Here’s what to expect from the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra’s 42nd concert season, running until April 2027

The PPO opens its season on September 25 at the Samsung Performing Arts Theater. The programme includes Filipino composer Jeffrey Ching’s What Happens in Every Classical Piece Explained in 15 Minutes (Sinfoniettina on G-C for Mozart Orchestra), the Asian premiere of Carl Czerny’s Symphony No. 6 and Ludwig van Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5, Op. 73, E-flat Major, which is known as Emperor Concerto, featuring Spanish pianist Martín García García.

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For the second performance on October 16, the PPO moves to The Metropolitan Theater. The evening features Redentor Romero’s Philippine Portraits, Zygmunt Noskowski’s The Steppe and Georg Friedrich Händel’s Harp Concerto in B-flat Major, performed by Filipino classical pedal harpist Vien Ignacio.

On November 6, PPO returns to the Samsung Performing Arts Theater. The lineup consists of Claude Debussy’s Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune, Maurice Ravel’s Alborada del gracioso and Boléro, alongside Camille Saint-Saëns’ Violin Concerto No. 3, Op. 61, B minor, featuring Filipino violinist Kaycee Galano.

Closing out the calendar year on December 4, the fourth concert showcases Beethoven’s Egmont Overture, Symphony No. 3, Op. 55, E-flat Major known as Eroica, and Piano Concerto No. 4, Op. 58, G Major, performed by Italian concert pianist Mario Galeani at the Samsung Performing Arts Theater.

Entering 2027, the PPO ushers in the new year on January 15 at the Samsung Performing Arts Theater. The repertoire features the premiere of Jerry Dadap’s Symphony No. 5, Jeffrey Ching’s Journey to the Alps and Victor’s Meditation from the Opera Frankenstein, as well as Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3, Op. 30, D minor, performed by Russian-American pianist Natasha Paremski.

On February 12, the sixth concert takes place at The Metropolitan Theater, focusing on the works of Dmitri Shostakovich. The programme includes Festive Overture, Op. 96, Symphony No. 5, Op. 47 and Violin Concerto No. 1, Op. 99, featuring Filipino violinist Diomedes Saraza, Jr.

The series continues at The Metropolitan Theater on March 12 with PPO’s seventh concert, titled Visions. The evening presents Robert Schumann’s Manfred Overture, César Franck’s Symphony in D minor, and Karol Szymanowski’s Violin Concerto No. 1, Op. 35, performed by Korean violinist Ju-Young Baek.

For the season finale on April 16, 2027, the PPO returns to its permanent home at the Tanghalang Nicanor Abelardo following the completion of the CCP Main Building’s rehabilitation.

Titled Al Fine, the grand finale features Jeffrey Ching’s completion of the Lacrimosa, Sanctus, Benedictus and Osanna fragments from Mozart’s unfinished Requiem, K626 (Sussmayr version), alongside Hector Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique, Op. 14. Ukrainian violinist Dmytro Udovychenko joins the orchestra for Edward Elgar’s Violin Concerto, Op. 61, B minor to close the 42nd concert season.

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