How Maharlika changed Raul Sunico’s life forever

SOUNDS FAMILIARBaby A. Gil – The Philippine Star
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January 15, 2025 | 12:00am

There is a story that has been going around in local music circles for many years now. It is about the Maharlika Concerto and pianist Raul Sunico.

Way back in 1973, the then First Lady Imelda Marcos commissioned Lucino Sacramento to compose a concerto as a birthday present for President Ferdinand Marcos Sr. The result was the Piano Concerto No. 2 Maharlika. It would be performed at the Reception Hall in Malacanang Palace with the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra and one of the renowned pianists of the time as soloist.

Unfortunately, the pianist was taken ill only a few days before the event. Everybody knew it would be difficult to find a replacement who would be able to learn the piece within a scant three days, let alone perform it live with an orchestra. But somebody thought of Sunico, a young pianist with a prodigious memory.

Sunico was a graduate of the University of the Philippines with the degrees of Bachelor of Science in Mathematics and a masters in Statistics and a Bachelor of Science Cum Laude at the College of Music. Although he was doing well as a pianist, he had by then opted to take up regular employment and was working in a bank. Then he got a phone call about Maharlika.

Can he learn Maharlika within only a few days? He said he could. He would have to play it before the dinner for the First Lady in a form of audition. If he passes that, he would become the soloist for Maharlika. Sunico passed the test and performed the Maharlika on Sept. 11, 1973 to great acclaim.

The world premiere of the concerto was later held at the Cultural Center of the Philippines on June 12, 1974 with Luis C. Valencia conducting the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra.

Maharlika changed Sunico’s life forever. A scholarship from the Young Artists Foundation of the Philippines took him to Julliard School in New York where he finished his Masters in Music. He then went to the New York University for his doctorate in Philosophy, major in Piano Performance.

Along with these came performing stints, awards and honors from all over the world. Not only that, the Maharlika instilled in him a love for the Filipino concerto that burns brightly to this day.

I do not know if the story is true or not but I like the fact that the Maharlika brought fame to a Filipino composer, Lucino Sacramento from Nueva Ecija who studied with the great Nicanor Abelardo.

Pinoys can write concertos, too, and we do have extraordinarily talented pianists like Sunico, who could perform them.

Now, 52 years later, on Thursday, Feb. 6, Sunico will once more perform the Maharlika in the Gabi ng Piyano Konsyertong Pilipino, which will be held on Feb. 6, at the Manila Metropolitan Theater at 7 in the evening. Joining him will be the prestigious Manila Symphony Orchestra conducted by Jeffrey Solares, of the faculty of the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Conservatory of Music.

Not only that. Music lovers doubtless recall how Sunico wowed audiences by performing three Rachmaninoff concertos in one evening. This time around he will perform not only the Maharlika but two more concertos by Filipino composers with the MSO.

The other two are: Alfredo Buenaventura’s Piano Concerto No.1 Celebration from 1976, which will be conducted by Herminigildo Ranera also from the faculty of the UST Conservatory of Music; and Francisco Santiago’s Piano Concerto in Bb minor from 1924, which will also be conducted by Solares.

Santiago is known as the Father of the Kundiman. Among his compositions is the immortal Anak Dalita. This performance of his Bb Minor concerto is particularly significant. It was premiered at the Manila Grand Opera House on Feb. 6, 1925. All copies of the concerto were thought lost during World War II.

Fortunately though one was recently found and reconstructed in a manner faithful to the original. So Santiago’s work will be heard again at the MET exactly 100 years after its first performance.

These concertos not only highlight the rich heritage of Filipino composers of the 20th century but also underscore the revival and perpetuation of the tradition of Filipino piano music.

Sunico’s extraordinary talent and vaunted dedication to ensuring the propagation of Filipino music make him the ideal artist to perform these masterpieces and lead what is expected to be the beginning of a cultural revival.

Established in 1926, the MSO is one of the oldest and leading orchestras in Asia. It has hosted renowned conductors and performers like Yehudi Menuhin, Arthur Fiedler, Monserrat Caballe, Helen Quach, Rony Rogoff, Antonio Molina, Lucio San Pedro and Ryan Cayabyab.

An event like Gabi ng Konsiyertong Pilipino is a chance for us to take pride in the greatness of Filipino music. Tickets are available at Ticket World and priced at VIP P8,240; A Reserve P6,180; B Reserve P5,356; C Reserve P3,914; and General Admission P1,030.

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