A night of kundimans/ Heart songs/ Gintong Lahi

Never were kundimans more appealing than when they were heard at a benefit program presented by Joey Soriano in Gerry Contreras’s penthouse last week. Young, engaging singers – tenor Rogelio Peñaverde Jr. and soprano Florence Aguilar – interpreted kundimans by Abelardo, Santiago, De Guzman, Suarez, Silos and the more contemporary Mike Velarde, George Canseco, Louie Ocampo, Ben Zubiri, Tito Arevalo, Ernani Cuenco, Nitoy Gonzales and Cecile Azarcon. Most of the kundimans are now classics, as well as those rendered from the zarzuela Walang Sugat by Severino Reyes (music) and Fulgencio Tolentino (lyrics).

Annotator Martin Lopez gave carefully researched, highly illuminating observations. He said in part: "Nothing captures the Filipino sentimentality ever more closely than those we call our very own, the kundiman. An art song is a form of Western solo vocal literature wherein the voice, the instrumental accompaniment and verse are interwoven to achieve an artistic whole. Our history with Spain led to the song style called kundiman, a condensation of Kung Hindi Man, which lent itself to the development of the song as artistic self-expression — a very distinct type, a valuable part of our heritage."

Anak Dalita, Mutya ng Pasig, Madaling Araw, Nasa-an Ka Irog, Babalik Ka Rin, Ikaw ang Mahal Ko and many more were sung with clarity of diction and sensitive feeling by Peñaverde and Aguilar, their high notes growing full and long-sustained. Pianist Julie Mendoza, described by Martin as "kundiman queen" accompanied sans score.

Gerry Contreras was enticed to sing a number before the post-concert dinner he hosted. Joey Soriano’s Tagalog message to the audience is translated here- with: "I thank you all for your whole-hearted support. I am overjoyed that you liked the kundiman which is part of our culture and truly our own. Let us remember that this genre demonstrates love not only for those closest to us but also love for our country and for God. Mabuhay po kayo!"

The Foundation for Lay Education on Heart Disease recently staged the unique musical "How to Remain Young at Heart." This featured 20 original songs by Jeremiah "Jimboy" Calising, with lyrics by cardiologist Dr. Adolfo B. Bellosillo.

The remarkably professional singers – soprano Jai Sabas Aracama, tenor Jeremiah Calising, guest tenor Ramon Acoymo and the UP Concert Chorus conducted by Jai, realizing that the program would defeat its purpose if the audience failed to understand the lyrics, clearly enunciated them. Clever, humorous or amusing, the words – in catchy melodies – prescribed how to prevent hypertension, high cholesterol levels, corpulence or obesity, stress, angina pectoris, etc., dispensing medical advice in the most pleasing manner.

Calising assumed the yeoman’s role, accompanying all songs on the keyboard and often singing solo himself.

The Philippine Ballet Theater interpreted Gener Caringal’s choreography "The Saga of a Coronary Man" to music by Jesse Lucas, and to story and concept by Dr. Bellosillo. The initial balletic idiom, with ballerinas dancing on toes in a ballroom sequence, suddenly turns into a parody. A danseur suffers a heart attack and is rushed to the hospital for surgery. Surgical instruments used — knife, scalpel, scissors, etc. — are enormous in size, eliciting giggles, especially when the stricken man dances immediately after the surgery.

In conclusion, the musical was new, distinct and entertaining, teaching lay men how to prevent heart disease.

I missed the first half of Filipino Heritage Festival’s spectacular extravaganza "Gintong Lahi" at the CCP main theater. But I saw enough to conclude that the "cast of thousands" — several choirs/ballet, folk and street (acrobatic) dancers/pop, Broadway, classic and kundiman singers, were out to prove our culture hybrid while Chino Toledo admirably conducted the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra. An over-all director-choreographer could have provided continuity by linking the disparate numbers together into an artistic whole, thus raising it to a creative level while retaining its basic Filipino essence. As it was, "Gintong Lahi" truly reflected the title of one number, "Sari-Saring Halo-Halo."