Dulce: Timeless, indeed!

MANILA, Philippines – It’s hard for singers to make a splash in the local music industry; harder still to stay relevant. Often, it’s not that you’re not good, only there are others like yourself — or better. You have to find your niché and hone a unique voice to stand out and eventually become a timeless act.

Dulce was iconic the moment she broke into the scene four decades back. Her big, booming voice and range that plunges the depth and soars the height was unheard of then. Her recent two-night series at the Music Museum titled Dulce... The Timeless Diva proves she’s still got the pipes that can shake walls and move mountains.

The diva opened the night with I Am Changing from the musical Dream Girls. While others would reserve this song for the finale because it’s got all the elements to court a standing ovation, for Dulce, it was just a warm-up. Without missing a beat, she segued to Adele’s Skyfall, Miley Cyrus’ The Climb and Beyoncé’s Listen (though on the second night Dulce belted Alone instead of Skyfall), fairly new songs that showed that the diva could do contemporary music with aplomb if she so wishes.

Her first guest performer on both nights was her son, singer David Ezra, who was a revelation that night. They did a show-stopping mash-up of Kahit Na and Ikaw Ang Lahat Sa Akin that brought the house down and then later on, The Prayer. Proving that he isn’t riding on his mother’s tailcoats, David did two solo spots — Nessun Dorma and Broken Vow that got people raving. He is a chip off the old block and surely, David’s time to shine will come soon.

Other covers Dulce did at the concert were The Way He Makes Me Feel, All By Myself, And I Am Telling You, Iisa Pa Lamang and Basang Basa Sa Ulan. It was the medleys, though, that put her vocal power to the test and Dulce rose above the challenge with flying colors. Of particular note was the Whitney Houston medley done midway that sent many people on their feet; and the sewn-up bits of the OPM classics Sinong Baliw and Bulag, Pipi at Bingi.

Many artists would craft their repertoire with highs and lows so they could rest and recover. Not Dulce. All her songs were earth-shattering, so to speak, yet she made it look so easy, as natural as expression. She had total command of her voice and knew how to use it, whether sparingly here or superbly there, to create a picture of emotions riding on words and melodies. The concert proved that she is, indeed, a class act and no one comes close to her to this day.

The audience, meanwhile, couldn’t get enough of Dulce. The crowd was not contented with only one song for the encore; they clamored for more from the diva.

Dulce’s other guest performers in her series were Regine Velasquez-Alcasid (first night) who sang her version of The Love Story and Ayen Munji-Laurel (second night) who gave a heartfelt rendition of What I Did For Love.

Dulce… The Timeless Diva was one of the best local concerts the country had this year. It deserves to be seen and heard all over the country and abroad.