"Unless we have somebody whose impact on international culture was as great as that of Frank Sinatra or the Beatles I do not think it right for us to choose somebody as the greatest Filipino voice of the century. But if we must, I have no objection to choosing Miss Sylvia la Torre, who remains an excellent example of a great singer and an epitome of the Filipino womanhood, as suggested by Mr. Eduardo H. de la Cruz in his letter. I just find it a pity that she was not able to fully exploit her beautiful lyric soprano on the opera stage.
"The question I wish to address though is what the criteria should be for making this kind of list. Do we choose the best voices and song interpreters? That would be the likes of Celeste Legaspi and Martin Nievera. Do we choose those artists who may not possess exceptional voices but whose work had tremendous impact on Filipino culture like Yoyoy Villame and Florante? Or do we choose the singing idols? These are those whose songs became huge hits because of a distinctive, very appealing style despite their obvious vocal limitations like Carmen Rosales and Victor Wood.
"And what do we do about the clones? These are those Filipino versions of foreign singers like Diomedes Maturan (Perry Como) and Eddie Mesa (Elvis Presley). Do we include them too? If Perry Como sounded great enough to be proclaimed by his fans as the greatest voice of the century, what does that make Maturan? Also a great voice, I suppose. And what about those singers who made their mark abroad like Evelyn Mandac and Jocelyn Enriquez?"
I do not have the answers to your questions, Mr. Gershwin, and I do not really see the need for any. I do not see this "great voices of the century list" as a competition, subject to certain rules. Make your own list. Make your own rules. It is fun but I also see this as our contribution to posterity, a way of perpetuating the memory of famous Filipino artists. You must admit that we are woefully short on information on these great people and anything that leads to questions, research or just another list is most welcome. A friend in the music business told me that Mr. De la Cruz’ list was an eye-opener about some singers he had never heard about and he is now very curious about them. That I believe is what is most important and not whether Mike Hanopol is on the same level as Basil Valdez as a singer.
Here now are "Mr. Gershwin’s" choices: Maria Carpena, Atang de la Rama, Galia Arellano, Dalisay Aldaba, Jovita Fuentes, Katy de la Cruz, Elsa Oria, Carmen Rosales, Ruben Tagalog, Sylvia la Torre, Bobby Gonzales, Carmen Perina, Mercedes Matias-Santiago, Conchita Gaston, Don David, Letty Liboon, Rene Antonio, Conching Rosal, Lilian Velez, Irma Potenciano.
Pilita Corrales, Cely Bautista, Cenon Lagman, Rita Rivera, Fred Panopio, Dulce Din, Cely Carillo, Larry Miranda, Lilia Reyes, Pepe Pimentel, Diomedes Maturan, Rita Rivera, Ric Manrique, Jr., Eddie Mesa, Baby de Guzman, Bert Nievera, Aurelio Estanislao, Nora Aunor, Eddie Peregrina, Nomer Son.
Jose Mari Chan, Victor Wood, Lirio Vital, Jun Polistico, Mike Hanopol, Boy Camara, Romeo Miranda, Julius Obregon, Louie Reyes, Eugene Villaluz, Yoyoy Villame, Celeste Legaspi, Danny Javier, Leo Valdez, Florante, Imelda Papin, Rico Puno, Gary Bautista, Claire dela Fuente, Didith Reyes.
Basil Valdez, Kuh Ledesma, Otoniel Gonzaga, Rey Valera, Gamaliel Viray, Eva Eugenio, Freddie Aguilar, Lolita Carbon, Hajji Alejandro, Jacqui Magno, Anthony Castelo, Dulce, Marco Sison, Evelyn Mandac, Norlyn Cabahug, Vernie Varga, Gary Granada, Zsa Zsa Padilla, Sharon Cuneta, Gary Valenciano.
Martin Nievera, Lea Salonga, Nonoy Zuniga, Regine Velasquez, Janno Gibbs, Grace Nono, Rachelle Herodias, Ariel Rivera, Bayang Barrios, Jett Pangan, Joey Generoso, Basti Artadi, Rachel Alejandro, Rannie Raymundo, Vina Morales, Ella May Saison, Wency Cornejo, Donna Cruz, Lani Misalucha and Jaya.
Still on the list: Entertainment writer and movie reviewer Mario Bautista took time to inform me that he heartily agrees with the list sent in by Mr. De la Cruz and his choice of Sylvia la Torre. Save for one thing. Marilen Martinez, one of his favorite singers is not in the list. Sorry, she is not in Mr. Gershwin’s list either.