Filipina Founder and Director of Lisbon Chamber Choir Retires After 40 Years

Ambassador to Portugal Celia Anna M. Feria (second from right), Deputy Chief of Mission Evelyn D. Austria-Garcia (first from left), visiting concert pianist Dr. Raul M. Sunico (second from left), and Consul General Gines Jaime Ricardo D. Gallaga (first from right) pose with Professor Teresita Marques (center) Founder and conductress of Coro de Camara de Lisboa (Lisbon Chamber Choir) (Lisbon PE photo)

LISBON 06 July 2018 - The Lisbon Chamber Choir held its commemorative concert at the Igreja de São António de Campolide on 23 June 2018 to pay tribute to Professor Teresita Marques (nee Teresita Gutierrez), marking her retirement after 40 years as Founder and Choir Director of the Choir. 

Professor Marques is a Filipina and a pioneer of the Filipino Community in Portugal. A graduate of then Conservatory of Music of the University of the Philippines Diliman, Professor Marques was also a member of the famous and world acclaimed UP Madrigal Singers. She also taught as a professor at the Escola de Música do Conservatório Nacional, and founded the Lisbon Chamber Choir in 1978.

Ambassador to Portugal Celia Anna M. Feria, along with Embassy personnel and members of the Filipino Community, attended the concert where the choir sang two Filipino folk songs Katakataka and Rosas Pandan.

The Lisbon Chamber Choir has been a regular feature in cultural events and diplomatic receptions hosted by the Philippine Embassy in Lisbon.

In 2016, the Philippine Embassy in Lisbon produced a commemorative music CD, featuring the Lisbon Chamber Choir performing select Filipino and Portuguese folk songs to celebrate 70 years of Philippine-Portugal diplomatic relations.

For her achievements and contribution to the Filipino Community in Portugal, Professor Marques has been nominated  by the Association of Filipinos in Portugal for the 2018 Presidential Awards for Filipino Individuals and Organizations Overseas, under the “Pamana ng Pilipino” category. END

Professor Teresita Marques conducts the Coro de Camara de Lisboa during the

40th anniversary concert of the Lisbon Chamber Choir (Lisbon PE photo)

For more information, visit www.lisbonpe.dfa.gov.ph.