St. Paul College centennial concert

To celebrate the 100th anniversary of the St. Paul de Chartres sisters in the Philippines, the St. Paul College Foundation held last Sunday a centennial concert at the James Reuter Theater in St. Paul’s College, QC.

The interesting and unusual event featured 19-year-old violinist Stephen Y.S. Shey who played Filipino classics, and pianist Jonathan Arevalo Coo who interpreted four pieces by National Artist Lucrecia Kasilag.

It seemed rather odd that Shey, an American of Chinese descent, should be promoting and popularizing Filipino compositions in the US, but in brief remarks, he confessed he became enarmored of Filipino works when he first heard Hating Gabi by National Artist Antonio Molina. Shey’s engaging personality shone through in his mischievously witty sallies which underscored his partiality for our compositions. Whenever he was asked, "What time is it?", he would invariably reply, "Hating gabi."

Shey trained at the New England Conservatory Preparatory School, among other institutions, and St. Paul’s College alumna Remy Grefalda (of the original PETA) – she introduced Shey to the audience – had formed a theater group in Washington, DC, to which she invited Stephen to join as a resident artist in 1994. He has been performing for it ever since, as also for various American universities, and appearing in TV specials.

He expressly came to Manila for the centennial concert.

Before embarking on the Filipino works, arrangements of which were by Redentor Romero, Shey rendered the allegro movement of Beethoven’s Sonata in F Major and Kreisler’s Praeludium and allegro in clear, precise tones which demonstrated a sure technique drawn from solid basic training.

A. Molina’s Hating Gabi, H. Rubio’s Salamism, Cavatina by N. Abelardo (after whom the CCP main theater is named), S. Suarez’s Katakataka, P. Gregorio’s Sarung Banggi, N. Velez’s Sa Kabukiran and Matud Nila (authorship of this is being contested) proved that lyricism is a common gift of the classic Filipino composers, as are gentleness, romanticism and passion which Shey eloquently conveyed with deep feeling and sensitivity, the exquisite melodies inherent in the compositions surfacing, particularly in Hating Gabi and Cavatina. Bayan Ko by C. de Guzman (from the zarzuela Walang Sugat), our stirring second national anthem, evoked strong feelings of patriotism and love for a now beleaguered, perturbed country. It drew lusty applause to which Shey responded with a delightful, sparkling Chinese Spring Song.

Assisting artist Coo shared the limelight with the violinist as co-equal throughout. Their contrapuntal playing, especially in Hating Gabi, was singularly beautiful.

Coo opened the program with Widmung (Dedication) by Schumann-Liszt, starting quietly, later turning full attention to the lush, tempestuous passages, then returning to a tranquil mood injected by the strains of the Ave Maria.

Pianist Coo was introduced by his former mentor, Paulinian Carmencita Guanzon Arambulo, who said Coo won his first scholarship abroad from among 200 who had auditioned. Later, he obtained an MA degree in Performance and Literature at the Eastman School of Music. Before then, he garnered the grand prize in the first Rosario Picazo Piano competition, and majored in violin at the Philippine HS for the Arts under Rizalina Buenaventura.

The pianist interpreted Kasilag’s April Morning which differed, in its pronounced lyrical quality, from Burlesque, Rondeau, this with its Oriental influence, and the more technically difficult Elegy on Mt. Pinatubo with its bass chords, runs and glissandi.

The centennial program began with a warm welcome from Maria Teresa Gutierrez, president of the St. Paul’s Alumni Association which gave certificates of recognition to Sisters Clotilde Andes of the Cross, Caritas of St. Paul Sevilla and Aloysius Paclis of the Sacred Heart – dedicated teachers of H.S. Class 1954 which was marking its golden jubilee.

Fr. James Reuter, after whom the theater is named, and Mrs. Carmen D. Padilla, former chairman of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) and currently president of the St. Scholastica’s Music Alumni Association, headed the guests.

Letters of response

Dear Ms. Orosa:

Thank you for your very kind words about the ‘RCBC Foundation’ in your Wednesday column.

I believe what you were really referring to is the AY Foundation which gives out the annual Mother Teresa Award and sponsors the National Discipline Awards which you wrote about.

In any case, on behalf of Ambassador Alfonso T. Yuchengco and the Yuchengco Group of Companies, for whom the AYF acts as their social development arm, let me convey our thanks to you for your continued support to the various activities of the AY Foundation and the YGC.

Virgilio Q. Pantaleon

Corporate Communications

Counsellor, Yuchengco Group of Companies

The letter below comes from Kristina T. Subido, daughter of Abelardo Subido and Trinidad Tarrosa who are generally regarded the Robert Browning and Elizabeth Barrett of Philippine literature, and whose two books of poetry were recently printed by Milestone Publications. The letter is in response to what I had written about the books.

Dear Ms. Orosa:

Thank you so much for the lengthy feature in your column. It was so much more than I had hoped for!

You would be pleased to know how very widely read you are. Last Wednesday, I got so many phone calls and messages alerting me to your STAR space.

I want to tell you in advance about our projects this year, Santa Ana in our Minds by yours truly, a historical/geographical look at an old Manila town, and Kulturang Pinoy – Anuvbayun?! By Edilberto N. Alegre, an expert but easy-to-read introduction to what makes us the way we are – in our own language.