A proliferation of pianists, 2 piano recitals slated/Indigenous peoples’ month

The music-lover can’t help noticing — and admiring — the proliferation of pianists through the years. The senior pianists include Cecile Licad, Raul Sunico, Nena del Rosario, Rowena Arrieta, Reynaldo Reyes, the late Regalado Jose and Ben Tupas, Ingrid S. Santamaria, Fr. Manuel Maramba, Victor Asuncion, US-based Jaime Bolipata, Corazon Pineda Kabayao, Rene Dalandan, Mary Anne Espina, Carmencita Sipin-Aspiras, Carminda Regala, Amelita Guevarra, Leonor Kilayko.

The junior ones include Greg Zuniega, Albert Tiu Jr., Rudolf Golez, Ariel Caces, Mariel Ilusorio, Oliver Salonga, the blind Carlos Alberto Ibay, Najib Ismail, and Charisse Baldoria. Among the prodigies are Andrei Ave, Denise Sy, Regina Montesclaros and Lorenzo B. Medel.

The above is a random listing. Many senior pianists are virtuosos; the rest have varying degrees of excellence; a few are mediocre.

Some no longer perform in public. Licad has the most foreign engagements. No pianist here or abroad can match Sunico’s phenomenal memory or his achievement of having played Rachmaninoff’s four concertos in a single concert without scores. Santamaria and Reyes have given over 500 romantic music concerts throughout the country. Reyes’ single-theme or single-composer concerts are unique.

Of  the prodigies, Andrei Ave played at ten with the Manila Philharmonic under Rodel Colmenar. Lorenzo Medel, who is already virtuosic at 17, was auditioned by four prestigious US institutions, each granting him a scholarship. However, he chose the one from Eastman in New York.

The unending proliferation of pianists reflects the inherent musicality of Filipinos.

Not in the foregoing list is Matthew Calderon whose recital will be on Oct. 16, 7 p.m. at Ayala Museum under the auspices of MCOF. According to an announcement, Matthew is an exciting young artist who at six took his first lessons under Jerome Baes, and is now on his fourth year under Mary Anne Espina. He won fourth prize in the Piano Teachers’ Guild “Soundscapes” contest, and in 2011 was lone winner in Bangkok’s 2nd International Mozart competition. With 11 other youngsters, he participated in Singapore Conservatory’s 2013 Summer Piano Institute.

Chinese Lisa Zheng, a grade 10 student at the International School and a student of Cecile Roxas Basilio for the last five years, will give a debut recital on Oct. 26, 7 p.m., at the CCP Little Theater. She took a master class under renowned pianist — Mozart specialist Paul Badora-Skoda.

Her formidable program consists of Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No. 10, Etude No. 3 and La Campanella, Chopin’s Revolutionary Etude and Nocturne in B Flat Minor, Ginastera’s “Danzas Argentinas”, and two concertos: Mozart’s in F Major and “the Yellow River” based on a cantata by Xian Xinghai, with the Manila Symphony Orchestra assisting under Arthur Molina.

At Lisa’s invitational recital, the public will be given invitations on a first-come first-served basis.

Lisa’s parents are Lipin Zheng, ADB adviser who dabbles in painting, and Jianping Xue Zheng.

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Dayaw, the biggest gathering of indigenous cultures organized by the Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) headed by chairman Felipe de Leon Jr. and executive director Emelita V. Almosara, and spearheaded by NCCA’s Subcommission under Commissioner Joycie Dorado Alegre and Leyte Gov. Dominic Petilla, will be held this month.

It will showcase an institutionalized film showing, a fashion show of indigenous wear, a food festival, performances, rituals, forums, traditional cuisine demos, traditional games, arts and crafts exhibit and cultural tours. The venues — UP Visayas, Leyte Normal U., Leyte National HS, and eastern Visayas State U. — will hold different activities simultaneously.

Sixty-four representatives of indigenous groups from 32 countries have been invited to mingle with our indigenous peoples and share their own cultures. The delegates will come from the Asian Cooperation Dialogues.

Dayaw aims to highlight the importance and richness of indigenous cultures, discuss the issues facing indigenous peoples and interact with those from other nations. It also aims to mine traditional knowledge, draw inspiration and insight from indigenous ways of life, and find solutions to modern problems.

Numerous indigenous peoples from all over the country are expected to participate.