Foundation News

Ilya Rashkovskiy, grand prizewinner of the First Hong Kong International Piano Competition chaired by Vladimir Ashkenazy, will debut in Manila on Wednesday, December 13, 2006 as part of the Great Performance Series at the Philamlife Theater, UN Avenue, Ermita, Manila.

The other members of the Hong Kong jury which gave the grand prize to Rashkovskiy include Tchaikovsky laureate Vladimir Krainev and piano icons Gary Graffman, Leon Fleisher and Cristina Ortiz.

Also a prizewinner of international piano competitions in France, Italy and Spain, Rashkovskiy has debuted in the world’s most important venues among them the Theatre du Champ Elysee in France, the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory, the Suntory Hall in Tokyo, the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam and the Deulen Concertgebouw in Rotterdam. Among the conductors he has worked with include Sergio Commissiona and Edo de Waart who earlier worked with Cecile Licad.

Rashkovskiy Manila program called An Evening of Piano Fantasy is sponsored by the Chopin Society of Hong Kong headed by Andrew and Annabela Freris. The December 13 piano repertoire include Mozart’s Fantasy in C Minor, KV 475, Schubert’s Wanderer Fantasy in C Major, Chopin’s Fantasy in F Minor, Liszt’s Fantasia quasi sonata (Dante Sonata) and Balakirev’s Oriental Fantasy-Islamey.

Apart from Rashkovskiy, the Great Performance Series at Philamlife Theater include Filipino tenor Otoniel Gonzaga with guest artists Dulce, sopranos Rachelle Gerodias and Camille Lopez-Molina, flutist Christopher Oracion and the Manila Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Rodel Colmenar.

The series ends on February 24, 2007 with a recital of Romanian violin superstar Alexandru Tomescu with pianist Mary Anne Espina.

The Great Performance Series is sponsored by the Philamlife Insurance Company and the Chopin Society of Hong Kong.

For ticket inquiries, please call tel. 9007023 or cell 09065104270.

Award-Winning British Comedy on Philippine Tour

Award-winning UK comedy group Peepolykus has been invited by the British Council to tour the Philippines and bring delight to audiences with “All in the Timing,” a series of one-act comedies which is scheduled to run in Manila and Cagayan de Oro from June 30 through July 4.

A show that dispels stress, anxiety and depression, All in The Timing portrays the joyfully absurd world of absurdity where chimps attempt to write Shakespeare, faux pas can be edited from conversations, and new languages are improvised. Physically strong, visually inventive and suitable for a wide age group, Peepolykus are known for their brilliantly realised characterisation, slick performances, and striking visual images — all of which earned for them a Fringe First Award at the Edinburgh Festival.

John Nicholson, David Sant, and Javier Marzan — creators of Peepolykus — have a sound and fundamental understanding of a type of popular comedy that is as old as neolithic vaudeville.

Laughter, after all, is fundamental to human experience. They work with the type of gags and audience participation that we all recognise, but they do it with a new slant — we are included in the game. Social inclusion for the 21st century.

In a country where the workforce seems to be permanently stressed out by both national politics and showbiz chismis, we need Peepolykus’ brand of easy-going, but scintillating comedy that massages brain synapses in a more efficacious manner that is probably cheaper than Prozac.

Their side effects are stunning. Audiences will emerge from a Peepolykus show invigorated, in a communal spirit, with feelings of well-being that you will want to disseminate as you say hello to people on the street, smile at jeepney drivers with a short fuse, be kind to animals, cherish children and the elderly — generally deciding that the world is a nice place, and, maybe, that even the tabloids are written by vicious people obsessed with smut and sensationalism because they are deprived: they haven’t seen a Peepolykus show!

As of yet, Peepolykus is not available on prescription from the NHS. But if you value your sanity in a world gone mad with power and consumerism, spend some time at a Peepolykus show. They will tickle your fancy, and your brain, and you will emerge knowing that the world can’t be entirely bad when you have Peepolykus in it…and people like you who go to their shows.

All in the Timing goes onstage for matinee and evening performances at Equitable PCI Bank’s Francisco Santiago Hall on July 1, with a subsequent show at Liceo de Cagayan’s Rodelsa Hall on July 4. Peepolykus will also conduct an acting workshop on June 30 from 1:00-4:00 p.m. at Steps Dance Studio. Show schedules for July 1 are at 3:30 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. For enquiries, please call 914-1011 to 14 or 840-7000 loc 2258.

“All in the Timing” is presented by the British Council, Equitable PCI Bank, MCO Foundation,and Liceo de Cagayan.

Jesuit Volunteers Philippines Foundation, Inc.

in cooperation with

MCO Foundation, Smart, Equitable PCI Bank, Cebu Pacific

presents

Carmencita Sipin Aspiras
Internationally-acclaimed Filipino pianist

in

Unity & Harmony

A fund-raising event featuring the rare fusion of classical music and themes of goodness, love and hope seen in the service of the JVP Volunteers.

July 8, 2006 (Saturday), 8pm.
Francisco Santiago Hall, PCI Bank Tower 1
Makati Ave. cor. Dela Costa St., Makati City

Program:
Faure: Barcarolle no. 1 in A Minor, Op. 26 * Faure: Barcarolle no. 5 in F Sharp Minor, Op. 66 * Schumann: Symphonic Etudes, Op. 13 * Mozart: Piano Sonata in A Major, K.V. 331 * Chopin: Ballade no. 3 in A Flat Major Op. 47 * Chopin: Ballade no. 4 in F Minor, Op. 52

Jesuit Volunteers Philippines trains, forms and sends volunteers to under-resourced institutions and communities around the country. They teach, work in parishes and indigenous communities, and organize farmers, fisher folks and the youth. JVP is the longest-running volunteer organization of its kind in the Philippines and has been awarded as a “model of volunteering”.

Tickets at Php 500, Php 400, Php 300. Available at the JVP Office, Rm. 313 Bellarmine Hall, Ateneo de Manila (426-5908, 927-9060, 426-6001 loc. 4880, 0906-233-9770, jvpfi@admu.edu.ph, www.jvpfi.org) or at Ticketwold (891-9999) in all major National Bookstore brances.

Music Cultures of the Philippines:
The Filipino Soul in Music

A Concert of KASARINLAN Philippine Music Ensemble,

on the Occasion of Its Twentieth Anniversary.

Thursday, June 29, 2006 at 3 in the afternoon.

Tampingco Hall, National Museum

The presentation is an introduction to Philippine music, its creative diversity various forms and styles, meanings and contexts, and beauty and excellence, with informative narration by Kasarinlan’s Musical Director, Prof. Felipe de Leon, Jr.

For more information, please call 527-1215