Madrigal Singers Sing for Peace at UN

The Philippine Madrigal Singers acknowledge the standing ovation in their honor

18 October 2017 NEW YORK – World-renowned Philippine Madrigal Singers, one of the most awarded choral groups in the world, brought their long-standing advocacy for global peace through song to no less than the United Nations on October 10.

In his report to the Department of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Teodoro L. Locsin, Jr., Permanent Representative to the United Nations said that an audience of over 300, including ambassadors and diplomats, UN officials and staff, and members of the Filipino community, enjoyed the one-hour concert.

“Our joys and pains as Filipinos, we express through song,” the Ambassador remarked, calling the “Madz,” as the group is known in the international choral community, “one of our country’s most important ambassadors of goodwill.”

The Madz entertained the diverse audience for an hour with about a dozen songs, ranging from works by Filipino composers Ryan Cayabyab and Willy Cruz, to popular French, Spanish, Chinese and even Broadway numbers that members of the audience connected with.

The group was founded in 1963 at the University of the Philippines by the late National Artist for Music Andrea Veneracion. In 2009, for their artistry and advocacy, the Madz were designated as UNESCO Artists for Peace, for “putting fame and influence at the service of UNESCO’s ideals and efforts to promote cultural diversity, intercultural dialogue and a Culture of Peace.”

The Madz formally established their Music School this year, providing scholarships to train teachers, conductors and singers in choral singing.

Ambassador Locsin encouraged the audience to visit the group’s websites to learn more about their advocacies, which “include the children of Marawi City in Mindanao, and the children of our brave soldiers who died fighting terrorism, so that freedom, democracy and peace will prevail in the Philippines.”

He also recalled that the Madz and their alumni have conducted outreach development projects throughout the Philippines and in neighboring ASEAN countries through the Andrea Veneracion Sing Philippines Foundation, traveling to the grassroots to conduct workshops and develop the signing and performance skills of many disadvantaged youths.

The UN concert was the last performance of the group in their two-month American tour, which began in the West Coast in August. From New York, they proceed to Tolosa, Spain, where they will compete in the European Grand Prix of Choral Singing on November 01. The Madz are the first choir to have twice won the top prize in this competition, in 1997 and 2007. END

For more information, visit www.newyorkpm.dfa.gov.ph / www.un.int/philippines.