Filipino Chorale Wins First Prize in Spanish Choir Competition
The Ligao National High School Voice Chorale in their unique costumes, rendering one of their award-winning performances during the event. (habaneras.org photo)
MADRID 09 August 2019 — The Philippine Embassy in Spain reported that Albay’s pride Ligao National High School (LNHS) Voice Chorale belted winning tunes following two top finishes in the 65th edition of the Torrevieja International Habaneras and Polyphony Competition in Eras de la Sal, Torrevieja on 27 July 2019.
The choir, composed of 25 young Filipinos aged 18 to 22, bagged the top prize in two catergoires- the Habaneras Ricardo Lafuente and the Polyphony Juan Aparicio. The Habaneras category follows a 2/4 rhythm time signature, while the Polyphony category showcases pieces of folkloric character or from the choir´s region or country of origin.
The choir, led by its director Celger Villa Campa Venzon, played “By Your Side” with lyrics by Matias Antón and music by Javier Busto, and “Where Are The Seagulls?” by choir master Ricardo Lafuente, during which their performance was described by a Spanish online news review as “employing great complexity.”
In the Polyphony category, the Filipino choir sang “Laudate Dominum”, a work of the Lithuanian composer, Giedrius Svilanis, and “Banwar Iti Cordillera” by Normita Big-Rio Pablico.
Colombia’s Coro de Cámara “Cecilia Espinosa and Ukraine’s Kiev Youth Chamber Choir Sophia won the second and third prizes, respectively. National Prize was given to the Spanish Choir Coro de Jóvenes de Madrid.
Last year’s First Prize winner, the University of the Philippines Singing Ambassadors, also performed during this year´s festival edition. END
Group presentation of all the choral participants in the Torrevieja Habaneras and Polyphony competition. (habaneras.org photo)
For more information, visit https://www.madripe.dfa.gov.ph, https://www.philembassymadrid.com or https://www.facebook.com/PHinSpain/.