American nostalgia

"Remembrance of things past is not necessarily the remembrance of things as they were."

~Marcel Proust (1871–1922), French novelist

A gaudy and lovely Rock-Ola jukebox at the American 1950s diner-themed Johnny Rockets in Bonifacio Global City.

After silence

"After silence, that which comes nearest to expressing the inexpressible is music."

~ Aldous Huxley, Music at Night and Other Essays

The Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra (PPO) performed last night in a charity concert at the Jaime C. Velasquez Park in Salcedo Village, Makati City for the continuing rehabilitation of towns devastated by Typhoon Haiyan, which is locally called Typhoon Yolanda.

Audacious

What do you get when you put a ballet company, three choreographers, and eleven rock bands together? The most daring ballet performance Manila has seen in years!

Ballet Philippines got together with Rock Ed Philippines to put together [rock] Supremo as part of the year-long celebration of the birth anniversary of Andres Bonifacio, the father of the Philippine Revolution against Spanish colonial rule. Last Saturday, my husband and I watched the single show where the bands performed live. I loved it! I couldn't take photos of the actual performance, of course, and these were taken after the ballet ended. I have to apologize for their quality—the Cultural Center of the Philippines does not allow cameras inside the entire building so I had to use my phone.
  The ballet was episodic, with one song from each of the eleven bands for each episode. The last song was by Radioactive Sago Project, one of the most popular bands in the country right now, and which refuses to be boxed into a single musical genre.
  After the standing ovation, the audience couldn't let them go, and they gamely played a few more songs. And that's when things went a little riotous on stage. (Yes, that's one of the crew taking photos on the stage.)
  And the dancers of Ballet Philippines! Oh my goodness, after a two-hour performance, they still had the energy to have a pop dance showdown. (And yes, even the dancers were taking photos of each other and of the audience.)
  All I can say is, if you're going to have a dance showdown with professional dancers, you better be one yourself.

Bravo, Ballet Philippines! Bravo, Rock Ed Philippines!

Musical heritage

Portraits of violinist Ramon Corpus hang at the entrance to the music hall (see yesterday's post) in Casa San Miguel in Zambales which is named after him. Aside from Alfonso Bolipata, who started the school and foundation, Ramon Corpus has two other grandsons—brothers of Alfonso—who are musicians: Jaime is a pianist, and Ramon (obviously named after the grandfather) is a cellist.

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Black Soup Cafe may be small, but it set aside space for musicians to perform in, and welcomes exhibits from artists, whether established or new. I love that. The restaurant's full name is Blacksoup Cafe + Artspace.

Whatever your interests are and whatever you decide to do, I hope you have a wonderful day with your loved ones. Happy Valentine's Day! :)

A symphony in blue

The Ateneo de Manila University officially opened its celebrations and events for the Advent and Christmas season last night, and we were treated to a lovely performance by the Blue Symphony at the Sacred Heart Plaza of the Church of the Gesù.

The student symphony orchestra is the youngest performing arts organization in the university, and they still need a lot of support from the community. None of the students are music majors (since the Ateneo does not have a music program) and there are too many instruments that are not represented; the organization does not have production or marketing teams yet; they are trained by a conductor gratis; and the kids need a formation program set up to help them deal with the challenges of combining their love of music with the demands of their academics, not to mention the emotional drama that is inevitable in any group of artists. Despite all these, however, the young and youthful orchestra has garnered much praise from those who have heard them perform, and I really hope that the university and its benefactors can give Blue Symphony the assistance that it needs to become a full orchestra that everyone can be proud of.

Tapping strings

Abby Clutario, of the bands fuseboxx and HUMANFOLK, with her 10-string Chapman Stick. It was my first time to see one and I found it so fascinating, I ended up interviewing her about it. Apparently, it's been around since the 1970s and can have 8 to 12 strings. You can read more about it in its Wikipedia entry.

Pride and joy

Ligaya (which means "joy") Fernando-Amilbangsa is a scholar, artist, dancer and cultural conservationist. She lived for two decades among the various indigenous peoples of the Sulu Archipelago, researching, documenting and trying to put into words the language of their music and dance. Aside from her research, workshops and conference lectures, she was one of the founders of the AlunAlun Dance Circle, which seeks to revive and nurture interest in ancient Filipino art forms.

The carol of the winds

Simbang Gabi (night mass) or Misa de Gallo (Spanish, which literally translates to rooster's mass and means dawn mass), is a traditional novena of masses before Christmas that many Filipino Catholics practice. Among Catholics, a novena is a nine-day devotion to obtain special graces. Simbang Gabi at the Ateneo Church of the Gesù started on December 15 with a performance of Filipino and foreign Christmas carols by the Banda Zabat brass band a few hours before the evening mass. Banda Zapat comes from Gapan City in the province of Nueva Ecija, 92 kilometers away.

Artistic traditions

The museum of the Cultural Center of the Philippines has a permanent exhibit showcasing traditional Asian musical instruments.

Heart's beat

Kontra-GaPi, short for Kontemporaryong Gamelan Pilipino (Contemporary Filipino Gamelan), is the University of the Philippines' resident ethnic music and dance ensemble. I am always happy to see young ones taking an interest in preserving our cultural heritage, whatever the form and whatever the influence. Gamelan music also happens to be one of the few musical genres that will get me running out of my office no matter how busy I am.

Music for my soul

The conditions were again too difficult for my little camera, but I'm posting this photo anyway because I want you all to meet one of my favorite local bands: Kalayo. The genre that their music falls under is World Music but before the term was coined, I'd known it as Neo-Ethnic: Filipino tribal melodies, primal beats, strong percussion and chanting, using both traditional and modern instruments or even, like the djembe, instruments from other cultures. Kalayo is Sammy Asuncion (guitar), Kenway Barcelona (bass, who alternates for Louie Talan), Reli de Vera (drum set), DJ Rodriguez (snare, djembe), Budeths Casinto (djembe, shakers and other percussion instruments) and Boy Garovillo (djembe, kubing or jaw harp, shaker).




Until late 2008, when the membership went through a major change, the band was known as Pinikpikan and the song below (no video except a still image of the CD cover) is the title song from their Kaamulan album.

Motion blur

Not by choice but because this was the best that my itsy-bitsy camera could do. But despite that, I think that the result captures well the rhythm, excitement and power of Wadaiko Yamato, the group of taiko drummers who came here for the Philippines-Japan Friendship Month of July. They are awesome! And we are extremely lucky because this is the second time we've watched them perform. If you've never seen a taiko performance before, watch the video on their website (I hope you have good speakers). But really, nothing beats a live performance so if they ever go to your city, do not miss them. We've watched several taiko groups over the years and they're the best so far.

Live!

Friday, March 26, was the awarding of the 2009 Gawad Buhay!, the Philstage Awards for the Performing Arts, at the Tanghalang Aurelio Tolentino of the Cultural Center of the Philippines. This is only the second year of the award, which recognizes and pays tribute to Filipino artists in theater—plays, musicals and dance. Depending on how it's accented, the word buhay can mean life, live or alive; in this case, the name of the award refers to the fact that the award is for live performances.




The awarding was broken up into several sets, with various groups performing excerpts from their 2009 season. The most electrifying performance for me was that of Ballet Philippines. Candice Adea, who won a Gawad Buhay! for Best Female Lead Performance in Dance, and Angel Gabriel danced an excerpt from Evacuation, choreographed by Bam Damian. (Please pardon the noise and fuzziness of this photo; the conditions were almost too much for my little camera and I was forced to maximize the ISO.)




To showcase the works of Filipino visual artists, and also as an added incentive for theater groups to strive to garner awards every year, the trophies of Gawad Buhay! will always be different. The 2009 trophy is created by Don Salubayba from Davao City. It portrays a dancing bulul, the rice god of the Northern Philippines' indigenous peoples. The three faces of the figure represent music, dance and theater.




A notable difference between this year's awarding ceremony and last year's is the number of artists who attended. Last year, it was easy to organize the small group onto the stage for their photo. This year…




Chaotic is a mild word to describe what happened during the photo opportunity, but I love it. Half a dozen performing arts groups on one stage, happy faces showing pride in their awards, and a gaggle of friends, relatives and colleagues trying to get photos. As a scriptwriter friend told my husband after the ceremony, the artists now own the awards. And that can only bode well for Gawad Buhay!, Philstage and Philippine performing arts.

For those interested, Gibbs Cadiz posted the complete list of 2009 Gawad Buhay! winners in his blog.

Two mathematicians

As part of the countdown to the Ateneo de Manila University's 150th anniversary, Philippine pianist Raul M. Sunico performed at the Church of the Gesù on Tuesday evening. Trained at the University of the Philippines, Juilliard School and New York University, Dr. Sunico's wonderfully eclectic program included pieces from Frederic Chopin, Isaac Albeniz, Claude Debussy, Franz Liszt and George Gershwin. The list of Dr. Sunico's many accomplishments as a concert pianist, orchestral soloist and musical arranger—both internationally and locally—is too long to include here, but beyond his brilliant piano playing, there are two things that endear him most to me: he arranged Filipino folk songs and kundiman (traditional love songs) for classical piano and recorded them in fifteen volumes—a legacy that will forever enrich Philippine culture; and his many projects on music education, especially for grade school children.



I do not have a photo of Raul Sunico at the piano, unfortunately. The conditions during the concert—dim ambient light, strong spotlights, a pianist that performs with his entire body—were just too tough for my little camera. But I did get one during the photo-op before the concert. So, without further ado, let me introduce to you the president of the Ateneo de Manila University, Fr. Bienvenido F. Nebres, SJ and Dr. Raul M. Sunico, Artistic Director of the Cultural Center of the Philippines, Dean of the University of Santo Tomas Conservatory of Music and pianist extraordinaire.

Ongaku in Motion

One of the perks of working at a university is the wide range of learning opportunities right at our doorstep. And no, they are not all dry lectures. Last month, the Ateneo de Manila's Japanese Studies Program, with the assistance of the Japan Information and Cultural Center of the Embassy of Japan, celebrated the Philippines-Japan Friendship Month with "Ongaku in Motion." Ongaku means music in Japanese. The first half of the program featured traditional Japanese music and dance. This is a koto, which is the national instrument of Japan.



After several pieces of koto music, played by the Director of the Japanese Studies Program and a member of the University of the Philippines Koto Ensemble, one faculty member performed a Nihon Buyo dance. It was fascinating with its slow, exact and refined movements.



Unfortunately, I couldn't stay for the second half of the program, which featured J-pop and anime music performed by the students.

Used, used and used

At the Penguin Café Gallery in Malate, Manila while the next band was setting up their equipment, a DJ would be spinning some vinyl records. Aside from a shiny new player, he also had one old beat up player. And take a closer look at his lamp. It's made out of an empty can of mushrooms.

Find more Odd Shots—or post your own—at Katney's Kaboodle.

Open iPod

Spotted in Tomato Kick, the restaurant that turns into a bar at night, located in the house that was converted into a tiny strip mall. Don't like the music? Plug in your own iPod.

Find more Odd Shots—or post your own—at Katney's Kaboodle.

Pinoy jazz

Jazz night at Ten 02 Bar in the Timog–Tomas Morato area of Quezon City. Many of our local musicians play for different bands, sometimes of different genres. Sometimes too, the members of a band may change depending on who's available for a particular gig. This band's name is Akasha. A few sets afterward, the same drummer, bassist and keyboardist came on with guitarist Riki Gonzales and it became Balooze.

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Just a reminder to all you CDP bloggers out there: If you haven't voted for the March theme yet, please do so! The poll is in the March Theme Day Poll forum topic. Please help spread the word too!

An offering

The Ateneo de Manila University's 149th anniversary yesterday was simply commemorated with a Mass in the evening. It was a school day after all. Last Sunday, however, there was a concert at the Church of the Gesù which gathered all of the music groups of the university and the Jesuit Music Ministry for the first time ever. "Take and Receive: The First Festival of Ateneo Music" featured the Ateneo Boys Choir, Dulaang Sibol, High School Glee Club, College Glee Club, Chamber Singers, Blue Symphony, Bukas Palad, Himig Heswita and Musica Chiesa. Each group performed only two or three songs each, but the concert was still two and a half hours. The grand finale was all the university choirs singing a special medley of "Take and Receive" specially arranged for the concert by Ryan Cayabyab, one of the Philippines' foremost music directors. "Take and Receive" is a liturgical song written by Fr. Manoling Francisco, SJ which is based on a prayer of St. Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of the Society of Jesus.

St. Ignatius' Prayer of Surrender
Take, O Lord, and receive my entire liberty, my memory, my understanding and my whole will. All that I am and all that I possess You have given me: I surrender it all to You to be disposed of according to Your will. Give me only Your love and Your grace; with these I will be rich enough, and will desire nothing more.