Star Powerhouse

The Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra (PPO) reprises the repertoire from its successful tour across the United Kingdom (UK) in CONCERT II: LE RETOUR , slated on September 19, 2025, at 7:30 PM, at the Samsung Performing Arts Theater in Makati City. Revisiting British classics in PPO’s Concert II: Le Retour Led by the commanding Maestro Grzegorz Nowak, Concert II: Le Retour ushers in the brilliance of the PPO with their iteration of Georges Bizet’s Carmen Suite No. 1 . To familiarize himself with the sounds of southern Spain in the early 19th century, Bizet went to great lengths in constructing the world he borrowed from Prosper Mérimée’s novella of the same name.  Bizet, however, passed three months after the premiere of Carmen . Unbeknownst to him, his friend Ernest Guiraud compiled the opera’s remarkable moments into two orchestral suites. PPO’s Concert II: Le Retour sustains its beautiful momentum with Ralph Vaughan Williams’ The Lark Ascending . Inspired by George Meredith’s poe...

After an excellent display of Filipino artistry in its recently concluded tour in the United Kingdom, the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra (PPO) exhibits its adaptable musicality for its 41st concert season, dubbed “VERSATILE.” With the commanding presence of conductor Maestro Grzegorz Nowak, this concert season serves as a brilliant reminder of the PPO’s four decades of musical prowess. Welcome the music season with CONCERT I: OUVERTURE on September 12, 2025. With acclaimed pianist Andrey Gugnin, the orchestra opens with Antonin Dvořák’s Carnival Overture, op.92, Sergei Rachmaninov’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, Op. 43 and Johannes Brahms’ Symphony no. 4, op.98, E minor. On September 19, 2025, a reprise of the PPO’s repertoire for its UK Tour is in store for the audiences with CONCERT II: LE RETOUR . The celebration continues with Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake Suite Waltz and concludes with Ludwig van Beethoven's Symphony no. 5, op.67, C minor . Catch PPO’s very own...

  The Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra (PPO), the premier orchestra of the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP), successfully championed the brilliance of Filipino talent to international audiences on its recent concert tour to the United Kingdom (UK). “It was a hectic schedule for the PPO with nine concerts in 11 days, but the orchestra was up to the challenge. They were inspired, and their performances showed it,” said CCP President Kaye C. Tinga. The PPO delivered exceptional performances night after night, feeding its audiences with heartfelt symphonies. Music critic Garry Fraser from the Perth Festival of the Arts described the tour as an exhibition of “skill and stamina,” exceptionally guided by its music director and principal conductor, Maestro Grzegorz Nowak. Fraser continued: “They are as good as any you’ll hear and excellent in every single department, as fresh and engaging in the last bar of the Beethoven as they were in the first bar of the Bizet. The PPO and [its...