UST Singers bag top prizes in European choral tilt

[voltairemad]

lifestyle.inquirer.net/artsandbooks/artsandbooks/view/20100607-274219/UST-Singers-bag-top-prizes--in-European-choral-tilts

UST Singers bag top prizes in European choral tilts
By Antonio C. Hila
Philippine Daily Inquirer
DateFirst Posted 22:05:00 06/07/2010


THE UNIVERSITY OF SANTO TOMAS Singers, conducted by founding music director, Fidel Calalang Jr. of the UST Conservatory of Music, won top prizes in international choral competitions in Europe recently.

The 29-member-strong mixed choir is on a four-month tour of Europe, its 17th since it was founded 18 years ago in 1992. It left Manila last April 9, after giving farewell performances that earned critical raves.

The choir was declared the grand-prize winner at the 17th Bangor International Choral Festival held in North Ireland April 21-25 after it bagged three first prizes in the Mixed Choir, Madrigal and Sacred Categories; the second prize in the Light Entertainment category, and the Special Distinction trophy given to the Best Visiting Choir.

The UST Singers bested some 20 choirs from Wales, Scotland, England and Ireland. The Bangor International Festival is dubbed “a jewel in the crown of choral singing in North Ireland,”

At the 56th Cork International Choral Festival, held May 1-4, the UST Singers bagged the Lady Dorothy Mayer Memorial Trophy for their outstanding performance of a 20th-century piece. The choir also got the coveted Peace Trophy, an award given to the choir that had touched the “hearts of all who heard them.”

The UST Singers were the only choral group in the competition that consistently garnered standing ovations in all performances in the entire duration of the contest.

At the 6th International Chor Festival Mundus Cantat in Sopot, Poland, held May 19-23, the UST Singers bagged the Grand Prix as the Best Festival Choir. The choral group won three first prizes—in the Sacred, Secular, and Spiritual/Gospel and Jazz categories. The choir won over groups from France, Poland, Singapore, Sweden, Slovakia, Norway and Ukraine.

The UST Singers now stand as a top winning university choir. To date, the choral group counts more than 50 top prizes, mostly coming from European choral tilts.

It is expected to win more prizes as it continues its concert tour and participates in other international choral contests in key cities in Germany, Austria, Belgium, Spain and the United Kingdom.

[Tom A. Saiyan]

The UST Singers is, indeed, a potent advertisement of our country in Europe. They are reaping honors at no expense from the government. Their superb and world-class artistry makes their audiences wonder why the Philippine media is more intent on publishing and broadcasting stories about the graft and corruption in government, the Abu Sayyaf and the politicians wrangling over election results, than about the things Filipinos can be truly proud of. - Fr. Rolando de la Rosa, OP


A real winner
By Fr. ROLANDO V. DE LA ROSA, O.P.
May 16, 2010, 4:44pm

Forget the 2010 election for now. Somewhere in Europe, a group of young Filipinos are greeting their audience with these words: “Mabuhay! We represent the Philippines, a land where our smiles are as warm as our sunny days, a land where the contrasting cultures of the East and West somehow managed to blend splendidly, and where the exuberance of the human spirit remains unvanquished by centuries of colonization, oppression, and discrimination.

We represent a people with an extraordinary flair for living, faith in God, and trust in the boundless possibilities of human goodness. We are the UST Singers.”

The UST Singers are telling their audiences everywhere that contrary to pollsters and surveys, the Philippines is a beautiful place to live in. Perhaps, they are also subtly telling our government that if it wants to make the country a place to die for, it must invest in young people.

The UST Singers consist of 28 students from different colleges and faculties of the University. The group is headed by Prof. Fidel Gener Calalang Jr., a precocious faculty member of the UST Conservatory of Music. Since it was founded in 1992, the group has continued to impress audiences, encompassing music of different genres and from all periods. In the course of 17 years, the UST Singers has completed 16 concert tours abroad and has earned more than 45 top prizes in various international choral competition mostly in Europe, USA, and Canada.

Perhaps their greatest feat, unequalled by any local choirs is winning the CHOIR OF THE WORLD GRAND PRIZE and four First Prizes at the 49th Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod in Wales, United Kingdom.

The UST Singers also represented the Philippines at the 30th Mundi Cantant International Choral Competition held at Olomouc, Czech Republic. More than 7,000 singers comprising 196 choirs from mostly European countries, vied for prizes in various categories. The only Asian choir invited to this contest, the UST Singers won First Prize in all the five categories they competed in. What is more interesting is that, for the first time in the 30-year old history of Mundi Cantant, the board of judges gave the UST Singers perfect scores (100 percent) in four categories, and 99 percent in one. Never in the previous years were such high marks given for a particular choir. This is also the first time that one choir bagged 5 first prizes.

Their most recent achievement came on April 21-24, 2010 when they won 4 first prizes in the four categories they had joined in the Bangor International Festival, described as “a jewel in the crown of choral singing in Northern Ireland. Now on its 17th year, the Bangor Festival showcased performances from local school and adult choirs in Ireland, as well as invited choirs from other countries.

Fresh from their victory in Bangor, on April 28-May 2, 2010, the UST Singers were again invited to compete in the 56th Cork International Choral Festival celebrating the very best of choral and vocal music from choirs all over the world. Again, the UST Singers, won two trophies, one for an outstanding performance of a piece in the Fleischmann International Trophy Competition, and the most coveted PEACE trophy, described by organizers as an award given to the choir “who touched the hearts of all who heard them."

The UST Singers is, indeed, a potent advertisement of our country in Europe. They are reaping honors at no expense from the government. Their superb and world-class artistry makes their audiences wonder why the Philippine media is more intent on publishing and broadcasting stories about the graft and corruption in government, the Abu Sayyaf and the politicians wrangling over election results, than about the things Filipinos can be truly proud of.


UST Singers win second Choir of the World award

July 12, 2010 - THE UST Singers are again the Choir of the World after besting 91 participants from across the globe at the Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod in the United Kingdom last July 10.

The Singers are the first choral group to receive the Choir of the World Award twice. The group also took home the Pavarotti trophy named after the great Italian tenor who competed on the Eisteddfod stage in 1955.

In the Mixed Choir competition, the UST Singers placed first with 94 marks, beating groups from Indonesia, Sweden and Wales.

UST also placed first in the Youth Choirs competition with 180 marks, outshining groups from the United States of America, England, and the Czech Republic. The group landed third in the Chamber Choirs competition where Cywair from Wales and De La Salle University place first and second, respectively.

The UST Singers are a finalist in the Folk Song competition, where results have yet to be announced.

The Singers received their first Choir of the World award in 1995.

Established in 1947, Llangollen has become one of the world’s greatest music festivals.

The UST Singers have been reaping awards in their European tour this year, bringing home four first prize awards in the 17th Bangor International Choral Festival in UK held April 22 to 25, two special awards at the 56th Cork International Choral Festival in Ireland April 28 to May 2, and three first prizes at the 6th Mundus Cantat International Choral Competition in Poland last May.

In June last year, the UST Singers won three awards in the California International Choral Festival and Competition, including the People’s Choice Award. Alexis Ailex C. Villamor, Jr.

Varsitarian


Watch the Choir of the World result here.

[Tom A. Saiyan]

UST Choir sets another record
By ANJO PEREZ
August 1, 2010, 5:00pm


The University of Santo Tomas (UST) Singers has set another record when it clinched the Choir of the World-Pavarotti Trophy during the 2010 Llangollen International Music Eistedfodd in North Wales last July 10.

It was the first time in the competition’s 63-year history for a choir to win the title twice.

The 30-member group arrived in the country late Saturday evening from Wales aboard a Korean Airlines flight.

The UST Singers first bagged the recognition in 1995 when it became the first and only Asian choir to win the award in the world’s oldest international choral competition.

During this year’s competition, the group bested four competitors, which included only first-prize winners in the festival’s other major choir categories.

The UST Singers earlier won the top prize in the mixed choir competition to qualify for the Choir of the World competition.

The other finalists were ‘The White Rosettes’ of England--winner of the Barbershop/Close Harmony Choruses Competition, ‘The Cantabile Limburg’ of Germany--winner of the Male Choir’s Competition, ‘The Chanterelles’ choir of England--winner of the Female Choir’s Competition, and the ‘Cywair’ of Wales--winner of the Chamber Choir Competition).

The Pavarotti Trophy was named after world renowned Italian tenor Luciano Pavarotti, who competed in the festival in 1995 when his choir from Modena, Italy, won the Men’s Choir Competition.

In 2005, Pavarotti added his name to the Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod, an annual six-day festival of dance and songs that takes place every year in the Welsh town of Llangollen.

The festival has been running since 1947, while the prestigious Choir of the World Competition was created in 1987 to determine the best overall choir of the event.

The recent victory highlights the UST Singer’s European Tour, where they are set to compete in six international competitions.

The group received the Lady Dorothy Mayer Memorial Trophy and the Peace Trophy at the 56th International Choir Festival in Cork, Ireland last May 1.

In the same month, the choir bagged all the gold diplomas in the sacral music, secular and folk music, and spiritual, gospel and jazz categories in the sixth International Choir Festival held in Mundus Cantat in Sopot, Poland.

Founded in 1992, the UST Singers, under the baton of Prof. Fidel G. Calalang Jr., has won more than 45 top prizes and has performed in concert tours in at least 25 countries in Europe, Asia and the US.

From the airport, the group was motored to the UST grounds where a surprise party was held in their behalf with UST Rector Fr. Rolando dela Rosa leading the celebration.

Manila Bulletin

[voltairemad]

lifestyle.inquirer.net/artsandbooks/artsandbooks/view/20101011-297039/UST-Singers-hold-triumphant-concert

UST Singers hold triumphant concert
By Antonio C. Hila
Philippine Daily Inquirer
DateFirst Posted 22:05:00 10/11/2010



UST Singers hold triumphant concert

The Choir of the World held an epic performance at the CCP that was bound to be the choral event of 2010

ALL ROADS LED to the Cultural Center of the Philippines for the thanksgiving concert of the UST Singers last Sept. 19.

At the lobby, people who came in droves were greeted by an imposing display of the trophies the choir had recently won during their European tour in which it participated in six prestigious international choral tilts from April to July.

All seats at the Main Theater were taken. Many more wanted to watch, but no more tickets!

The choir has brought home some 20 top prizes, including 11 First Prizes; a Peace trophy (Public Prize); two Grand Prizes; and the most coveted Choir of the World Award at the 63rd Llangolen International Musical Esitedfod, participated in by 40 choral groups from around the world.

The last was a repeat of the same feat the choir had achieved in 1995, when it first bagged the title barely three years after its founding by Fidel Gener Calalang Jr.

Such a triumph had become a byword, so that no less than the House of Representatives had to acknowledge it by passing House Resolution No. 7, authored by Rep. Magtanggol Gunigundo, which formally congratulated the 28-member choir for giving pride to the nation.

The UST Singers deserves a better accolade than such congratulatory note. The state can give its due recognition by making it a resident company of the Cultural Center of the Philippines.

To date, the UST Singers is the only Philippine and Asian choir to have won the Choir of the World title twice!

Since 1992, the choir has made 18 concert tours and bagged a total of 65 top prizes from prestigious international choral tilts in Austria, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Poland, the United Kingdom apart from concertizing in Asia, Canada the United States and Latin American countries.

In his brief opening remarks, UST Rector Magnifcus, the Rev. Fr. Rolando de la Rosa, OP, said the UST Singers had become the country’s ambassadors of goodwill, “at no expense to our government.” The choir, he said, had capably boosted the country’s image abroad.

Truly, music is a national gem, aptly expressed in choral singing. Father De la Rosa said the recognition was not just true with the UST Singers but to other school choirs as well that had ably projected the musical genius of the Filipino abroad such as the UP Madrigal Singers, UE Choral, DLSU Chorale, UP Singing Ambassadors, the UP Concert Chorus.

In welcoming the audience, Raul Sunico, CCP president and dean of the UST Conservatory of Music, said he too was an avid fan of the UST Singers, and the CCP was proud to host the choir’s homecoming concert.

Winning form

The choir displayed its winning form in an epic performance that lasted for over two hours. The concert was bound to be this year’s choral event!

The choir showcased its global feat through its flawless rendition of traditional, folk, ethnic, Broadway and novelty pieces—all scored demandingly.

Indeed, the UST Singiers underscored its formidable capability to interpret varied choral genres requiring difficult and varied choral range and coloring only a true choral virtuoso could do.

Among some of the world’ finest contemporary works the choir rendered and which formed part of its repertoire in the competitions it had joined in, were masterpieces by Eudenice Palaruan (“Gapas”) and Ruben Federizon’s (“Gabaq-an”). They were lined up with the works of choral giants such as Claudio Monteverdi, Morten Lauridsen. Eric Whitacre, Jonas Tamulionis and Ricardo Aguado.

“Gapas” won the Lady Dorothy Mayer Memorial Trophy for a 20th-century piece at the 58th Cork International Choral Festival.

“Gabaq-an” won the First prize at the Mixed Category which qualified the choir to vie for the Choir of the World Award and defeated its other strong competitor, the CYAIR Choir from Wales, which won the title in 2005, a decade since the singers bagged the award.

“Gabaq-an” also won the First Prize, Mixed Choir Category, at the 28th Festival Internacional de Musica de Cantonigros in Spain, where the singers defeated the APZ TONE TOMSIC from Slovenia, a two-time European Grand Prix winner which placed second.

Austere yet handsome

Austere yet handsome choreography and lighting heightened their singing. The gestures the members themselves choreographed were minimal yet meaningful. They provided attractive visual dimension which enhanced comprehension of the meaning of the songs.

In resplendent gala attire, the UST Singers cut a regal presence on stage and smartly moved elegantly with dashing confidence, disclosing the stance of a real champion.

Truly, there was “unending grace” in their rendition. In the sacred portion, they intoned “unending praise” to the Almighty, making the concert more of a thanksgiving than just a plain homecoming performance.

Utmost sincerity and humility underscored Calalang’s short message thanking all persons who made their travel possible: Father. De La Rosa and the UST community; the choir members’ families and the choir’s benefactors—above all, God. “To God be the glory,” Prof. Calalang emphatically said.

He informed the audience their trip was fraught with trials and difficulties—at one point they thought of giving up.

But “God is good,” he said. “We emerged steadfast and focused” and “triumphed in the end.”

The audience was hushed into a prayerful silence as the choir intoned John Rutter’s simple yet touching thanksgiving hymn, “Look at the World.”

Visibly, many choristers were in tears, as were some of the listeners, among them soprano Irma Potenciano, who exclaimed, “Fidel had made me unabashedly cry!”

Victory in Wales

Off stage, in a casual conversation with the choir’s founding conductor, a couple of days after the performance at UST, Fidel said he hesitated to join the Llangolen International Festival because of the psychological burden of duplicating the feat the choir had done before. Besides, it had been some years since he bagged the award.

His brother, Firmaldo, whom he consulted whether the choir should join or not, prodded: “Just to do your best, and be nonchalant about it if you lose.”

To contend for the award, the choir had to win a First Prize in either one of the two categories: Chamber Choir or Mixed Choir. They bagged the Third Prize in the former category. DLSU Chorale conducted by Rodolfo “Boy” Delarmente, got the Second Prize. The First went to the choir from Wales.

The UST Singers bagged the First Prize in the Youth Category, but such a win was not a passport to enter the competition for the global award, as the category was just an added attraction.

Undaunted, the choir joined the Mixed Choir Category, and made a resolve to win the top prize. They won.

Next, they had to compete against the winner of the other category, the feared choir from Wales. The rest was history.

Asked how he became a choral conductor, Calalang said it was all by accident.

He was a late bloomer. He enroled at the UST Conservatory of Music, in Piano, and earned his diploma. He was intending to have Voice as his double major, but did not finish it. He assisted several choirs, sang tenor for George Hernandez’s UP Saringhimig which did a lot of concert tour abroad.

Soon he found himself organizing the UST Singers. Since then, choral conducting has become his burning passion.

He felt the Almighty had wanted him to be so, to touch the hearts of his listeners, and provide a balm to the tired spirit through the moving power of music.