One Good Reason Why I Enjoy Watching the PPO - The Conductor is Goodlooking!

There’s nothing elitist about classical music–and this conductor gives away tickets to prove it

You can call me shallow but one of the reasons why I enjoy watching PPO performances is because of their goodlooking conductor Olivier Ochanine!  Unfortunately though, I have missed most of their season this year due to financial reasons, but since it will be his last year with the PPO this year, I will make sure to attend all the PPO's remaining shows, especially those that he will be conducting. 

Hayy, oh well, he can't stay here forever.  He still has to grow professionally and find other orchestras to nurture.  Anyway, I'll just keep tabs with the PPOs performances, especially the ones where Olivier is conducting!

A Night of Trombones, Czech and Danish Music at the CCP

 

With world-renowned trombonist, Takahiro Ono!

With the PPO conductor, Olivier Ochanine!

 

This is the first concert of the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra for 2012 but I think the fifth for this season. I actually missed all the other shows because of my busy schedule but I was very happy to attend this one.   For the first time, I decided to get a ticket in the balcony because Lea Salonga said that the music would sound better there since the music rises, especially in the CCP.  And was she right on the money!! Thanks Lea for that suggestion!

 

The PPO (Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra) first played Antonin Dvorak's Czech Suite and it was very beautiful!  Then Takahiro Ono, a trombonist, came on, and he did a wonderful version of Rimsky-Korsakov's Trombone Concerto.  It was actually the first time I heard a trombonist do a solo and it was quite cute, especially his encore, which he did with four other trombonists which I presume are from the PPO.  The encore sounded kinda jazzy to me and it reminded me of the music Charlie Chaplin would use in his silent films.

 

Then Maestro Oli introduced us to Carl Nielsen's The Inextinguishable where he gave us a background about the work.  Frankly, I didn't know Denmark had some good composers so thanks to his leadership, I have finally heard a Danish symphony - and the PPO performed really well.  It was so beautiful to hear all those notes because from our vantage point, you could really appreciate the music better compared to the other concerts where I sat in the orchestra area.  It was robust and clear and cohesive.

Pity that I might miss the next two PPO concerts since my calendar is almost full.  Sigh.....anyway, there's always the next season in September!

Incidentally, the installations of Roberto Chabet were also in the lobbies of the different floors of the CCP theater. Interesting work - very masculine and very clean.