TAMING OR SAVING THE FILIPINO WOMEN?
By Wilhelmina S. Orozco
A great number of women, young and middle-aged alike have caught on the sex-bomb costume of short shorts. They parade themselves without qualms or guilt about arousing the libido of mostly the men who eye them with lascivious eyes and salivating mouths.
What could be the reason for this fashion? It is said that some women have to exert extra effort to attract men, to bait a partner for life, a rich companion probably who would be able to foot all the bills to concerts, musicals, theatres, and the movies. But if these women are really bent on attracting suitors why do they go the way of attracting gazers into their legs, instead of their minds? Why do some go to great lengths of wearing shorts and then when inside the jeepneys cover their legs with their books and bags? In other words, they are not really sold to the idea of displaying their legs.
Now why has this attire been upfront for many months now? What could be the reason why Filipino women are not shy at all in wearing them even when the weather is nippy and the logical act to do is to cover the legs? They don’t even feel timid at all in inserting themselves between passengers inside public jeepneys amid students whose concentration is broken by this appearance.
The media has been the culprit in this phenomenon – especially lunchtime TV shows which have chorus girls in short shorts gyrating and imitating sexual acts by moving up and down and when captured on tv camera even just by half their bodies, appear already as if the “dance” were a form of sexual act to arouse the sexual urges of the viewers.
Then the entertainment reporters in the evening news are also dressed in very revealing clothes thereby making parading their bodies a “normal” preoccupation, despite the airing of these stations of their mission: that of being “kapuso,” “kapamilya,” or “kapatid.
Another culprit is Demi Moore’s movie, Indecent Proposal which where she walked around in the streets in very short shorts. That movie which rationalized materialistic love when it was shown here raised many imitators. Many women aped Demi's attire, as if to look like her was to acquire her popularity and possibly an opportunity to be a millionaire (Remember how she did an indecent act with Robert Redford to win 1 million dollars?)
Worse yet are the print, comics and TV shows, which present costumes of those women in games. No matter if they are just animation illustrations, they feature sexually arousing curvaceous bodies – especially the bosomy ones. Then the plots revolving around the women’s being equal partners in investigative situations make the characters palatable for imitation by the female viewers.
But of course, the possibility exists that intelligence officers, to spite feminists, employ assets who will display themselves inside jeepneys, sidewalks and street corners where the latter would pass. It is a way of disorienting these critical feminists who to their mind probably are influential in the political affairs of the State.
Are clothes now so expensive that these sex-bomb attired women are into wearing them? Not really. In fact, a pair of corto shorts is only P35 or 3 for P100. So why do these women wear them.
Then it is bruited about that in Ateneo de Manila University, the guards have been at loggerheads with recalcitrant female students who assert their irrational “freedom” to do as they please, to wear anything as they like. When I visited the Ateneo Library recently I read there about a dress code and it included women wearing clothes that should cover their thighs. Then suddenly, I saw a female student climb down the stairs from the second floor wearing short shorts. I asked the counter librarian why that girl had been allowed inside, and I was told that because of the constant bickering on this matter,the dress code, the administration just gave up on imposing it.
I was appalled to find out that the Jesuit priests had bent their rules to these students. Even if the students should come from wealthy families, they should be made to understand that the university has a high goal for everyone, that of equalizing opportunities for educational attainment.
Another time, I went to the Holy Redeemer Church, and I met a girl in shorts also going inside. I accosted and asked her: “Are you going to worship in that dress? Are you not ashamed?” She was nearly teary-eyed about my question and could not answer back. Then she left, not going inside the church anymore. I could not fathom why she had to weep over such an innocent question when she was brazen enough to display her legs.
Here is where I think that the Church and the Department of Education (DEP-ED) must impose on these female students. Our country has both rural and urban students, with the former bred in an atmosphere of conservatism and the latter in extreme liberal tradition. When the two meet in school, the former would have greater tendency to kowtow or to accept reluctantly what the latter does, and would not want to “rock the boat” so to speak.
Now, how can students learn under an atmosphere where there is a clash of values? I pity the students from the rural areas who could find it difficult concentrating on their studies because of this. Hence it becomes incumbent upon Church and government officials to “tame” or discipline these female students into treating the school as a place for learning and not for displaying their legs and thighs. Attendance at school or university should be treated as an elegant undertaking, requiring modest and respectable clothes that would differentiate a sex worker from a student.
The Church and Dep-Ed should focus its attention on this matter because by having a dress code for the girls, they would show that the main reason for going to the university is to learn, acquire knowledge, debate with other students on issues that matter, challenge theories by past philosophers and writers through their mentors and classmates, and then come up with their own.
Precisely, education is meant to make students original thinkers, doers and actors, instead of blind copycats of what is going on around them. In the case of female students, education is meant to make them understand the many obstacles facing them especially where equality is not yet a permanent reality in our society, and so danger lurks where they could lose out in terms of opportunities.
Thus the university should acquire a new image from hereon – as a space for the minds of female students to expand, to raise their standards for existence, instead of being "gaya-ga" of what they see on TV and other media. The Church should also have watchers of those entering places of worship in order to protect other worshippers who would could feel uneasily and unable to concentrate on their spiritual practices due to the presence of those who flaunt their legs and thighs.
Conservatism?
Is it a case of conservatism to insist on a dress code? No, it is not. Students should learn how to regard the university as a place for learning, where the development of the mind, emotions, physical bodies and spirit are paramount. It is not a time for challenging the State or other institutions on physicalities but rather on the rationale for their existence, why social issues abound, how politics can be directed to serve the people's needs, and why culture is an equally important study, among other things.
I mentioned the university’s goal of “equalizing opportunities for educational attainment.” This is exactly the point I am driving at: the atmosphere for learning should be equal in order for everyone to be able to study, to concentrate and to develop ideas that are necessary for their courses, and not be distracted by scenes of physical challenges to the authorities’ imposing the dress code.
Moreover, how can students feel equal or strong to challenge the ideas of Henry David Thoreau, St. Thomas Aquinas, Simone de Beauvoir, Jean Paul Sartre, Mary Wollstonecraft, or even Bernard Shaw, when they look puny in their attire? These theoreticians and philosophers worked in academes and places where their intelligence was highly appreciated, admired, or even challenged with reverence by others. Is it possible to regard highly a female student in shorts attacking the ideas of Plato?
I think that the university must reacquire its status of being a true place for learning and not for display of legs and thighs of misguided students whose parents could be too busy to attend to their activities at school. Mentors, spiritual advisers and counselors must bond together to address this problem which is a probable reason for the dip in ranking of Philippine universities in world education.
The Church must also assert its authority in terms of making female worshippers be attired in those that will help others attain their spiritual upliftment easily. By the way, aren’t those shorts or even short dresses a way of desanctifying the place of worship?
I hope that even the various women’s groups should look into this problem. Women’s liberation is anchored on respect of women’s rights, true, but not when they are already destabilizing the cultural values of the society for equal opportunities in education. We should help everyone attain their own highest goals or just not be plain obstacles to others attainment of their aims in life.
Monday, September 27, 2010
Thursday, September 16, 2010
MAKING DEMOCRACY WORK
WHEN GOVERNING IN A DEMOCRATIC SOCIETY, ONE WILL FIND THAT that sometimes, choices do not match the expectations of the general public. And when that happens, criticisms ensue, blaming and then a need exists to change things.
I think that is normal in a democratic society and should not be a cause for alarm. We are in a country that was rocked several times by political struggles. So happenings in faulty decision-making are normal -- as there are opportunities to change the decision.
For example, the MRT and LRT were welcomed ideas in the beginning as they would speed up the carriage of people from one destination to another. Traffic is avoided and fares are cheap. However, now we can see some of the loopholes of building these structures -- in very narrow streets, the train ines have added to the problem. The people breathe in the pollution underneath the traintracks caused by diesel-fed jeepeneys, mostly. Streets have become narrower, as the railway walls are too close to homes and roofs of houses. Environmental clearance certificates were not issued to indicate that the construction of the MRT and LRT would not cause unhealthy conditions.
Another example, dengue fever is attacking our populace. Then immediate reaction is to call in the Department of Health. But the flaw? Why not make the Dept. of Environment also look into the problem? Are mosquitoes flying about in the environment? Why is the DENR so quiet now?
What are we saying here? Decision-making entails looking at the problems macro-wise and making all concerned think up of ways to solve the problem.
In the case of deciding the future of our country, what is most important then is getting the opinions of the public -- who to appoint, who to select to handle the most sensitive jobs, and who to promote. I do think that all government officials owe their positiont to the public as we pay our taxes so that they can earn their salaries and do their jobs well.
Hence, we also should be consulted on who should be the best person to hold this and that position. It is not enough to elect officials and let them do their thing alone. No, we should be consulted. In the case of the PNP chief, the public, more specifically, the police men and women in the force should have also been consulted prior to making any promotion or appointment.
This is making democracy -- the voice of the people -- work.
I think that is normal in a democratic society and should not be a cause for alarm. We are in a country that was rocked several times by political struggles. So happenings in faulty decision-making are normal -- as there are opportunities to change the decision.
For example, the MRT and LRT were welcomed ideas in the beginning as they would speed up the carriage of people from one destination to another. Traffic is avoided and fares are cheap. However, now we can see some of the loopholes of building these structures -- in very narrow streets, the train ines have added to the problem. The people breathe in the pollution underneath the traintracks caused by diesel-fed jeepeneys, mostly. Streets have become narrower, as the railway walls are too close to homes and roofs of houses. Environmental clearance certificates were not issued to indicate that the construction of the MRT and LRT would not cause unhealthy conditions.
Another example, dengue fever is attacking our populace. Then immediate reaction is to call in the Department of Health. But the flaw? Why not make the Dept. of Environment also look into the problem? Are mosquitoes flying about in the environment? Why is the DENR so quiet now?
What are we saying here? Decision-making entails looking at the problems macro-wise and making all concerned think up of ways to solve the problem.
In the case of deciding the future of our country, what is most important then is getting the opinions of the public -- who to appoint, who to select to handle the most sensitive jobs, and who to promote. I do think that all government officials owe their positiont to the public as we pay our taxes so that they can earn their salaries and do their jobs well.
Hence, we also should be consulted on who should be the best person to hold this and that position. It is not enough to elect officials and let them do their thing alone. No, we should be consulted. In the case of the PNP chief, the public, more specifically, the police men and women in the force should have also been consulted prior to making any promotion or appointment.
This is making democracy -- the voice of the people -- work.
Friday, September 10, 2010
SPECTACULAR CHANGES
Spectacular governance? Are we looking for one where instantly we can make poverty disappear -- meaning vagrants will be sent to a house, that children asking for alms will be directed to go to a museum or a playground to play so as to stop their parents from making them sources of income; that breast cancer will be obliterated; that jobs will be available to everyone from 18 to 65; that senior citizens will be provided escalators at every overpass; that ads like Solmux which denigrate the efficacy of our herbal native products will be banned from being aired; that ads, especially in the morning shall include those about our great, unique and original inventions instead of foreign products all the time, and worst of all -- about products that cater to vanity of vanities; and many many more.
Folks, we are dreaming! And dreaming is good if our dreams are realizable. If not, then forget them. This is because there seems to be mistaken definition of what is a new administration.
New means nuovo, nova, nueva, bago, novel, fresh, and possibly original. Hence a new administration means it consists of fresh new faces in old positions. But that is hardly the case right now. Those occupying sensitive and high level posts, except for those in Malacanang are people, either identified with the former administration, or promoted from the ranks who had served in the same.
Therefore, given that situation, we cannot expect much new ideas filtering in our government, except a rehash, a repeat, or a recycled idea. Why is this so? This is because there seems to be a great fear of new people being placed in those key positions. The new administration leaders are afraid, suspicious or tend to be conservative relying on old faces to dot the roster list of officials. Why are they afraid? Because they have seen how Marcos was booted out of office, and how Erap was unceremoniously deposed; so the reality of their suffering from the same experience could possibly be difficult or they find it difficult to overcome.
What does all these mean to us? It is not possible, to my mind that the Filipino people shall allow another dictator or permit another deposition of a leader without proper procedures being followed. We had gone through them and we know how horrendous it had been falling under a fake commander-in-chief and "president." Up to the last minute of sitting in that position, GMA was doing things according to her own selfish purposes and not according to the will of the people.
The people saw through that and so elected a new set of leaders. However, as we have said. being new requires having new faces, especially in the military and the police. Before elections, I had been told by Dr. GE that the safest military officer would be from the level of colonels down. Those above, meaning generals are already CORRUPT. They know the ways of the world and it is very difficult to change their attitudes because they have become robotized according to the methods of milking the bureaucracy.
I think there is no room nor basis for suspicion when getting new people to occupy posts. It exists only in the mind because the bureaucracy has checks and balance systems to arrest any kind of corruption or attempt to grab power. All it takes is the will of the people.
But if the people are wary of supporting this administration, why by all means, they will support anything that will overturn the leadership. But if they see sincerity and honesty so necessary for being in government, then they will support it wholeheartedly -- as now they, or we have learned our lessons well.
Hence the bigger problem of the new administration is how to make the people strengthen their belief in the new leaders. And many psychology and sociology books will offer ready solutions.
For myself, I want a spectacular turn-around of our society, of our lives, and not piecemeal solutions. I want faces which will move us to act and cooperate with them at any time for the good of the people and their welfare. I want new faces brave enough to confront any misdeed of their colleagues or any corrupt act right away.
In other words, we want a humane society -- sensitive to our needs, wants, desires and dreams for a New Country.
Is this attainable? We can see it coming through -- the way the investigations of past misdeeds are being done. Let us keep it up. And please, let us have NEW FACES.
Folks, we are dreaming! And dreaming is good if our dreams are realizable. If not, then forget them. This is because there seems to be mistaken definition of what is a new administration.
New means nuovo, nova, nueva, bago, novel, fresh, and possibly original. Hence a new administration means it consists of fresh new faces in old positions. But that is hardly the case right now. Those occupying sensitive and high level posts, except for those in Malacanang are people, either identified with the former administration, or promoted from the ranks who had served in the same.
Therefore, given that situation, we cannot expect much new ideas filtering in our government, except a rehash, a repeat, or a recycled idea. Why is this so? This is because there seems to be a great fear of new people being placed in those key positions. The new administration leaders are afraid, suspicious or tend to be conservative relying on old faces to dot the roster list of officials. Why are they afraid? Because they have seen how Marcos was booted out of office, and how Erap was unceremoniously deposed; so the reality of their suffering from the same experience could possibly be difficult or they find it difficult to overcome.
What does all these mean to us? It is not possible, to my mind that the Filipino people shall allow another dictator or permit another deposition of a leader without proper procedures being followed. We had gone through them and we know how horrendous it had been falling under a fake commander-in-chief and "president." Up to the last minute of sitting in that position, GMA was doing things according to her own selfish purposes and not according to the will of the people.
The people saw through that and so elected a new set of leaders. However, as we have said. being new requires having new faces, especially in the military and the police. Before elections, I had been told by Dr. GE that the safest military officer would be from the level of colonels down. Those above, meaning generals are already CORRUPT. They know the ways of the world and it is very difficult to change their attitudes because they have become robotized according to the methods of milking the bureaucracy.
I think there is no room nor basis for suspicion when getting new people to occupy posts. It exists only in the mind because the bureaucracy has checks and balance systems to arrest any kind of corruption or attempt to grab power. All it takes is the will of the people.
But if the people are wary of supporting this administration, why by all means, they will support anything that will overturn the leadership. But if they see sincerity and honesty so necessary for being in government, then they will support it wholeheartedly -- as now they, or we have learned our lessons well.
Hence the bigger problem of the new administration is how to make the people strengthen their belief in the new leaders. And many psychology and sociology books will offer ready solutions.
For myself, I want a spectacular turn-around of our society, of our lives, and not piecemeal solutions. I want faces which will move us to act and cooperate with them at any time for the good of the people and their welfare. I want new faces brave enough to confront any misdeed of their colleagues or any corrupt act right away.
In other words, we want a humane society -- sensitive to our needs, wants, desires and dreams for a New Country.
Is this attainable? We can see it coming through -- the way the investigations of past misdeeds are being done. Let us keep it up. And please, let us have NEW FACES.
Monday, September 6, 2010
GOVERNANCE UNDER SPOTLIGHT
THE Series of radio features of the investigation of the Luneta hostage incident has attracted the attention of the nation -- what with the big radio stations pre-empting their programming to give way to the DOJ-led panel. Listening to it, I am truly proud of Sec. de Lima who exhibits a knowledge of her turf - justice. She speaks in clear English but could also in Pilipino in order to accommodate those involved whom she must have perceived not capable of understanding the English language that deeply as she could.
Today, I listened to two people interviewed and interrogated to shed light on the hostage: Col. Yebra the negotiator and the brother of Mendoza, the hostage taker. I could perceive the sincerity of the former to make the negotiations succeed but what hampered him was the bureaucratic procedures that had to be followed in approaching the hostage taker, the need to be always deferring to authority, and his powerlessness in the face of the assault which was never revealed nor told him beforehand. I could only pity him for his sad narration of events.
Then Mendoza's brother exhibited his own feudal ways -- appreciating more the authority of his brother than that of the PNP, but which should not be his fault as well. His actuations only reveal the need for greater reeducation of the PNP force on how to be loyal, true and committed to one's calling, without having to rely on relatives for support.
Now, I am wondering why VP Jojo Binay who had claimed that he underwent a seminar on crisis management of hostage taking in the States never volunteered to help during the incident? Why did he wait to be invited instead of going there or even calling up P.Noy and saying that he could? There is no need for protocol where lives are at stake. It should be the responsibility of everyone to help and not wait anymore to be invited to help.
Saving lives should be the primary consideration where incidents of this kind occur. Pride, protocol, hierarchies should be done away with so that a speedy peaceful resolution of the case could be done. To my mind, if after one hour, the hostage taker is still in control, then a different group should already manage the situation. Why the police waited for 12 hours+ to resolve the case and did not surrender it to the national crisis committee is beyond me. It simply reflects poor judgment and inability to act properly and appropriately.
Now, i think that since P. Noy had taken up the cudgels for the fiasco, some quarters are now airing that possibility of his resigning. That is a shocking view which I think a hidden group is now hatching up to destabilize P.Noy's administration. A broadcaster and a senator with a poor sense of loyalty have brought up this idea of "resignation" and I think they are bringing this country to the brink of a civil disturbance. They should be cut out from public exposure as soon as possible in order to limit their opinions to the sidelines.
At this time, the least we need is a change of presidents, after having had an artificial one for 9 years. Why, after driving and having thousands of American soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, how come Bush never resigned?
Not that I uphold the rightness of the hostage-taking but rather at this time, changing horses in midstream is thoroughly poor judgment. It will not solve anything. What P. Noy must do I think is get beyond political partisanship and reach out to those in the know about the problems of the country.
And so, I think that governance-wise the weak link for P. Noy is the police and the military whose structure -- very hierarchical -- breeds domineering and authoritarian individuals backed up by arms. It is a very delicate situation as these forces are the ones supposed to protect us and given us security in all times of trouble. I would not be able to fault the Chinese for their fear of coming here since it is now the police which is their object of attention. The police has not really been able to come up with thousands of bemedalled individuals who could be
models for emulation and appreciation by the public. Not even with the yearly (?) recognition by the Metrobank Foundation of police women and men who had done good service would suffice to raise public understanding that the force is one that we should be proud of.
So after the results of the investigation is through, the first order of the day is to free the police force of scalawags. Have a thorough examination of the fitness -- mental, physical, psychological -- of every individual in the police force, maybe even up to the general level -- to check on how they would respond to situations, what their understanding is of their roles in society. There are many psychological tests that could reveal if a person is authoritarian, racist, etcetera. All these tests would be a good ground for checking which ones are fit to be promoted to this and that position.
Also, all new applicants to the police force must be evaluated in terms of their capability to make independent judgments and analysis of situations, and test crimes. I do think this is highly important, since there would be cases when they would later on, after appointment, be facing situations requiring them to solely attend to cases.
Most importantly, rotation of assignments should be done constantly so that the police would not develop authoritarian postures making them see themselves as kings -- not to be critiqued nor to be charged should they commit a negative act -- in the communities, especially. For example, in our community here in Barangay Dona Imelda, I have had to put up with motorcycle riding police assets revving up their engines when they pass by my house, one after the other as soon as they find out that I am awake and am in the sala fronting the road and listening to the radio news.
How they make such noise that I have to up the volume to the highest just to listen to Ted Failon or DZXL give his news for the day.
Today, I listened to two people interviewed and interrogated to shed light on the hostage: Col. Yebra the negotiator and the brother of Mendoza, the hostage taker. I could perceive the sincerity of the former to make the negotiations succeed but what hampered him was the bureaucratic procedures that had to be followed in approaching the hostage taker, the need to be always deferring to authority, and his powerlessness in the face of the assault which was never revealed nor told him beforehand. I could only pity him for his sad narration of events.
Then Mendoza's brother exhibited his own feudal ways -- appreciating more the authority of his brother than that of the PNP, but which should not be his fault as well. His actuations only reveal the need for greater reeducation of the PNP force on how to be loyal, true and committed to one's calling, without having to rely on relatives for support.
Now, I am wondering why VP Jojo Binay who had claimed that he underwent a seminar on crisis management of hostage taking in the States never volunteered to help during the incident? Why did he wait to be invited instead of going there or even calling up P.Noy and saying that he could? There is no need for protocol where lives are at stake. It should be the responsibility of everyone to help and not wait anymore to be invited to help.
Saving lives should be the primary consideration where incidents of this kind occur. Pride, protocol, hierarchies should be done away with so that a speedy peaceful resolution of the case could be done. To my mind, if after one hour, the hostage taker is still in control, then a different group should already manage the situation. Why the police waited for 12 hours+ to resolve the case and did not surrender it to the national crisis committee is beyond me. It simply reflects poor judgment and inability to act properly and appropriately.
Now, i think that since P. Noy had taken up the cudgels for the fiasco, some quarters are now airing that possibility of his resigning. That is a shocking view which I think a hidden group is now hatching up to destabilize P.Noy's administration. A broadcaster and a senator with a poor sense of loyalty have brought up this idea of "resignation" and I think they are bringing this country to the brink of a civil disturbance. They should be cut out from public exposure as soon as possible in order to limit their opinions to the sidelines.
At this time, the least we need is a change of presidents, after having had an artificial one for 9 years. Why, after driving and having thousands of American soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, how come Bush never resigned?
Not that I uphold the rightness of the hostage-taking but rather at this time, changing horses in midstream is thoroughly poor judgment. It will not solve anything. What P. Noy must do I think is get beyond political partisanship and reach out to those in the know about the problems of the country.
And so, I think that governance-wise the weak link for P. Noy is the police and the military whose structure -- very hierarchical -- breeds domineering and authoritarian individuals backed up by arms. It is a very delicate situation as these forces are the ones supposed to protect us and given us security in all times of trouble. I would not be able to fault the Chinese for their fear of coming here since it is now the police which is their object of attention. The police has not really been able to come up with thousands of bemedalled individuals who could be
models for emulation and appreciation by the public. Not even with the yearly (?) recognition by the Metrobank Foundation of police women and men who had done good service would suffice to raise public understanding that the force is one that we should be proud of.
So after the results of the investigation is through, the first order of the day is to free the police force of scalawags. Have a thorough examination of the fitness -- mental, physical, psychological -- of every individual in the police force, maybe even up to the general level -- to check on how they would respond to situations, what their understanding is of their roles in society. There are many psychological tests that could reveal if a person is authoritarian, racist, etcetera. All these tests would be a good ground for checking which ones are fit to be promoted to this and that position.
Also, all new applicants to the police force must be evaluated in terms of their capability to make independent judgments and analysis of situations, and test crimes. I do think this is highly important, since there would be cases when they would later on, after appointment, be facing situations requiring them to solely attend to cases.
Most importantly, rotation of assignments should be done constantly so that the police would not develop authoritarian postures making them see themselves as kings -- not to be critiqued nor to be charged should they commit a negative act -- in the communities, especially. For example, in our community here in Barangay Dona Imelda, I have had to put up with motorcycle riding police assets revving up their engines when they pass by my house, one after the other as soon as they find out that I am awake and am in the sala fronting the road and listening to the radio news.
How they make such noise that I have to up the volume to the highest just to listen to Ted Failon or DZXL give his news for the day.
Saturday, September 4, 2010
MUSIC AS HEALER
Everyday, I listen to music -- all sorts, from classical to standard, to pop, to rock, and lullabye. I don't discriminate because my mind has that bent to analyze every phrase, every lyric which makes listening interesting for me in a way. I learned how to analyze from Tita King, or Lucrecia Kasilag, the National Artist for Music. She was not yet one when I met her and when I was taking lessons under her. When she became one, we still continued our ties, she as my erstwhile mentor, ever so giving, nurturing and humorous, while I was a student so eager to absorb everything and anything about music, as my late ambition come fulfilled.
So when Anjie Oquendo, member of the Liturgikon Vocal Ensemble (LVE) from UST invited me to attend their program, Pax and Friends, even if it was only hours before the start, I readily acceded. How that experience of watching them perform really struck me from the outset. LVE is composed of music students and that is very evident from the very start of their singing. the blending of the voices was fabulous, not a single off-key tone did I hear; the harmony was terrific, whether the singing was slow or fast; and even if there was not much choreography of the pieces, they were a sight to behold. I feasted my eyes on them, those youthful students whose voices exuded worshipful thoughts in every piece.
They sang Exultate Deo by Alessandro Scarlatti, Ave Maria by Tomas L. de Victoria and I Will Sing Forever by M. Francisco, S.J. The pieces are not ordinary choir songs. One piece required one voice singing the melody and another running against it or contrapuntal. Another thing, all the pieces required singing in harmony' but this is hard because sopranos or any of the other voices could find it hard sticking to their melodies while having to listen to other voices at the same time. Also, the lines of the songs are quite long thereby imposing breathing requirements. A singer cannot just breathe at will but has to look for that particular comma or pause whereby it would be proper to breathe without destroying or cutting the thought. Otherwise, the singing would appear amateurish and disturbing.
Anyway, other choirs were present like the UST Chorus of Arts and Letters and the Accountancy Chamber Singers during this concert. I counted the singers and there were a lot -- both male and female voices. the LVE had more than 40 members, the UST Chorus, 23, and the ACS 16 with almost equal participation of the sexes. So here we can see that young people are always drawn to music and expressing themselves through it which is a key to how development is viewed by them, after all. Life should not all be purely for materialistic but rather cultural pursuits as well.
A few suggestions will suffice here:
1. Conductors must dress well, especially when the singers are in their best attire. They must also be conscious of how their backs look like while conducting. Sometimes, these backs can distract the attention of the audience instead of being able to concentrate on listening to the music.
2. When singers of a choir joins another choir to augment the voices on the latter, it is necessary for their costumes to blend with the group.
3. Programs should contain the names of the choir members. It is a document of the students' experiences in school.
4. I like the inclusion of programme notes. However, they should also contain the years the pieces were composed for historical accuracy and also to inculcate in the audience the need to appreciate the past.
5. Above all, the singers must know how to enunciate so that the audience can hear the lyrics, and appreciate the meaning that the composer wants to impart. Unfortunately, some conductors do not emphasize this so much so that listening to choral singing becomes just a melodic appreciation hour, and no longer literary as well.
6. After the Accountancy singers had left the stage, the sounds technicians replayed a line from one of the songs which was deliberately made to make the audience hear it: :"tila ako'y nababaliw...' which is rather crass, and a sign of making the cultural exercise a political one. I am sure that the technician had been told to do that by someone in the audience out to disgrace a political critic also watching.
7. Then after the concert, the garbage janitor was there outside the hall collecting all the wastes of the college of education building in all galore. What a stupid ending for an ethereal experience. I am sure that was also deliberately done -- to make the audience see the plastic bags of garbage, in effect making a statement that all your cultural events are just a waste of time.
Calling the dean of music, Dr. Raul Sunico. Make the administration respect musicians and audience please. Delete political harassers forever from cultural language AND REALITY.
So when Anjie Oquendo, member of the Liturgikon Vocal Ensemble (LVE) from UST invited me to attend their program, Pax and Friends, even if it was only hours before the start, I readily acceded. How that experience of watching them perform really struck me from the outset. LVE is composed of music students and that is very evident from the very start of their singing. the blending of the voices was fabulous, not a single off-key tone did I hear; the harmony was terrific, whether the singing was slow or fast; and even if there was not much choreography of the pieces, they were a sight to behold. I feasted my eyes on them, those youthful students whose voices exuded worshipful thoughts in every piece.
They sang Exultate Deo by Alessandro Scarlatti, Ave Maria by Tomas L. de Victoria and I Will Sing Forever by M. Francisco, S.J. The pieces are not ordinary choir songs. One piece required one voice singing the melody and another running against it or contrapuntal. Another thing, all the pieces required singing in harmony' but this is hard because sopranos or any of the other voices could find it hard sticking to their melodies while having to listen to other voices at the same time. Also, the lines of the songs are quite long thereby imposing breathing requirements. A singer cannot just breathe at will but has to look for that particular comma or pause whereby it would be proper to breathe without destroying or cutting the thought. Otherwise, the singing would appear amateurish and disturbing.
Anyway, other choirs were present like the UST Chorus of Arts and Letters and the Accountancy Chamber Singers during this concert. I counted the singers and there were a lot -- both male and female voices. the LVE had more than 40 members, the UST Chorus, 23, and the ACS 16 with almost equal participation of the sexes. So here we can see that young people are always drawn to music and expressing themselves through it which is a key to how development is viewed by them, after all. Life should not all be purely for materialistic but rather cultural pursuits as well.
A few suggestions will suffice here:
1. Conductors must dress well, especially when the singers are in their best attire. They must also be conscious of how their backs look like while conducting. Sometimes, these backs can distract the attention of the audience instead of being able to concentrate on listening to the music.
2. When singers of a choir joins another choir to augment the voices on the latter, it is necessary for their costumes to blend with the group.
3. Programs should contain the names of the choir members. It is a document of the students' experiences in school.
4. I like the inclusion of programme notes. However, they should also contain the years the pieces were composed for historical accuracy and also to inculcate in the audience the need to appreciate the past.
5. Above all, the singers must know how to enunciate so that the audience can hear the lyrics, and appreciate the meaning that the composer wants to impart. Unfortunately, some conductors do not emphasize this so much so that listening to choral singing becomes just a melodic appreciation hour, and no longer literary as well.
6. After the Accountancy singers had left the stage, the sounds technicians replayed a line from one of the songs which was deliberately made to make the audience hear it: :"tila ako'y nababaliw...' which is rather crass, and a sign of making the cultural exercise a political one. I am sure that the technician had been told to do that by someone in the audience out to disgrace a political critic also watching.
7. Then after the concert, the garbage janitor was there outside the hall collecting all the wastes of the college of education building in all galore. What a stupid ending for an ethereal experience. I am sure that was also deliberately done -- to make the audience see the plastic bags of garbage, in effect making a statement that all your cultural events are just a waste of time.
Calling the dean of music, Dr. Raul Sunico. Make the administration respect musicians and audience please. Delete political harassers forever from cultural language AND REALITY.
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