PH Ambassador Quintana Hosts Gala Musical Tribute to PH Gold Collaboration at the Louvre Abu Dhabi

ABU DHABI, 22 December 2022 — Philippine Ambassador to the UAE Hjayceelyn M. Quintana hosted a gala musical paying tribute to the Philippines-UAE cultural collaboration that showcased Philippine gold artifacts at the Louvre Abu Dhabi on 08 December 2022.

The gala distilled into an hour-long program the vision shared by Ambassador Quintana with the Ayala Museum, the Louvre Abu Dhabi, the National Commission on Culture and the Arts (NCCA) and the UAE Ministry of Culture and the Youth, to showcase the apex of pre-colonial Philippine gold culture at Abu Dhabi's universal museum. Guests from the host government, and from the diplomatic and business community were in attendance.

The musical tribute featured Dr. Greg Zuniega on piano, Mr. Kenedy Rocas on flute, the Abu Dhabi Concert Chorale, the Dubai Vocal Ensemble, performing Filipino music including "Daluyong ng Diwa (Tides of the Soul)" which was commissioned for the Philippine Gala show at the World Expo Dubai. Capping off the gala was a fashion parade of models in gold haute couture designed by renowned Dubai-based Filipino designer Furne One, a modern re-imagining of what Magellan's chronicler Pigafetta saw upon arriving in the Philippines, a people clad in gold.

In her message, Amb. Quintana said, "Indeed, the gold we celebrate today is more than just the sophisticated remnants of a glorious past. It is the gold that we find in our everyday interactions, and this dialogue enabled our two countries to come together to bring the two Philippine gold artifacts from the Ayala Museum to the Louvre Abu Dhabi, thus connecting us to a deeper discourse that transcends geographical constructs. When the Spanish conquistadores came to our shores in 1521, they found that even the children could accurately determine the purity of gold alloys, calling a 24-karat gold "dalisay", a Tagalog word that means "pure". This re-discovery of our heritage and culture arising from a common vision, emanating from pure and sincere intention, is the inspiration behind the success of this Philippines-UAE collaboration." END

For more information, visit https://www.abudhabipe.dfa.gov.ph, https://www.facebook.com/PHinUAE/, https://twitter.com/PHinUAE or https://www.instagram.com/phinuae/.