31 Years of Christmas Concert at the Pen

MANILA, Philippines - For most Filipinos, Christmas last year was played out against the backdrop of the images and stories of destruction brought upon them by Super Typhoon Yolanda/Haiyan. This year, The Peninsula Manila — with its partners Stores Specialists Inc., Citibank and Philippine Tatler in cooperation of the Cultural Center of the Philippines  — is ringing in a holiday season filled with hope with “Celebrations: 31 Years of Christmas Concert at the Pen.”

This event will be held today, Dec. 13, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. with The Peninsula Manila ensuring that part of the concert proceeds will benefit The Peninsula Hotels Hope for the Philippines fund.

Last Sept. 10, The Peninsula Manila broke ground to mark the start of the construction of the future “Hope for the Philippines” The Peninsula – Gawad Kalinga Village in Maribi, Tanauan, Leyte, Philippines. The village will house 100 families from  the coastal town of San Roque who were displaced when Super Typhoon Yolanda/Haiyan barreled into the coastal provinces of Leyte and Samar in the Eastern Visayas region of the Philippines. The construction will be funded using the $900,000 raised from The Peninsula Hotels’ campaign.

 “We are committed to the long-term recovery of the communities devastated by Yolanda/Haiyan,” says The Peninsula Manila general manager Sonja Vodusek. “A year after the typhoon hit our shores, we have started developing our build site, but we intend to go beyond just building homes — we want to give the people of our chosen community a better future. We will assist in the schooling of the community’s children as well as share the collective knowledge of our engineering, finance, food and beverage and housekeeping teams in skills training and livelihood seminars. We will also establish cooperatives and other long-term income-generating projects. But sustaining these efforts requires additional funding.”

Concertgoers at this year’s concert are asked to contribute a P1,500 consumable fee (exclusive of taxes and with selections from a special merienda menu), with 25 percent of the proceeds going to the “Hope for the Philippines” fund.

The Peninsula Manila and its principal sponsors — Stores Specialists Inc., Citibank and Philippine Tatler together with the cooperation of the Cultural Center of the Philippines — have assembled a stellar cast and put together a memorable musical repertoire that will ring in the common love of good.

Maestro Ruggero Barbieri will team up once again with the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra (PPO). Also joining them on stage is Asia’s Nightingale Lani Misalucha, mezzo soprano Camile Lopez-Molina, soprano Ena Maria Aldecoa and a 50-voice choir composed of the internationally-renowned Philippine Madrigal Singers and the University of Santo Tomas Singers. Freddie Santos is the concert’s director.

The concert repertoire includes musical classics like Gounod’s Jewel Song from Faust, Dvorak’s Slavonic Dance and Verdi’s Va Pensiero from Nabucco to popular, all-time Christmas hits such as Joy to the World and Ryan Cayabyab’s Isang Taong Lumipas guarantee a truly enjoyable musical experience. 

For information, call 887-2888, extension 6671 or 6694.