DFA Pays Tribute to 2330

Hosts Secretary for Foreign Affairs Enrique A. Manalo and Madame Pamela Louise H. Manalo among the audience during the piano concert. (Photo Credit: Sinematika)

MANILA 18 December 2024 – Secretary for Foreign Affairs Enrique A. Manalo and Madame Pamela Louise hosted “Moving and Melodies: DFA’s Tribute to 2330,” at the Bulwagang Apolinario Mabini (BAM) on 04 December 2024, through the Department of Foreign Affairs - Office of Cultural Diplomacy. One of the last events to take place at the main building, the concert paid tribute to DFA’s 2330 Roxas Boulevard before its transfer to its temporary home at the Double Dragon Tower in Pasay City.

The concert proudly featured internationally-renowned pianist Maestro Raul Sunico; and its very own DFA Office of American Affairs Director, pianist, and choir director, Stephanie Alexis Cruz, as well as the Department’s resident choir, the DFA Chorale. 

The program’s repertoire included classical pieces by Frédéric Chopin, Claude Debussy, George Gershwin Franz Lizst, and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, to Original Pilipino Music (OPM), “Bato sa Buhangin”, “Saranggola ni Pepe” and “Hanggang sa Dulo ng Walang Hanggan”, and a selection of Christmas pieces such as “Nació, Nació, Pastores”, Handel’s “Messiah” and excerpts from the Nutcracker Ballet.

The event showcased a DFA milestone video as well as an exhibit featuring the physical headquarters of the DFA through the years, from Arlegui, to Padre Faura, to the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC), before moving to 2330 Roxas Boulevard.

Members of the Diplomatic Corps, retired DFA Ambassadors and personnel, DFA officers and staff, and guests from both private and public cultural institutions attended the event. 

The livestream of the concert may be viewed via this link: https://web.facebook.com/share/v/14X6YBMNUS/. END

Top-left: Internationally-renowned Pianist Maestro Raul M. Sunico. Top-right: OAA Director, Director of the Chorale, and Pianist Ms. Stephanie Alexis A. Cruz. Bottom-left: Maestro Sunico and Ms. Cruz play a “four-hands” piece together. (Photo credits: DFA-OPD Royce Vann Paul Pantua) Bottom-right: The DFA Chorale serenades the audience accompanied by Maestro Sunico and Directed by Ms. Cruz. (Photo Credit: Sinematika)

Members of the DFA Chorale pose with the Secretary for Foreign Affairs Enrique A. Manalo and Madame Pamela Louse H. Manalo (middle). (Photo Credit: Sinematika)

Assistant Secretary Celia Anna M. Feria acknowledges the presence of the DFA retirees among the audience for their legacy and contributions to the service throughout the years. (Photo credits: DFA-OPD Royce Vann Paul Pantua)

Front row, from the left: Ms. Stephanie Alexis A. Cruz, Maestro Raul M. Sunico, SFA Enrique A. Manalo, Madame Pamela Louise H. Manalo, and Assistant Secretary Celia Anna M. Feria, with the audience. (Photo credits: Sinematika)