The University of Santo Tomas (UST) Symphony Orchestra closed its annual concert at the Cultural Center of the Philippines on March 15 with a surprising encore, a classically arranged orchestral version of the Miley Cyrus hit pop song, “Like a Wrecking Ball.”

Written by MoZella, Stephan Moccio, Sacha Skarbek, Lukasz Gottwald and Henry Russell Walter, the record was included in Cyrus’ 2013 album, “Bangers.” The music video featuring a naked Cyrus atop a wrecking ball was criticized for being too provocative.

But none of the bothersome scenes from the video was evoked in the minds of the audience who listened to the UST Symphony Orchestra’s very pleasurable classical cover of the tune under the baton of Prof. Hermenegildo Ranera.

According to CCP President and UST Conservatory of Music Dean Raul Sunico, the classical arrangement is by Jan Neland Cabuguas, a UST graduate who majored in composition. Its title is “Wrecking Ball Fantasy.”

Earlier, the orchestra performed a full program of classical pieces, including Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 5 Op. 64.

The concert Sunday was supposed to be the annual Tribute to the Thomasian concert usually mounted during the UST foundation anniversary month of January, but because of the papal visit of the campus last Jan. 18, the event was moved to March and billed as a “Reunion Concert” of alumni of the orchestra.

In the second half of the program, in fact, former members of the orchestra, who now play for the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra, Manila Symphony Orchestra, ABS-CBN Orchestra, and other groups, and are professors of major music schools, join the present batch to play, among other classical pieces, the famous overture from the opera, “William Tell.”

The UST Symphony Orchestra is the only campus orchestra in the country that is a resident company of the CCP.