The Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra (PPO), under Yoshikazu Fukumura, will perform on March 17, 8 p.m., at the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP), with cellist Renato Lucas as soloist.

Program includes Dvorak’s “Symphony No. 8 in G.” Tchaikovsky’s “Variations on a Rococo Theme,” and Mendelssohn’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream Suite.”

Lucas was under the mentorhip of Modesto Maiquez and Herminia Atienza-Ilano. He joined the Philippine Youth Orchestra of Sergio Esmilla Jr. Lucas won first prize in the prestigious National Music Competition for Young Artist in 1978. He won the Chamber Music Composition Contest the same year.

Lucas studied at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music under Bonnie Hampton, a protégé of the legendary Pablo Casals. He also won in auditions to participate in the Spoleto Festival held in Charleston, United States and Spoleto, Italy.

Yatco invited Lucas to be principal cellist of the PPO. He played in various cello recitals and chamber music performances for the CCP’s Filipino Artist Series, Coke Bolipata’s Pundaquit Arts Festival and Las Piñas Bamboo Organ Festival.

Renato has worked with practically the whole spectrum of music: collaborating with pop icons Ryan Cayabyab, Basil Valdez and Kuh Ledesma; contemporary avant-garde composers from the Asia-Pacific region, collaborating with the Deconstruction Theatre Phillip Glass Ensemble; conductors Redentor Romero, Francisco Feliciano; and film scoring with Nonong Buencamino in Marilou Diaz-Abaya’s “Rizal.”

Lucas teaches cello, chamber music, music history and music literature at University of Santo Tomas Conservatory of Music, where he also serves as a conductor of the UST Symphony Orchestra.

Call the CCP box office at 8323704, or Ticketworld
at 8919999.