Salinawit out of the closet

MANILA, Philippines - Richard Merk and Merk’s Bar Bistro present Salinawit at Merk’s on March 16, 9:30 p.m.

Salinawit basically means the translation of classic foreign songs into Tagalog which began as poet-journalist Pete Lacaba’s personal advocacy way back in the ‘70s until it caught fire. Today, there are 101 Salinawits. Performing at Merk’s are Armida Siguion-Reyna, Gino Padilla, Suzy Unas, Ramon “Montet” Acoymo, Ricky Davao, Richard who runs the bar, and Pete himself, with Ferdie Borja on the keyboard.

Richard has long wanted to bring Salinawit out of the underground venues that have served as its hunting grounds since 2006 when it made its debut at Black Soup with performers Isha, Bodjie Pascua, Susan Fernandez and Glaiza de Castro singing from Pete’s songbook. Today, its official homebase is the Conspiracy Bar on Visayas Avenue, digs of the alternative singers, musicians on the fringe, writers and painters. Regular performers are Gary Granada, Bayang Barrios, Cooky Chua, Joey Ayala, Cynthia Alexander, Lyn Sherman, and Noel Cabangon with Arthur Manuntag, Ricky, and members from the audience joining in on the jamming portion at the end of the show.