London-based Filipina piano scholar to hold homecoming recital at CCP

MANILA — Ma. Regina P. Montesclaros, multi-awarded Filipina piano scholar at the prestigious Royal College of Music in London, will hold her homecoming recital on Aug. 12 at the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP).

The young Montesclaros, who is a Jenny Marsh Chapman Memorial scholar under the tutelage of the famous Prof. Ian Jones, will perform at 7:30 p.m. at the CCP Little Theater in cooperation with the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Conservatory of Music.

She has also been a featured performer in various solo recitals around the country.

The talented pianist began her craft at the tender age of five under Prof. Cecile Basilio Roxas at the Santa Isabel College, then shifted to the UST Conservatory of Music for her B.M. Piano through a Sto. Domingo Scholarship under Dr. Raul Sunico.

Montesclaros was awarded Gold Prize at the Asia International Piano Academy Festival and Competition in Cheonan, South Korea in July 2009, the Silver Prize at the 1st International Piano Competition in Hanoi, Vietnam (September 2010), and the Bronze Prize and Sole Winner, Concerto B Category, at the 4th International Chopin Piano Competition in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (November 2010).

Prior to international music forays, Montesclaros was a first prize winner of the Third Rosario Picazo Competition (June 2004), the National Music Competition for Young Artists (NAMCYA) Piano Category A2 (November 2004), the 2005 Competition for Young Artists, Category A, sponsored by the Miriam College Center for Applied Music (February 2005), the Piano Teachers’ Guild of the Philippines (PTGP) Mozart Concerto Competition, Category B (November 2006), and the Piano Teachers Guild of the Philippines (PTGP) Beethoven Concerto Competition, Category C (July 2010).

She has performed with the major local orchestras, including the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra (PPO) with conductor Eugene Castillo, the Manila Symphony Orchestra II (MSO II) with Prof. Arturo Molina, the Metro Manila Community Orchestra (MMCO) with Prof. Chino Toledo, and the UST Symphony Orchestra with Prof. Herminigildo Ranera.