Maestro Herminigildo Ranera takes the dais and performs with the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra for the finale concert of its 38th concert season on April 28, 2023, 8pm, at the CCP Live at the Metropolitan Theater.

The PPO resident and associate conductor is a multi-awarded musician who won top prizes at the National Music Competitions for Young Artists (NAMCYA) in 1982 and 1983 for his performances in the Trombone, Baritone, and Tuba (Chamber Music) categories. He won second place at the 1983 League of Filipino Composers Competition for Young Composers. He has performed with various orchestras here and abroad, including the UST Symphony Orchestra, the Manila Philharmonic, the Philippine Pops Orchestra, the CSULB Symphony Orchestra, the Chia Yi Wind Orchestra, San Miguel Philharmonic, Transylvania Philharmonic Orchestra in Club, Romania, and the Philippine Pop Orchestra, among others. He has collaborated with his mentor, Fr. Manuel P. Maramba, O.S.B. in various CCP productions. He was the musical director and conductor of the Philippine Opera Companies’ OPERA NOW in 2005, the conductor of the world premiere of three Filipino Operas and Zarzuela. Founder of the Philippine Band Association (PHILBANDA), Dr. Ranera is currently the board member of the Asia-Pacific Band Directors Association and the adviser of Band Conductors League of the Philippines.

The PPO, under his baton, will premiere his very own music “Lola Basyang Miniature Suite,” alongside with Dmitri Shostakovich’s Festive Overture, Christoph Willibald Gluck’s L’espoir renait dans mon ame from Orphee et Eurydice, and Gaetano Donizetti’s Prendi, per me sei libero from L’elisir d’amore.

The CCP resident orchestra continues its repertoire for its Concert VIII with Gioacchino Rossini’s Si, ritrovarla io giuro from La Cenerentola, Georges Bizet’s Je dis que rien ne m’epouvante from Carmen, and Gaetano Donizetti’s Quio! Vous m’aimez? from La fille du regiment, and Antonin Dvorak Symphony no. 9, op.95, E minor (“from the New World”).

The PPO shares the stage with young talented singers, soprano Mheco Joy Manlangit and tenor Radnel Del Rio Ofalsa.

A winner of multiple vocal competitions locally and internationally, Manlangit won first prize and the Audience Choice at the 2018 Jovita Fuentes Vocal Competition, and second Prize at the 2017 Singapore International Festival of Music Competition. She has played various notable roles such as Maria Clara in CCP’s Noli Me Tangere the Opera, Fiordiligi in Mozart’s Cosi Fan Tutte, and Lady Billows in Benjamin Britten’s Albert Herring. She is the current choir director of the Hudson Montessori School, and an active performing artist in New York and Manila.

Ofalsa, meanwhile, bagged the first prize in two National Vocal Competitions, the 2018 Jovita Fuentes Vocal Competition, and the Best Interpretation of the Competition Piece at the 2017 NAMCYA Senior Voice Category. He was an Encouragement Award winner at the Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition in San Francisco District. He has performed at the CCP’s 50th Gala Concert, NAMCYA’s 45th Anniversary Concert, Paco Park Presents, UST Christmas Gala Concerts, NCCA’s Musikapuluan, the Friends of the Philippines Society USA Inc.’s Modern Day Filipino Heroes Concert, and the Mannes Sounds Festival.

Dubbed Metamorphosis, the 38th concert series serves as the battleground for the five shortlisted conductors vying for the musical director position. Watch out who will be named the PPO musical director.

Ticket prices for concerts are: Php 1,500, Php 1,200, Php 800 and Php 500. For inquiries and tickets, call CCP Box Office at 8832-3704 or email customercare@culturalcenter.gov.ph. Follow the official social media accounts of CCP in Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and TikTok for the latest updates.