Wednesday, September 13, 2006
THE PHILIPPINE PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA
It was after seeing the Lincoln Center in New York City that Imelda Marcos had the vision for a similar cultural and arts center to be built in Manila, which was soon erected on reclaimed land in Manila Bay and designed by famed Filipino architect, Leandro Locsin.
The Tanghalang Pambansa, more commonly known as the CCP Main Building, houses four theaters — a museum of ethnographic exhibits and a changing exhibit of Philippine art or ethnography, galleries, and a library on Philippine art and culture. It also houses the administrative offices and facilities of the CCP. Security personnel at the main building strictly enforce a no picture taking rule; therefore, I’m unable to provide a photo exhibit of the incredible interior of this venue.
There are so many performances going on here, but the one which attracts me the most is by The Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra; formally inaugurated on May 15, 1973 as the CCP Philharmonic Orchestra, initially intended to assist artists performing at the CCP Theater. In 1979, Imelda Marcos commissioned Prof. Oscar C. Yatco to reorganize it.
Three years later, the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra was reborn as a world-class orchestra ranked among the best in the world. Under Music Director Eugene Castillo and Resident Conductor Cecinio Ronquillo, the PPO has consistently kept a busy concert schedule each year.
Its next performance at CCP will be “Noble Visions,” on October 13th, Friday at 8:00 pm. It features Najib Ismail on piano; Eugene Castillo will be conducting. However, the music they intend to perform has not been announced, yet. Tickets are from P350 to P900, which are incredibly cheap for a world class philharmonic orchestra performance.
Now, I am not nor have ever been an aficionado of classical music in a strict sense, but have always enjoyed listening to it whenever possible. What my friends and I often did in New York when young was buy the cheapest tickets at Lincoln Center or Carnegie Hall just to enjoy an afternoon or evening of orchestral music, which is, unarguably, great for the soul. Going to these classical concerts were in conjunction with the almost weekly rock concerts we used to attend at Howard Stern's Palladium in downtown Manhattan. I should also mention that my appreciation for orchestral music began when I watched those Warner Bros. cartoons on TV every afternoon when I was a kid.
Incidentally, there are about six art galleries within the main CCP building. One may go there early and view the current exhibits and installations, and then later on enjoy the philharmonic performance. For inquiries call the Museum and Visual Arts Division at 832-1125 local 1504/1505.
The telephone number for the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra is 832-1125 local 1608-1610.
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Please note:
I very much appreciate my articles and photos appearing on fellow bloggers' sites, popular broadsheets, and local broadcast news segments, but I would appreciate even more a request for permission first.
Thank you!
*
I very much appreciate my articles and photos appearing on fellow bloggers' sites, popular broadsheets, and local broadcast news segments, but I would appreciate even more a request for permission first.
Thank you!
*
Labels: CCP Complex, life in Manila, Local culture, music
posted by Señor Enrique at 6:39 AM
| 18 comments
Sunday, September 10, 2006
A PEEK INTO HER MADNESS
The notoriously corrupt young congressman from the north that she married was such a force of stress that it took her about a year to convalesce in a New York mental hospital after suffering a nervous breakdown. But the time spent in recuperation also instilled a formidable desire to help her husband become the next president of the Philippines upon her return. Thus, began Imelda’s ultimate rise to power.
The Coconut Palace was another addition within the Cultural Center complex commissioned by Imelda Marcos. This time, it was architect Francisco Manora, not Leandro Locsin. It was built for $10 million dollars in preparation for Pope John Paul’s 1981 visit; however, much to her disappointment, the pontiff opted to stay instead at the Papal Nunciature at Taft Avenue during his stay in Manila.
The Coconut Palace which faces the Manila Bay was created by using coconut shells in combination with several Philippine hardwoods, including a specially-engineered hybrid of coconut and hardwood aptly named Imelda Madera. Nonetheless, it is the coconut’s versatility that was showcased as the palace’s essential element — from the coconut's roots, trunk, bark, fruit, flower and shell, as well as the palace's overall design, form, and collection of objet d'art.
The structure itself is octagon-shaped while its roof resembled that of a traditional Filipino bamboo hat — the salakot. The seven lavish suites on the second floor were named after certain Philippine regions and each suite was decorated by the region’s respective indigenous handicrafts.
During Imelda’s reign, the palace housed most of her foreign guests — Brooke Shields, Richard Van Clyburn, George Hamilton, Adnan Kashoggi, Moammar Kadafi, and many others.
It is now a museum with well-manicured grounds, butterfly garden, and orchidarium. It can also be rented for special banquets for about $500 dollars a day; however, it is fully booked months in advance. It is open for walk-in visits from Tuesday to Sunday, 9:00 am to 4:30 pm with an entrance fee of $2 dollars per person. Telephone number is 832-0223.
Visiting the Coconut Palace was part of Carlos Celdran’s Living La Vida Imelda! — an architectural walking tour of the Cultural Center of the Philippines Complex as seen through the life and aspirations of Imelda Marcos.
It’s a tour about the Philippines during the rise and fall of the Marcoses — the 1970s, Martial Law and the endeavor to create a New Society — the time of my youth in which I was absent from the country. It was an era of hope and madness. Carlos brought them back for us to get a glimpse of. Indeed, another enjoyable learning experience.
Bravo, Carlos!
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Please note:
I very much appreciate my articles and photos appearing on fellow bloggers' sites, popular broadsheets, and local broadcast news segments, but I would appreciate even more a request for permission first.
Thank you!
*
I very much appreciate my articles and photos appearing on fellow bloggers' sites, popular broadsheets, and local broadcast news segments, but I would appreciate even more a request for permission first.
Thank you!
*
Labels: CCP Complex, Coconut Palace, Manila
posted by Señor Enrique at 6:12 PM
| 19 comments
