Gerard Salonga | |
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Born | Gerard Imutan Salonga October 11, 1973 Manila, Philippines |
Occupations |
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Years active | 1982–present |
Spouse | Divina Francisco |
Children | 2 |
Relatives | Lea Salonga (sister) |
Gerard Imutan Salonga (born October 11, 1973) is a Filipino musical conductor, composer, and arranger. From 2012 to 2020, he was the music director of the ABS-CBN Philharmonic Orchestra, assistant conductor of the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra from 2016 to 2018, and from 2019 to the present the resident conductor of the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra.
Gerard Imutan Salonga was born on October 11, 1973 in Manila, Philippines to Feliciano Genuino Salonga, a naval rear admiral and shipping company owner, and María Ligaya Alcantara, née Imutan of Pulupandan, Negros Occidental. His older sister is singer, actress, and columnist Lea Salonga. Salonga began his musical education, taking piano lessons, at the age of 5. He joined his sister Lea in singing duets in her first album, Small Voice, as well as taking part in the 8th Metro Manila Popular Music Festival as interpreters for the song entry "Musika, Lata, Sipol at La La La" by Tess Concepcion in 1985, which won second place.
Salonga completed his Bachelor of Arts degree at the Ateneo de Manila University in 1994, and briefly studied music theory with Filipino composer Ryan Cayabyab. He subsequently went to the United States to pursue arranging studies at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts, where he graduated summa cum laude and received Berklee's Contemporary Writing and Production Achievement Award.
Salonga worked briefly at Sony Pictures as an orchestrator and music copyist before returning to the Philippines in 1999. [1] Upon his return, he embarked on carving his own niche in the local musical landscape. He initially guest-conducted and arranged music for the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra and Manila Philharmonic Orchestra. By 2005, he had garnered his third consecutive Aliw Award for Best Musical Director. He later won his fourth in 2008.
Among his stints as musical director and orchestral conductor, foremost of which are his projects with his sister Lea, Gerard Salonga arranges and conducts for Filipino OPM stars such as Lani Misalucha, Martin Nievera, Regine Velasquez, and hosts of others. He was also the musical director of Carmel House, a film scoring and post-production facility coupled with a recording studio in the suburb of Alabang, outskirt of Manila. In 2005, when it was then known as the Global Content Center, he formed the Global Studio Orchestra (later known as FILharmoniKA), as its in-house orchestra for the facility. [2]
In 2004 and 2005, he arranged and produced compelling station IDs for The Filipino Channel , both of which won the Promax World Silver Award in New York City ("Best Use of Music/Post Score with or without lyrics"). In 2006, he scored the musical soundtrack for the supernatural horror-thriller film, Ang Pamana, which had its world premiere at the Louis Vuitton Hawaii International Film Festival.
In 2006, together with FILharmoniKA, Salonga embarked on a series albums of titled Musika Natin [Our Music], highlighting works by great Filipino composers, some of which have been forgotten and some never performed. [3] Recent releases featured compositions by the teacher-composer Lucio San Pedro, jazz maestro Angel Peña, [4] and martial bandleader, Col. Antonio Buenaventura. Salonga also collaborated in the contemporary album Eastern Skies with jazz guitarist Johnny Alegre. A fifth album release, Kumpas, featured orchestral renditions of anthems by guest Pinoy Rock icons Ely Buendia, Sampaguita, Noel Cabangon, and Wally Gonzales. The latter anthology aspired to capture the awareness of a young Filipino listening audience to the possibilities of orchestration as a commercial platform in OPM.
In 2012, Salonga began his work as the music director of the ABS-CBN Philharmonic Orchestra, a professional orchestra in Manila maintained by Philippine media conglomerate ABS-CBN Corporation.
Salonga has conducted the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra, The Shanghai Opera House Orchestra and Chorus, The Evergreen Symphony Orchestra in Taiwan, as well as the Bangkok Symphony and Philippine Philharmonic Orchestras. His orchestral arrangements have been performed by the New York Pops, Indianapolis Symphony, Winnipeg, Pittsburgh, and Baltimore Symphony Orchestras. [5]
For the 2016-17 season, Salonga was appointed by Maestro Jaap van Zweden to be one of the assistant conductors of the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra.
Salonga is married to violinist Divina Francisco. Together, they have two children; a son and a daughter. [6] [7] They reside in the Philippines.
Salonga has won the Aliw Award for Best Musical Director four times, and was inducted into the Aliw Hall of Fame in 2009. He has also won the Awit Award for Best Arrangement (recording industry award), and is twice a winner of the Philstage Gawad Buhay (Philippine musical theater) award for his work as musical director of the Manila stagings of West Side Story (Stages) and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (Repertory Philippines).
In 2011, Salonga was awarded The Outstanding Young Men award, the highest civilian award given by the President of the Philippines to Filipino achievers under the age of 40.
Maria Lea Carmen Imutan Salonga, known professionally as Lea Salonga, is a Filipina singer, actress, and columnist. Nicknamed "Pride of the Philippines," she is best known for her roles in musical theatre, for supplying the singing voices of two Disney Princesses, and as a recording artist and television performer. Throughout her career, she has achieved numerous accolades and honors, becoming an internationally-recognized figure in music and entertainment.
Gerard Schwarz, also known as Gerry Schwarz or Jerry Schwarz, is an American symphony conductor and trumpeter. As of 2019, Schwarz serves as the Artistic and Music Director of Palm Beach Symphony and the Director of Orchestral Activities and Music Director of the Frost Symphony Orchestra at the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami.
Raymundo Cipriano Pujante Cayabyab, known professionally as Ryan Cayabyab, is a Filipino musician, composer and conductor. He was the Executive and Artistic Director for several years for the defunct San Miguel Foundation for the Performing Arts. He was named as National Artist of the Philippines for Music in 2018.
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Mel Villena is a Filipino musician, composer and musical director who has worked with various artists such as Sharon Cuneta, Pops Fernandez, Martin Nievera, Lea Salonga, The Company, and Mitch Valdez. He was also the musical director of Associated Broadcasting Company's (ABC) Philippine Idol.
Herminigildo G. Ranera is a Filipino conductor, composer, arranger, performer and educator.
Joey Albert is a Filipina pop and jazz singer, musician, lyricist, and songwriter. An alumna of St. Theresa's College Manila and Assumption College San Lorenzo, she began her professional singing career in 1981. In 1982, she was proclaimed winner of the Dream Girl Filipina contest on The Party, a television program hosted by Ariel Ureta over the now defunct Banahaw Broadcasting Corporation. Albert became a member of The New Minstrels, a popular Philippine show band during the 1970s and the 1980s. Apart from Albert, The New Minstrels also produced many other outstanding Filipino musical artists.
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Ernani Joson Cuenco was a Filipino composer, film scorer, musical director, music teacher and Philippine National Artist for Music. He wrote an outstanding and memorable body of works that resonate with the Filipino sense of musicality and which embody an ingenious voice that raises the aesthetic dimensions of contemporary Filipino music. Cuenco played with the Filipino Youth Symphony Orchestra and the Manila Symphony Orchestra from 1960 to 1968, and the Manila Chamber Soloists from 1966 to 1970. He completed a music degree in piano and cello from the University of Santo Tomas where he also taught for decades until his death in 1988.
The Voice of the Philippines is a Philippine reality television singing competition on ABS-CBN. It is based on the reality singing competition The Voice of Holland, which was originally created by Dutch television producer John de Mol as part of The Voice franchise. Toni Gonzaga has been hosting the show since the first season; on the other hand, Luis Manzano, who had crossovered from The Voice Kids, had hosted the show since the second season. Both are accompanied by Robi Domingo and Alex Gonzaga who serves as the show's V-Reporters or the social media and backstage correspondents. Sarah Geronimo, Bamboo Mañalac, Lea Salonga, and apl.de.ap serve as the four coaches and the judging panel of the show.
The ABS-CBN Philharmonic Orchestra is a Filipino radio orchestra based in Manila. It was founded in 2012 with financial support from ABS-CBN Corporation and First Philippine Holdings Corporation. It is composed of 40 instrumentalists. The orchestra's musical director and conductor is Gerard Salonga.
Anna Fegi is a Filipina singer and actress from Cebu, Philippines. She has performed internationally in over seventy countries and is known for her work on the popular show ASAP on the ABS-CBN television network and The Filipino Channel (TFC), her performances in the Himig Handog competitions, as well as her two solo albums released under the Sony BMG label. Fegi is recognized by her powerful voice, high vocal range, and trademark curly hair.
Michael Yonting, more popularly known by his screen name Mitoy Yonting, is a Filipino singer, comedian, actor, and lead vocalist for his band, The Draybers. Yonting rose to fame after winning the first season of The Voice of the Philippines in 2013.
Gerphil Geraldine Flores is a German-Filipino classical crossover singer. In 2015, she joined the inaugural season of Asia's Got Talent, where she finished as second runner-up. A soprano, she was dubbed "Asia's Golden Girl."
Telesa Marie Castillejo de Torres, better known as Esang De Torres, is a Filipina teen singer, songwriter and stage actress best known for portraying Lea Salonga's 'MiniMe' on ABS-CBN's It's Showtime, and joining the second season of The Voice Kids Philippines, ultimately picking Lea Salonga as her coach.
Noel Marasigan Comia Jr. is a Filipino actor, commercial model, singer, TV events host, and voice talent who won Cinemalaya's Best Actor Award 2017 for movie Kiko Boksingero and joined as a contestant in the third season of The Voice Kids under Team Lea with his coach Lea Salonga. Prior to his appearance on The Voice Kids, this multi-talented child actor has appeared in numerous theater productions and TV commercials.
The Philam Life Theater, also styled Philamlife Theater, was a performing arts venue at 1440 United Nations Avenue in the Ermita district of Manila, the Philippines. It opened in 1961 as the Philam Life Auditorium and was designed by Filipino architect Carlos Arguelles as part of the corporate headquarters for the Philam Life insurance company. The International Style concert hall in the eastern annex of the Philam Life Building is known for its superior acoustics and elegant interior. It served as Manila's cultural center for almost a decade and has played host to world-renowned musicians, choirs and symphony orchestras over its 52-year history, including Renata Tebaldi, Franco Corelli, Marian Anderson, Pinchas Zukerman and Cecile Licad. The theater also served as the home of the Manila Symphony Orchestra, the Manila Philharmonic Orchestra and the Philippine Educational Theater Association.
One Night with Regine was a benefit concert by Filipina entertainer Regine Velasquez that took place on April 26, 2002 at the National Museum of Anthropology in Rizal Park, Manila. The charity event was organized by ABS-CBN Foundation to raise funds in support of the Bantay Bata child welfare program, which aimed to promote awareness of disadvantaged and at-risk children. The proceeds were donated to benefit the development of a children's village in Velasquez's hometown of Bulacan.
Twenty was an arena concert by Filipina entertainer Regine Velasquez. The concert was announced in September 2006 and held on two consecutive nights in October at the Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City. Its concept and name is a reference to the twentieth anniversary since her professional debut in 1986. The staging resembled a Roman colosseum connected by a grand staircase extending from the upper box gallery. The setlist contained songs predominantly taken from Velasquez's discography and various covers. The show was produced by Aria Productions, with GMA Network as its broadcast partner. Ronnie Henares served as stage director, while Raul Mitra was chosen as musical director. Guest conductors were featured, including Louie Ocampo and Gerard Salonga, backed by the 60-member ensemble of the Manila Philharmonic Orchestra. It received positive reviews from music critics, who praised Velasquez's vocals and the production.