Cultural work

Clockwise: Frank Cimatu, Mae Paner, the blogger, Edna Aquino, Kervin Calabias and Kelly Ramos

Yesterday marked my first official meeting for 2019. Meaning, this was no longer socializing and meeting holiday obligations. This was defining a project, setting realistic goals, assigning duties, sourcing possible funds.

It helped that convening the meeting were cultural activists Mae P. Paner, a.k.a. Juana Change, and Edna Aquino. After initial sips of coffee or tea, we buckled down to work at a long table at Hill Station. The January afternoon weather was kind, not bitterly cold, so it was conducive to agreements and agreements to disagree. With us were fellow writers Frank Cimatu, Kelly Ramos and Kervin Calabias.

The project is the mounting of, hope I can announce it now, guys, "Tao Po," described as a a monologue for four characters on extra-judicial killings by Ms. Paner on Feb. 8 at the University of the Cordilleras (time and specific venue at UC to be finalized).

The next day, Feb. 9, Ms. Paner will conduct a theater workshop for Baguio youth to raise their awareness of human rights. The all-day workshop will culminate in a showcase of the participants' output. Venue is still the UC.

The organizers of these twin events, which are part of the Commission on Human Rights (CHR)-led "Artists for Human Rights / Luzon Project," are Let's Organize for Democracy and Integrity (LODI), Dap-ayan ti Kultura iti Kordilyera (DKK), the UC, HUDYAT (Artists for Human Dignity) and the Baguio Writers Group led by newly elected president Kelly Ramos.

Expect that in the next couple of weeks, we will be making some social media noise about "Tao Po" and the theater workshop--two avenues for promoting, at the risk of repeating myself, human rights. Mabuhay!

The American Songbook goes places

I haven't blogged in ages. Busyness, grief, demands of running a house, much needed time with family are not valid excuses when you're in the writing game.

But today, after a seconds-long power brownout in our part of Baguio, I decided to write something on a project of which I am one of many organizers (the others being Joseph Uy, Alan Andres of the Cultural Arts Events Organizer and retired University of the Philippines Baguio economics Prof. Ben Tapang).

Ben and I are going to incorporate ourselves into a non-stock, non-profit outfit called Guacamole Productions whose mission/vision is to spread the good news about classical music in the city of Baguio. We intend to bring up our most promising classical musicians whether soloists, chamber instrumentalists, vocal artists or, God willing, symphonic orchestra players. The end goal is to make Baguio the Salzburg (northern musical capital) of the Philippines.

Logo of the new creative enterprise Guacamole Productions designed by Jenny Carino

So far, we have been encouraged by the support shown by President Ray Dean Salvosa of the University of the Cordilleras and his staff, particularly Onie Aguinalde, vice president for administration, and Vicky Molina, Salvosa's executive assistant, Des and Auring Bautista who've consistently been with us since the Baguio Summer Music Festival began in 2015, University of the Philippines Baguio Chancellor Raymundo Rovillos who greeted us with a friendly "Is that a cultural proposal you are about to bring to me?," friends from the Baguio Association of Restaurants like Edna Anton of Sizzling Plate, Ninj Sabado of Arca's Yard and Marie Therese Jison of Mother's Garden and Restaurant who immediately signed a check for the dinner of the visiting artists even if her venue is closed for major renovation. Therese said she believed in the project and would like to help. She went to the extent of delivering the check to me. Therese, it'll go to a dinner for 10 persons at the beloved hangout for unlimited Korean barbecue, Korean Palace.

Why Guacamole? Well, we found "pine tree" bordering on a cliche. And avocado trees also abound in Baguio. Plus guacamole implies halo-halo, a merry mix of European classics, American classics, original Pilipino music, Broadway and movie themes, opera, etc.

Salvosa has been some kind of guiding guru, making us understand the taste buds of our city. One time we proposed a chamber version of La Traviata to him and sent him videos of the Viva Voce performance at Ayala Museum last year. He nixed the idea, explaining that his students and employees were not yet ready even if some arias in Traviata were popular.

But when I watched The American Songbook recently (May 12) at the Insular Corporate Center auditorium in Alabang, Muntinlupa City, something clicked in my head. This was what Salvosa meant! Millennials could relate to the songs from the pillars of American classical music (George Gershwin, Jerome Kern, Cole Porter and Oscar Hammerstein) and the ones written for contemporary Broadway musicals like Wicked and A Chorus Line. Millennials could also appreciate the sight and sound of their fellow millennials singing the old fogies' songs.

With barely two weeks to prepare, Joseph, Al, Ben and I punched phone numbers, designed and redesigned the e-poster and e-vite, sought sponsors (Musar School of Music was the most recent to step in), composed ourselves into a text brigade to help fill up the UC Theater and UPB's new Teatro Amianan. Salvosa, Bautista and Rovillos were one in saying that the songs from the songbook they were familiar with and they were food for the students' souls.

The American Songbook premieres tomorrow in a matinee at 4 p.m. at the UC, followed by a 6 p.m. performance on May 26 at the UPB and finally, a by-invitation-only engagement to celebrate Bautista's birthday at the UB Centennial Hall on May 28.

The singers Jasmin Salvo, Jan Briane Astom and Mheco Manlangit Photo by Bianca L. Susi

After all these, the songbook team of tenor Jan Briane Astom, sopranos Mheco Manlangit and Jasmin Salvo and original pianist Michelle Nicolasora will reprise the concert on June 17 at Ayala Museum in Makati and in a dinner-concert on July 1 at Gourmet Gypsy Art Cafe on Roces Ave., Quezon City.

But nothing like watching the show in good ole Baguio in the summer when the living is easy!

Our thanks also to our other partners: National Commission for Culture and the Arts and Genesis Transport Service Inc. with its de luxe Joybus ferrying the performers, production and documentation teams to and from our fair city.