Welcoming Christmas with open arms

It must be because of the spirit of the season and the goodwill it brings but it can never be denied that Christmas songs manage to sound beautiful no matter what the form or however it is performed by anybody. Somehow though, the music seems to be more expressive of all things we associate with the celebration when carols are sung by choirs. Maybe it is because Christmas is actually a religious event and we always see choirs as part of church services.

Solemn, joyous and definitely heartfelt is how I would describe the contents of Songs of the Season 2. It is the new album recorded by the UP Singing Ambassadors (UPSA) and mainly made up of Christmas songs from around the world. Take note of one more fact. The language may differ, Spanish, English, Italian, Filipino, etc., but the emotions the songs elicit are the same everywhere.

The cuts from the album are Nacio, nacio pastores a villancico from Spain; Il est ne le divin enfant from France; Stille Nacht (Silent Night) from Germany; Tu scendi dalle stelle from Italy; and one song in old Latin, Et Misericordia. The U.S. of A. is represented by selections in English like The Christmas Song, Jingle Bells Calypso, The Very Best Time of Year, One Small Child and Oh Holy Night. Then from the Philippines are a recent composition by Ryan Cayabyab, Anong Gagawin Mo Ngayong Pasko? and the old favorites Pasko Na Naman and Ang Pasko ay Sumapit.

Then as added treats, there are a few cuts that are not really Christmas songs but which I must say also beautifully capture the spirit of Christmas like Joyful, Joyful! which is adapted from a number in the hugely popular soundtrack of Sister Act 2 Back in the Habit, the Hallelujah Chorus from Handel’s oratorio The Messiah which we usually associate with the Easter celebration but which also works well here, and a medley of compositions by Michel Legrand. This one is definitely not Christmasy but who are we to pass up on a medley of Legrand songs performed by the UPSA with an arrangement by Cayabyab. Nice.

The UPSA is one of the finest Filipino choirs today. It is at present the UP’s Performing Group for Choreographed Choral Music and the Resident Choir of the College of Arts and Letters. It represented Arezzo Italy and the Philippines at the 14th European Grand Prix for Choral Singing after it won the grand prize at the prestigious Guido d’Arezzo Choral Competitions, one of the world’s major choral competitions. It has also won other prizes in Arezzo & Gorizia in Italy, Tours in France, Varna in Bulgaria, Cantonigros and Torrevieja in Spain, Nauchatel in Switzerland, Wernigerode in Germany, Arnhem in The Netherlands, Maasmechelen in Belgium, Trencianske Teplice in Slovakia and Pardubice & Prage in the Czech Republic.

Still on songs by the UPSA. If you are looking for a good version of the sweetly nostalgic song An Evening in December then you might want to check out the UPSA’s Christmas album from last year. Also entitled Songs of the Season, like Volume 2, this one also mixes traditional carols like Adeste Fideles/O Come All Ye Faithful, popular Filipino compositions like Pasko Na Sinta Ko, pop carols like Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, and unlikely but interesting materials from outside of the Christmas box. The latter is This is the Moment from the musical Jekyll and Hyde. It is not really a Christmas song but This is the Moment holds true to the message of the season.

Other cuts are A Christmas Carol, Carol of the Bells, Angels We Have Heard on High, Do You Hear What I Hear, Diwa ng Pasko, Payapang Daigdig, Noche Buena, Kumukuti-kutitap, Simbang Gabi and Christmas is the Season of the Heart.

The UPSA has been busy promoting its Christmas albums these past weeks. Those of you who missed its earlier performances can still catch UPSA in a serenata at the Podium tonight at 6.

Proceeds of the CD sales go to the UPSA Tour Fund during which it shares Filipino talent and goodwill in choral contests and performances abroad; and the UPSA Outreach Program which includes choral workshops all over the country, fund-raising activities from the less privileged and lending cheer to those confined in hospitals, homes for the aged and orphanages. These I must say are great additions to the pleasure that the Christmas sound of the UPSA brings.