Ravinia 2025 Issue 6

VICTOR SANTIAGO ASUNCIÓN Filipino American pianist Victor Santiago Asunción has been featured as a recitalist and concerto soloist in concert halls across Brazil, Canada, Ecuador, France, Italy, Germany, Ja- pan, Mexico, the Philippines, Spain, Turkey, and the United States. He played his orches- tral debut at age 18 with the Manila Chamber Orchestra and has since collaborated with such conductors as Sergio Esmilla, Enrique Bátiz, Mei-Ann Chen, Zeev Dorman, Arthur Weisberg, Corrick Brown, David Loebel, Leon Fleisher, Michael Stern, Jordan Tang, and Bob- by McFerrin in performances with various en- sembles. In 1999 Asunción made his New York recital debut in Carnegie’s Weill Recital Hall. A Steinway artist and chamber music enthusiast, he has performed alongside the Dover, Emer- son, Serafin, São Paulo, and Vega String Quar- tets as well as such artists as violinists Cho-Li- ang Lin, Giora Schmidt, violist James Dunham, and cellists Zuill Bailey, Andrés Diaz, Lynn Harrell, Antonio Meneses, and Joshua Roman. He is featured on the award winning recording Songs My Father Taught Me with Harrell, pro- duced WFMT Chicago, and his discography is further highlighted by performances of works for cello and piano: sonatas by Chopin, Grieg, and Rachmaninoff with Evan Drachman; so- natas by Rachmaninoff and Shostakovich with Joseph Johnson, and the complete sonatas by Beethoven with Tobias Werner. Asunción has been on the chamber music faculties of the As- pen Music Festival and Garth Newel Summer Music Festival—also performing as pianist for the Garth Newel Piano Quartet for three sea- sons—and has appeared on such other festivals as Amelia Island, Highland-Cashiers, Music in the Vineyards, and Santa Fe. He earned his Doctor of Musical Arts degree in 2007 from the University of Maryland–College Park un- der the tutelage of Rita Sloan. Asunción is the founder as well as artistic and board director of FilAm Music Foundation, a nonprofit foun- dation dedicated to promoting Filipino clas- sical musicians through scholarship and per- formance. Victor Santiago Asunción made his Ravinia debut in 2023. PAVILION 6:30 PM SUNDAY, AUGUST 31, 2025 Fiesta Ravinia Daylong family festival of Mexican music, food, and culture LA ORIGINAL BANDA EL LIMÓN † and GRUPO CAÑAVERAL † Grupo Cañaveral –Intermission– La Original Banda El Limón COMO LA FLOR † The Ultimate Selena Experience Tribute † Ravinia debut RAVINIAMAGAZINE • AUG. 18 – AUG. 31, 2025 84