After a period of more than 20 years, a solo harp concert at the CCP featuring a Filipino harpist will take place.
Harpist Jane Banta is the featured artist of the second concert of the Special Concert Series on Aug. 29 at 7:30 p.m. at the Tanghalang Aurelio Tolentino (Little Theater), Cultural Center of the Philippines. Guest string players are violinists Sara Maria Gonzales and Ma. Lourdes Miguel, violist David Tagala, cellist Rosa Belle Calma and double bassist John Paul Bermudez.
Banta’s program is as follows: Hasselmans’ La Source – Etude, Op. 44; Grandjany’s Fantaisie pour Harpe sur un theme de Haydn, Op. 31 and Aria in Classic Style for Harp and Strings, Op. 19; Debussy’s La Fille aux cheveux de lin transcr. Marcel Grandjany; Andres’ Absidioles; Watkins’ Petite Suite; Piazzolla’s Invierno Porteño (Winter); Hanson-Conant’s Baroque Flamenco; Handel’s Concerto for Harp in B Flat Major, Op. 4, No. 6, HWV 294; and the world premiere of Balsamo’s Concerto for harp and strings, CB. 7 No. 2 (MMXVIII).
Banta started harp lessons in Manila with Vienna-trained Filipino harpist Lourdes de Leon-Gregorio after earning her Bachelor of Music degree in Piano Performance at the St. Scholastica’s College School of Music. In 2017, she earned her Master of Music degree, major in Harp Performance after completing a two-year program at the State University of New York under the tutelage of Sonja Inglefield, as a recipient of the Len and Carole Faulk Scholarship. At the said school she was actively performing as a harpist in the Symphony Orchestra, Chamber Orchestra Wind Ensemble and in other concerts and recitals. She was a Graduate Assistant for Piano, frequently accompanying Music majors in weekly performances exams and graduation recitals, besides playing in the Wind Symphony.
Since coming back in July 2017, she has played the harp for the season concerts of both the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra (PPO) and the Manila Symphony Orchestra (MSO). Her performances included playing the full-length opera L’ Elisir d’Amore with PPO and the ballet Don Quixote with Ballet Philippines.
She was resource speaker for the harp workshop for CCP’s Pasinaya Palihan and performed for its Open House Festival together with trombonist Ricson Poonin in February 2018. She was featured performer at Maestro Filipino on DZFE 98.7 and was one of three female soloists featured at the PPO Sunsets at Makiling concert in May 2018.
Banta is also active as a piano instructor and collaborative pianist. She plays the keyboard for the major theater companies in Manila.
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