This month’s return of Cecile Licad is no different. She performs tomorrow evening with the San Miguel Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Maestro Rodel Colmenar in a program that includes Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3, Shostakovich’s Fifth Symphony and Mozart’s Magic Flute Overture.
Next Monday (June 24), she performs in a rare solo concert at the Cultural Center of the Philippines, with a repertoire of Schubert’s Impromptus Op. 142 D.935, Liszt’s Annees Pelerinage (Year of Pilgrimage), Liszt-Busoni’s Mephisto Waltz and Chopin’s Twelve Etudes Op. 25.
Licad’s artistry has been characterized as a blend of daring musical instincts and the superb training of a "musician’s musician". Her natural talent was honed by three of the greatest performers/pedagogues of our time: Rudolf Serkin, Seymour Lipkin and Mieczyslaw Horszowski, all at the renowned Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia.
Serkin became a strong mentor and father figure as well as teacher. Listening to the 14-year-old Cecile perform, he remarked, "When I was her age, I could not touch what she is doing." Speaking about Serkin’s influence, Cecile says, "He taught me not to be afraid to take risks. He said, ‘Do what you believe; your conviction will make the music come alive’. I have always taken his advice."
Cecile began her piano studies at the age of three with her mother, Rosario Licad, and later studied with the highly respected pedagogue Rosario Picazo. At the age of seven she made her debut as soloist with the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra.
Cecile is one of the youngest musicians ever to receive the prestigious Leventritt Gold Medal. Mrs. Licad recalls in her book My Daughter Cecile (1994), "Although Cecile and six other performers were being promoted in concert by the Leventritt Foundation as Leventritt Artists since 1979, she had no idea that her arranged auditions with world-famous conductors like Seiji Ozawa, Mstislav Rostropovich, Zubin Mehta, Andre Previn, Lorin Maazel, Neville Marinner, Carl Maria Guilini and others were part of the final test to win the Leventritt Gold Medal. Obviously, all of these conductors, together with other musicians who heard Cecile in previous auditions, endorsed her to be the recipient of the Leventritt award."
"On January 22, 1981, 19-year-old Cecile Licad from the Philippines became the historic recipient of the prestigious grand prize of the Leventritt Foundation, which had not given the award to anyone in the preceding 11 years."
Cecile has been the pride of the country with the recognition she has gained as a concert pianist. She has appeared regularly with the world’s top orchestras, including the Chicago Symphony, New York Philharmonic, Boston Symphony, and has collaborated with some of the world’s greatest conductors such as Claudio Abbado, Zubin Mehta, Seiji Ozawa, Kurt Masur, as well as legendary conductors Eugene Ormandy, Mstislav Rostropovich and Sir Georg Solti.
Cecile has also won over audiences in Asia,performing with Tokyo’s NHK Symphony, the Hong Kong Philharmonic and our very own Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra. Last summer, she was soloist on an extensive tour of the Far East with the Asian Youth Orchestra under the direction of Sergiu Comissiona, performing in Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, Singapore, Kyoto and Tokyo.
She has also appeared on television and has a string of recordings, including a critically-acclaimed recording of Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 and an album featuring Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 2 in f minor and Saint-Saens’ Piano Concerto No. 2 in g minor with conductor Andre Previn and the London Philharmonic, which won the Grand Prix du Disque Frederic Chopin.
Her return to Manila this year promises to be another musical milestone. Her solo concert is a project of the Francisco B. Buencamino Sr. Music Foundation and the Cultural Center of the Philippines. For ticket information, call the CCP Box Office at tel. 832-3704 or the CCP Marketing Office at tel. 832-3878.