Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra
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The Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra (PPO) is the Philippines' leading orchestra and is widely regarded as one of the top musical ensembles in the world.
[edit] History
The Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra was formally inaugurated on May 15, 1973 as the CCP Philharmonic Orchestra and was initially intended to assist artists performing at the CCP Theater. The PPO’s first music director was Professor Luis Valencia with Julian Quirit as concertmaster.
In 1979, Imelda Marcos, who was the First Lady of the Philippines at that time asked Prof. Oscar Yatco to reorganize the orchestra. Three years later, the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra was born with a new vision, to become a world-class orchestra that can be ranked among the best in the world. Under the baton of its current Music Director Eugene F. Castillo and Resident Conductor Cecinio Ronquillo, the PPO has kept a busy schedule all year-round with its concert season from September to April, regular performances at the San Agustin International Music Festival, special concerts and outreach performances.
The PPO has performed with many of the world’s most renowned conductors including Mendi Rodan, Piero Gamba, Yaacov Bergman, and Nicholas Koch. It has also performed with some of the very best Filipino and foreign artists, including Cecile Licad, Martin Nievera, Regine Velasquez, Van Cliburn, Renata Tebaldi, Judith Engel, Anthony Camden, Freestyle, and jazz pioneer David Benoit.
The PPO has gone on a very successful European tour and participated in the Asia Orchestra Week 2002 held at the Tokyo Opera City Concert Hall. The orchestra performed in a hugely successful Charity Royal Command Concert last September 27, 2004 at the National Theater in Bangkok, Thailand, upon the invitation of Her Royal Highness Princess Galyani Vadhana, the older sister of His Majesty the King of Thailand. This was a project of the Fund for Classical Music Promotion, a nonprofit charity organization that gives out scholarships to young, talented and needy musicians to further study music, in cooperation with the Embassy of the Philippines in Bangkok and the Ministry of Culture of Thailand. In 2006 its Tour of the United States commemorated of the centennial celebration of the first Filipino migrants to Hawaii and California.
