Beethoven reinvented with the MSO

LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN is loved for the emotional depth of his music. His iconic “Moonlight Sonata” has been a window to peer into his loneliest moments, allowing people to share in his sorrows. His ninth symphony, Ode to Joy, lifts the human spirit to great heights with themes of triumphant joy in brotherhood with man and fellowship with God.
On Nov. 30, 8 p.m., at the Meralco Theater, the Manila Symphony Orchestra (MSO) will celebrate this beloved composer’s music with Beethoven Redux.
The MSO will be playing music by and inspired by Beethoven. Among these is “Par Clemenza pour Clement,” a “diptych after Beethoven’s Violin Concerto” made by Filipino composer Jeffrey Ching. Mr. Ching describes it as mostly made out of “solo cadenzas that are really mini-fantasias on Beethoven’s themes, but quoted and combined in unexpected ways. These are punctuated by fragments of Beethoven’s original orchestration which appear in the wrong order.”

Mr. Ching studied in Harvard, Cambridge, and London, and now resides in Berlin. He represented the Philippines in three cultural delegations to China, was 1998 TOYM Awardee in Music, and in 2003 was the first composer to receive the Jose Rizal Award for Excellence from the Philippine president. He is currently working on three new operas.
For this concert, the MSO will be led by Singaporean conductor Darrell Ang. Mr. Ang has been Artistic Director and Chief Conductor of the Sichuan Orchestra of China since December 2016 and is a regular guest conductor at the Mariinsky Theatre. He studied conducting in St. Petersburg with Leonid Korchmar and continued at Yale with Shinik Hahm. He took all three top awards at the 50^th Besançon International Young Conductors’ Competition leading to the Music Directorship of the Orchestre Symphonique de Bretagne (2012-2015).
Mr. Ching’s music is to be played by Iskandar Widjaja, an Indonesian-German violin virtuoso. Mr. Widjaja has performed with internationally renowned ensembles in Germany, Switzerland, China, Australia, and Austria. His personality and energy are aptly summed up by The Strad: “Iskandar Widjaja, a true force of nature.” Mr. Ching fondly describes Mr. Widjaja: “He combines absolute technical mastery and interpretive depth with a pop star’s stage persona that is entirely of our own time.”
Beethoven Redux will be held on Nov. 30, 8 p.m., at The Meralco Theater, Ortigas Ave. cor. Meralco Ave., Pasig City. Tickets are available at TicketWorld, ( or 891-9999). For group and other special discounts, call the MSO office at 523-5712 or e-mail [email protected]. — Gideon Isidro