other hand, the Third Piano Concerto was written to accompany Rachmaninov in his first concert tour of America. By this time, he had left Russia and was trying to find employment as a concert pianist. This concerto was to be his calling card of success.

Sunico says Rachmaninov isn’t always in the hands of every pianist.

"As we know, not all of Rachmaninov’s music is easy," he says. "Not even the C-sharp minor Prelude can be played by any pianist. You need to reach a certain level of playing to be able to play Rachmaninov."

Sunico started piano lessons when he was five years old under Marina Diokno. He also studied under Benjamin Tupas as a scholar at the University of Santo Tomas Conservatory of Music. Under a scholarship from the Young Artists Foundation of the Philippines of then First Lady Imelda R. Marcos, he completed his masters at the Juilliard School in New York, studying under Sacha Gorodnitski, and later his doctoral at the New York University, where he studied under Joseph Villa.

He says he studied the piano as any child during his youth because he assumed it was part of the routine. He realized he liked playing the piano when he found enjoyment in the occasional student recitals his teacher organized for her pupils. From then on, he found inspiration in the music he heard on the radio and studied them for his enjoyment.

For 27 years he was based in New York, concertizing extensively in the United States, Canada and Europe. Occasionally, he returned home to the Philippines to perform in recitals and with the country’s major symphony orchestras.

In 2002, he returned home for good when he accepted the posting as Dean of the UST Conservatory of Music. Although the work is purely administrative, and it would sometimes take him away from his piano, he feels the job suits him well.

"I’m still productive, and I believe I can help to musically develop what there is to tap in the students here," Sunico explains.

He does still play in concerts regularly. Last June, he performed at The Hague in the Netherlands, while this week he goes to Taiwan for a performance of Rachmaninov’s "other" piano concerto, the Rhapsody on a Theme by Paganini.

The Rachmaninov piano concerto marathon is his biggest project yet this year. Funds raised during this concert will benefit the Sunico Foundation’s scholars.

When the Sunico Foundation began offering last year an endowment for deserving students, it identified two students at the Philippine High School for the Arts as its recipients. In its second year, he hopes they will be able to find more students, both in the arts and sciences, who will benefit from the Foundation’s assistance.

Accompanying Sunico in his traversal of the four Rachmaninov piano concertos is the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra, to be led by Prof. Hermie Rañera.

He says he will not be playing the concertos in sequence. The more popular Second Piano Concerto will be played before the interval, while the majestic Third Piano Concerto will end the program. The First and the Fourth Piano Concertos will precede the two popular concertos, the perfect pairing for this occasion.

"Fans of the Second Piano Concerto will surely sit through the first half of the show," he admits. "And if they want to hear the Third Piano Concerto, they will have to sit through the Fourth Piano Concerto. This way, the audience will have an opportunity to compare for themselves all of Rachmaninov’s concertos."

With all four concertos clocking in at around 130-plus minutes, this bonanza of Rachmaninov riches will have everyone fully sated with the Russian master’s music in less than three hours – all for the price of a ticket that will benefit needy but deserving scholars.

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For ticket inquiries, call the CCP Box Office at 832-1125.