Victor Santiago Asuncion joins New Philharmonic to perform Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1

New Philharmonic starts its 2022-2023 season with Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1 featuring pianist Victor Santiago Asuncion at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 24 and at 3 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 25.

On the photo: Victor Santiago Asuncion. Courtesy of: Victor Santiago Asuncion

"Music is indeed the most beautiful of all Heaven's gifts to humanity wandering in the darkness. Alone it calms, enlightens, and stills our souls," said Pyotr Illyich Tchaikovsky. New Philharmonic, the only professional orchestra in DuPage County, is happy to calm, enlighten, and still the souls of its audience with a beautiful 2022-2023 concert season.

It will start with acclaimed Filipino-American pianist Victor Santiago Asuncion joining the orchestra to perform an immortal masterpiece, Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-Flat Minor. This program will take place at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 24 and at 3 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 25 in the McAninch Arts Center’s Belushi Performance Hall located on the grounds of College of DuPage at 425 Fawell Blvd. in Glen Ellyn. A free MAC Chat will precede the concerts, beginning one hour before each performance.

“The world continues to change but music continues to be the universal connection between people, communities and our past, present and future,” said New Philharmonic Director Kirk Muspratt in his interview for the College of DuPage Newsroom while introducing the 2022-2023 season. “With that in mind, we’ve put together a season that will introduce our audiences to some exciting new talent as well as new versions of some of our most popular theme concerts.”

Filipino-American Steinway pianist Victor Santiago Asuncion is one of those exciting and extraordinary talents that Kirk Muspratt was talking about in his interview, and the New Philharmonic's audience just must see and hear him perform. Hailed by The Washington Post for his “poised and imaginative playing,” this international piano artist appeared in concert halls in Brazil, Canada, Ecuador, France, Italy, Germany, Japan, Mexico, the Philippines, Spain, Turkey and the USA, as a recitalist and concerto soloist.

Asuncion played his orchestral debut at the age of 18 with the Manila Chamber Orchestra, and his New York recital debut in Carnegie’s Weill Recital Hall in 1999. As a chamber music enthusiast, he received his Doctor of Musical Arts degree in 2007 from the University of Maryland at College Park. He has been featured on the award-winning recording of “Songs My Father Taught Me” with Lynn Harrell. He also has founded the FilAm Music Foundation, which promotes Filipino classical musicians through scholarships and performance. His performance with the New Philharmonic will become a unique opportunity for the residents of the Chicago suburbs to enjoy the passion and the mastery of this great musician.

Tchaikovsky composed his Piano Concerto No. 1 between November, 1874 and February, 1875 and revised it in 1879 and 1888. Russian pianist Nikolai Rubinstein heavily criticized the first version of it, but later the pianist personally endorsed the composition. This 35-minute concerto carries such energy, emotion and power that it remains one of the most popular compositions of Tchaikovsky and one of the most famous piano concertos in the world.

This concert program will also present excerpts from Sergei Prokofiev’s original “Romeo and Juliet Suite,” Op. 64, which will perfectly pair with Tchaikovsky's Concerto No. 1. After the tremendous sounds of the concerto, the audience will immerse in Prokofiev's lyrical melodies full of romance and tragedy from Shakespeare’s classic tale. Featured narrators will be Warrenville’s Erika and Ryan Morrison.

First composed in 1935, this composition was substantially revised for its Soviet premiere. This piece was considered a homecoming for the Russian-born composer who lived abroad after the Russian Revolution of 1917. Interestingly, the ballet companies considered this music to be "too soft," and the composer had to change some parts of it to satisfy the needs of the ballet managers and performers. After all, the ballet was performed at the Bolshoi Theatre on December 22, 1946 and was considered “one of the finest productions ever presented at the Bolshoi.”

“We always try to make our programs meaningful and engage our audiences,” Maestro Muspratt said. “There’s a redemption story behind Tchaikovsky and Prokofiev’s compositions, early criticism to worldwide acclaim, that is inspiring and hopeful in a time of persistent hostility. Even though audiences may have heard these famous pieces before, I think the popularity of the pieces allows people to resonate with them off the bat and find new nuances. Someone who brings novelty to the program is our incredible guest pianist Victor Santiago Asuncion, adding freshness to the famous classics that I can’t wait for people today to experience.”

Enjoy these timeless masterpieces by Tchaikovsky and Prokofiev with the New Philharmonic and its guest pianist Victor Santiago Asuncion! For more information about “Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto” visit https://www.atthemac.org/ or call the MAC box office at 630.942.4000, Tuesday – Sunday, 12 noon – 6 p.m. and three hours prior to the performance. Tickets are $53. A limited number of $10 tickets are available for students with valid ID.

Natalia Dagenhart

09/16/22