UP Concert Chorus wins big at Prague music festival

The University of the Philippines Concert Chorus (UPCC) bagged four awards in their debut at the Musica Orbis Prague Festival 2024 in Prague, Czech Republic from June 27 to July 1. 

Also known as Korus, UPCC is the first Filipino group to enter the festival, which is now in its fifth edition. This year’s festival saw choral groups from 16 countries in Asia, Africa, Europe, and North America.

UPCC won the gold prize and was the overall winner in the Unrestricted Category (Mixed Adult Choir) for their performances of “Laudate Dominum (Psalm 117)” by Fidel Calalang Jr., “Bagong Umaga” by Mike Villegas and Bayang Barrios and arranged by Joel Cruz, and “Wade in the Water” arranged by Moses Hogan.

They also earned gold for their Folklore Category (Mixed Adult Choir) repertoire that included “Ilay Gandangan (Worship of the Sun)” arranged by Rodolfo Boy Delarmente, “Malinac Lay Labi (Peaceful Night)” arranged by Joy Nilo, “Tuksuhan” (Teasing) arranged by National Artist for Music Dr. Ramon P. Santos, and “Mga Wata Sa Ripag (Children of Ripag)” by Arwin Tan.

Known for their signature “choreocapella” or choreographed a capella, UPCC was also awarded the special prize Best Stage Performance.

Musica Orbis Prague Festival founder John Tregellas commended the group’s musical standard and vocal quality.

“The whole stage presence is amazing. They can clearly do a serious piece and bring it off perfectly. But they can also do a show tune with choreography, as if you were in the theater,” he said.

“The dance, the movement is an enhancement of the music itself–the song,” said Professor Janet “Jai” Sabas-Aracama, UPCC’s conductor and artistic director. 

“Iba 'yung art form ng feeling the stage, and then singing well at the same time,” she said of how combining song and dance is a test of musicality.

Musica Orbis Prague Festival Director Lucie Freiberg, who is also a conductor herself, emphasized that promoting a friendly atmosphere was more important than the competition results. The festival also featured workshops and masterclasses, participation at the Mass, and concerts. 'That’s what Musica Orbis is about.' Photo by Jay-vee Marasigan Pangan

First-timers with so many firsts

Musica Orbis was the sixth stop in the UPCC’s MusiKADASIG 25th International Goodwill Cultural Concert Tour. They opened it with performances for the back-to-back celebrations of the 126th Philippine Independence Day and the 125th anniversary of the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague, Netherlands at the invitation of Philippine Ambassador to the Netherlands Eduardo Malaya. They also toured Cologne, Hamburg, and Berlin in Germany, and then Brno in Czechia.

“First time nila mag-travel abroad. Yung iba nga, first time din na mag-travel sa airplane. Tapos ito pa, to [join in] a first festival and competition. But the truth is they are so hardworking,” Prof. Sabas-Aracama said.

“Sabi ko sa kanila, ‘Kung magkamali man kayo, hindi ko kayo ibe-blame.’ Medyo naging panatag sila. Tsaka sabi ko, ‘I have faith in you, I have trust in you. Pero kailangan niyo ring i-trust ang sarili niyo.’ So, mayroon ding character building yun. 'Yung ganoong experience, I think, that was really the height of experience for everybody here.”

(So, it’s their first time to travel abroad. For others, it’s their first time to travel by airplane. And then, it’s also their first time to join in a music festival and competition. I told them, ‘If ever you make a mistake, I won’t blame you.’ That helped them. I told them, ‘I have faith [and] trust in you, but you must trust yourselves.’ That’s character-building. That experience was the height of experience for everybody here.)

From isolation to harmony

Before the competition, Prof. Sabas-Aracama shared that she trained many current members via Zoom for nearly three years during the COVID-19 pandemic. This meant that each student learned pieces and musical arrangements on their own and only heard harmonies once vocal recordings were mixed and edited.

On their first face-to-face practice session, Prof. Sabas-Aracama encouraged them to hear the “true sound of [acoustic] choral music,” and that they “have to see the world, [because] the fulfillment of choral music [is really different].” 

UPCC assistant conductor and president Calvin Capacete also reflected on how their training became an avenue for musical collaborations, which resulted in original musical pieces and digital albums.

“Yung iba, nahasa na mag-create ng inputs and creative outputs sa mga videos, [kung] paano ishu-shoot ito sa bahay lang, ‘di ba? [Ginamit namin] kung ano yung resources na mayroon kami–talagang for the recording of video. I think that’s the advantage of it,” he said.

(Other members learned to create inputs and produce creative outputs for videos, including how to film at their homes using available resources.)

Cassandra Erica Imperial, the group’s tour manager, hopes their music will inspire Filipinos at home and abroad.

“And even the locals [who were the inspiration of] Filipino culture [that we are bringing]. Who would have thought that from our Zoom [experience], we’re now able to bring it to five countries during this tour,” she added. 

UPCC continues their tour in Cascine, Italy, and then Zurich, Switzerland, before finishing in Gambach, Germany. —KBK, GMA Integrated News