A thrill in a campus with Gerard Salonga

MANILA, Philippines — Due to his childlike demeanor, he may have just been yet another undergrad pursuing one of the several out-of-the-box, cutting-edge courses at the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde School of Design and Arts.

The man, who might have been mistaken as a student, was none other than conductor Gerard Salonga.

He was accompanied by men and women dressed in all-black from head to toe — the ABS-CBN Philharmonic Orchestra — with their instruments in hand, for a special concert at the School of Design and Arts (SDA) Theater, in collaboration with the college’s Music Production Department.

The chairperson Agnes Manalo extended a warm welcome to all, and expressed hopes to continue worthwhile and meaningful projects together in the future.

Dr. Sunita Mukhi, associate dean of the Arts and Culture cluster, highlighted that concerts like this was the best stress reliever, most specially during the ongoing finals week.

As soon as Salonga stepped on the podium, the orchestra brought the entire auditorium to life with renditions of flawless, complex pieces by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

As the night progressed, the musical director patiently explained each number performed, and shared interesting and valuable facts and background about them — exhibiting his extraordinary familiarity with the pieces — all 10 of them. Or perhaps there was more.

For the surprise of the evening, two orchestra arrangements were chosen from the well-honed products of the DLS-CSB’s Music Program, namely, Ron Timothy Marquez’s adaptation of Mike Hanopol’s Laki Sa Layaw and Daniel Zildjian Benitez’s version of The Advisors’ Yugyugan Na, both supervised by their professors and mentors Francis de Veyra and Juan Carlo Magsalin.

The orchestra then followed with the familiar and iconic Harry Potter theme song Harry’s Wondrous World, which transported most listeners to the wizarding world of Hogwarts.

Renowned Filipino musician Ryan Cayabyab’s greatest hits likewise earned a share on the spotlight, as the genius and his team performed the classics Kay Ganda Ng Ating Musika and Tsismis, to roaring cheers.

To wrap up the two-hour concert, the ABS-CBN Philharmonic Orchestra finally took the audience to another nostalgia-filled visit to a galaxy far, far away with John Williams’ Star Wars main theme song.

Standing ovations, then applause and more applause burst out, swept through the hall, for the budding student-composers, their mentors, together with the accompaniment and for the conductor-at-large, which left the entire audience in awe and amazement.

As praise and admiration continued, wide smiles could be seen on the faces of resident-children from nearby barangays, who were invited to witness and listen to the beauty of the world of music in a theater, as part of the Music Production Department’s outreach project.