The Manila Symphony Orchestra proudly announces the second featured concert for its 99th Season dubbed as ‘A NIGHT IN HOLLYWOOD‘ set on June 28, 2025 Saturday 7:30PM ALIW Theater, CCP Complex, Pasay City.
Noted international artists Zoltán Onczay, Hungarian Cellist; Angel Velez, American Guest Conductor; and the Composers and conductors from the Los Angeles Film Conducting Intensive (LAFCI) are coming over to Manila for a week-long collaboration with the Manila Symphony Orchestra.
This exciting concert will feature a mix of new music composed for movies as well as a suite of iconic Hollywood compositions.
The repertoire will feature Hungarian Rhapsody composed by David Popper with Zoltan Onczay on cello; a Tribute to the Film Composers – Max Steiner, Bernard Herman and Henri Mancini (arranged by John Williams).
The Los Angeles Film Conducting Intensive (LAFCI) Composers will feature seven (7) original compositions.
They are as follows: Heart of a Warrior by Sophia Bass; Seeming Chrysalis by Julia Sanchez; Theme from Stolen Realm by Jennifer Jolley; Sigh of Spring’s Farewell by Yuxuan Liu; Concert Prelude on “Chan Mali Chan” by Mohamad Rasull; Journey Through the Celestial Gate by Robin Raisch; Mosaic Mambo by Noah N. Zubia-Sanchez, to be conducted by Ricardo Reyna.
Audiences will also love the the music of John Williams namely Hedwig’s Theme from Harry Potter, End Titles from Seven Years in Tibet (Zoltan Onczay, cello soloist), Adventures on Earth from E.T., Theme from Schindler’s List (Alessio Benvenuti, violin soloist); Theme from Superman; Por Una Cabeza Composed by Carlos Gardel and Arranged by John Williams (Jeanne Rafaella Marquez, violin soloist); Theme from Jurassic Park; and the Olympic Fanfare and Theme.
ANGEL VELEZ, American guest conductor is one of today’s most sought-after conductors for film and television and guest conducting for pop concerts around the world having given world premiere concert performances for hits such as Captain Marvel, Green Book, Tom and Jerry in New York, The Book of Boba Fett and many more. In addition to his work in the studios of Los Angeles and as conductor of the Hollywood Studio Chamber Orchestra, he has served as music director for the Los Angeles Live Score Film Festival, American Society of Cinematographers Awards, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and Miss World 2022, one of the largest televised events in the world. He has produced concerts such as Silent Films LIVE, Star Wars: Past and Present and HBO’s film For Love or Country: The Arturo Sandoval Story LIVE IN CONCERT starring trumpet legend Arturo Sandoval. He has recorded for the Varese Sarabande and Sudwestrundfunk labels and continues to work in the entertainment industry on shows such as Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Star Wars: Rebels, Family Guy, Jane the Virgin, The Mandalorian and many others, including the recently released MGM superhero film Samaritan starring Sylvester Stallone.
ZOLTAN ONCZAY, cello
Zoltan received his diploma at the Liszt Music Academy Budapest in 2004 in the class of László Mező, cellist of the famous Bartók Quartet. Afterwards, Zoltan received his soloist diploma as a Hindemith scholarship student in Berlin at the UDK in 2008, in the class of Wolfgang Boettcher. He received the
Yamaha Award from the European Yamaha Music Foundation, one amongst his numerous awards. He also won the Martinu Award during the Semmering Summer Academy and the Wiener-Classic and Kodaly Award. He also received a prize at the international competition of European Music for Youth in Oslo. He considers his mission to be the promotion of Hungarian and contemporary music locally and abroad, as well as to teaching and supporting young talents. In addition to classical music, he is also engaged in electroacoustic and improvisational music.
Los Angeles Film Conducting Intensive (LAFCI)
The Los Angeles Film Conducting Intensive is dedicated to advancing the art of conducting by providing workshops and access to online resources to help media composers succeed on the podium. LAFCI is dedicated to providing exceptional training based on sound pedagogical practices, designed to create an
opportunity for media composers to further their skills as conductors and to provide them with resources and training to help them grow as a conductor. They offer workshops with experienced professional faculty that allow for firsthand opportunities to work with some of the top professional musicians in Los Angeles. Programs are geared toward media composers (film/television/video games) to assist and provide free access to their online Resource Center, which includes “An Inside Look”, a series of in-depth interviews with professional conductors sharing their personal perspective on the craft of conducting.