It was a magical night of music and movies as the ABS-CBN Philharmonic Orchestra performed film scores by multi-awarded composer John Williams in their jam-packed debut concert held recently at the Meralco Theater.

The audience was treated to mesmerizing performances of memorable movie scores including the Academy Award winning “Schindler’s List.” Ralph Taylan, the orchestra’s concert master, moved some of the audience to tears with his violin solo.

The performances of special guests Nikki Gil and Jose Mari Chan were added treats. Nikki sang “Can You Read My Mind,” a song from the movie “Superman” originally performed by Maureen Mcgovern. Then she and Jose Mari did a duet of “If We Were in Love” from the movie “Yes, Giorgio.” The said two songs are said to be William’s only compositions with lyrics.

In between performances, Maestro Gerard Salonga entertained the crowd with anecdotes and trivia about the repertoire. At one point, Salonga had the audience in stitches when he unbuttoned his suit to reveal a Superman shirt underneath – proving that he was truly dressed up for the concert’s theme.

Tailored to cater to not just the usual “orchestra crowd,” the ABS-CBN Philharmonic Orchestra’s debut concert successfully democratized the orchestra scene in Manila and has earned the tag “The Orchestra for the Masses.”

The show ended on a high note with an encore performance of William’s pièce de résistance: the Star Wars theme. The orchestra shared the stage with members of Pinoy 501st, an organization of Star Wars fans, who came in full costume as characters from the movie.

Other pieces performed in the concert were themes from “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone”, “Jaws”, “E.T.”, “Raiders of the Lost Ark”, “Close Encounters of the Third Kind”, “Jurassic Park”, “NBC News” and the “1984 Olympics”.

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