Back in Manila

Ilang beses na kitang nilayasan, iniwanan at ibang pinuntahan.
Ikaw lamang ang aking laging binabalikan... Manila! – The Hotdogs

We’ve all come back to Manila. Myself and the UP MedChoir, that is. Last time I saw them was during their nakakabiting five-song-repertoire’d concert at Frankfurt (see April 2005 Archives). Last Sunday they celebrated their homecoming with a concert at the PhilAm Auditorium in where else but… Manila (Citeee!... ngek hindi naman nilalagyan na ng word na “City” ang “Manila” eh, parang New York, Rome, at Paris).

Anyway I went there with Nats to give my support to TJ and ahem, ahem, (drumroll) Hanna. Brought my sister Dianne along with me and my niece Nene. TJ sings Bass I pala, akala ko Bass II like his kuya. Si Hanna naman Soprano I, akala ko alto like me. Dapat pala magtenor na si Aaron at si Ambet para SATTBB na kami at pwede na kaming kumanta sa mga kasal at family reunion ng mga Orillaza! Si Ging: band manager. Ehehehe… Peace, Ging! Soprano II ka! ;) Dapat ang maging girlfriend ni Aaron alto din para SSAATTBB na kami! O di ba ang taray nun?!

Nakakatuwa overall ang concert kasi may personal touch. Case in point: Alex’s intro spiel to each of the songs. Instead of the usual “this song was written in 1835 by an Austrian composer chuchuwa” or something like that, the intros were more personal and based on the choir's stories while in Europe, for example: “we taught a masters class to a choir in a university in Spain and this is the song we taught them which we also sang together with them, etc.” (incidentally, the song was “Kalesa”) and “this song brought tears to the eyes of our friend when we sang to her on our last day at the hostel” (“Someone Like You”.). Kakatouch di ba? May-I-reminisce tuloy about my own trip, lalo na when they talked about hostels in Spain.

So here are the pics... one last thing: bongga ang gowns ng girls ha! Not your usual baro’t saya… may Grecian feel ang mga gowns na ito. In fairness, perfectly complemented naman ng swanking-crisp na Pinoy barong… syempre mga Pinoy sila na galing Europe, eh! Taray!