Il Divo: Simon says they’re divine

The Presidential Security Group was on red alert that evening (Khadaffy Janjalani’s death had just been confirmed by the FBI and the military was wary the Abu Sayyaf would strike back), but no matter. All roads led to the PICC Plenary Hall, including that of the commander-in-chief, President Arroyo. The reason was the Il Divo, the international operatic pop vocal group, which in Italian means "divine male performer." I am not sure which was more divine – their voices or their looks.

Composed of singers Carlos Marin (a Spanish zarzuela baritone), Urs Buhler (a Swiss tenor), David Miller (an American tenor) and Sebastien Izambard (a French pop singer, actually), the Il Divo quartet looked like GQ models and sounded alternately like Josh Groban and Andrea Bocelli, depending on their song.

Most opera singers are heavenly to listen to, but not to behold. Well, for this group you wouldn’t just settle for a soundtrack. (My 66-year-old mom bought herself an Il Divo CD last Christmas.)

Il Divo arrived in Manila just as their manager Simon Cowell was wrapping up auditions in Seattle for his top rated American Idol, now on its sixth season. The idea behind Il Divo’s creation reportedly came to Simon after listening to Andrea Bocelli and Sarah Brightman’s rendition of Con Te Partiro.

I think it’s a brilliant idea having classical music sung by men who looked like they could easily sing This I Promise You by N-Sync as they could Con Te Partiro.

For the men, I guess it’s like listening to a female singer who looks like Britney Spears or Scarlett Johansson but sings Ave Maria like a nun on the front pew of the Notre Dame.

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The concert started to warm up when the group sang Regresa A Mi (Unbreak My Heart), the Spanish version of the Toni Braxton hit. Other applauded numbers were You Raise Me Up (Por Ti Sere) and Eric Carmen’s All By Myself. I loved their rendition of My Way. But concerts like this don’t really hit a fevered pitch like a rock or pop concert. It’s a steady sort of listening pleasure that relaxes you like a glass of wine or a soothing back massage.

The magic of Il Divo is that it can dish out pop in the operatic way, and opera in the pop way, bridging two distinct musical genres. Not all of us appreciate the opera – I certainly don’t pretend to appreciate it all the time. Not even the most well-heeled will want a pure diet of opera songs in their iPod. Just like those who listen to the Black Eyed Peas sometimes want to listen to Pavarotti. Il Divo bridges that gap.

For what is art if it is not appreciated by many?

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My husband Ed and I were invited by Philip Morris Philippines’ (PMPMI’s) managing director Chris Nelson to this jampacked concert, a gathering of Manila’s "who’s who."

One of the guests, a business magnate, mused out loud, "Why is everyone here?" I ventured the explanation that Il Divo caters to both popular and snooty tastes, to autograph-seekers as well as opera aficionados.

He had another theory. "It’s because Manila’s cultural scene is so boring and lackluster, when something like this comes up, everyone just shows up. In Hong Kong, every week, there’s a world-class group performing."

Aray. O sige na nga.

* * *

We were seated on the right side of the orchestra, in one of the middle rows. In front of us was US Ambassador Kristie Kenney, who was also in the cocktail reception sponsored by Philip Morris before the concert. A little birdie told me Ambassador Kenney, was in fact, supposed to seat in the center row, in one of the rows closer to the stage beside Chris Nelson and Finance Secretary Gary Teves. But she politely declined, preferring to sit on the right side with the rest of Philip Morris’ guests.

From where I was seated, I honestly and truly did not notice GMA being booed and heckled, as some alleged in text messages that circulated the day after the show. It would have been cruel to boo GMA with her innocent three-year-old granddaughter beside her.

I did hear the audience clapping impatiently at around 8:30 p.m., but I’ve been to enough concerts in the past to know none of them begins on time. And it wasn’t the first time I heard an audience clap to signal that it was about the time the show started. Now, whether the Il Divo show was delayed because of GMA or was actually on time because the producers just printed 8 p.m. on the tickets to make allowance for "Filipino time," is hard to ascertain now.

The second heckling reportedly took place as the President was about to leave and an announcement was made that the audience remain in their seats to give way to her exit. To me it sounded more like a loud sigh from an inconvenienced throng, who probably thought they would be cordoned off till kingdom come.

In fairness, the PSG did not hold back those who wanted to go out anyway. Besides, there were several exits and a lot of people slipped out just the same. By the time I said my goodbyes to the friend beside me and gathered my bag and shawl, GMA was gone.

But I did notice that not one of the Il Divo members acknowledged her presence as a sign of courtesy or respect. They had enough spiels in between songs to do that. I wonder who goofed?

Still they were divine – a welcome sight and sound in a city that was on red alert.

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