LOVE IS IN THE AIR. XU Glee Club, Xavier Philharmonia and XU Soundtable woo the hearts of the Xavier community with different renditions of love songs in their respective concerts this month. Photo by Jaymar Patana of The Crusader Publication.
Words by Jarvi Fuentes and Caryl Trabadillo
Love is in the air at Xavier University this February.
Xavier Philharmonia, Glee Club and XU Soundtable wooed the hearts of the XU community with different renditions of love songs during their respective concerts this February, in celebration of Panaghugpong 8: Xavier Arts Festival.
XU Glee Club’s choral numbers made the audience fall in love through their pre-valentine concert dubbed “KaIBIGan” on Feb 13 at XULT. The musical production depicted well-grounded friendship as an outline towards an intimate love.
Philharmonia’s "Hearts Full of Love: A Musical Storytelling,” held on Feb 16 and 17 at the XU Little Theater (XULT), departed from its usual ensemble flair by infusing a love story narration.
"I think it had to do with the general theme of the organization for the school year," said Bradd Michael Gabe, narrator and orchestra pianist. "'Your Orchestra, Your Music' was what set the organization to a whole new level. We arranged and performed songs that were requested from a survey done a while back.”
Gabe added, “What made this concert different from the past concerts of the organization was the storytelling component.”
Falling in and out of love through songs
Narrated by Gabe and Sidlakan Therezza Baluyos, the concert followed the story of a boy and a girl who fell in love with each other. The orchestra played songs that signified what the couple was going through in their individual lives.
"As the music played, their world became a music video. That's how I imagined it, if I were a part of the audience," Gabe related.
The orchestra ensemble performed “I See the light” by Alan Menken, “Dance with Me” by Orleans, “Love Me Like You Do” by Ellie Goulding, “Fantaisei” by Frederic Chopin, “Photograph” by Ed Sheeran, “Let Her Go” by The Passenger, “Sad Romance” (Over the Green Fields OST), and “Sa’yo” by Silent Sanctuary.
Francis Joshua Arrabaca directed "Hearts Full of Love" while Alfretch Kristov Ebuña served as the concert master.
"I've been performing with Philharmonia since 2013, and the thing that made ‘Hearts Full of Love’ different from other concerts was the improvement of the performers. As many concerts passed, you could clearly see the improvements in the tone quality of the performers,” shared Lowee Oliva, orchestra flutist.
“The recent concert is truly a defining moment and a proof of how the performers have improved a lot since the organization started" he added.
Established in 2012, Xavier Philharmonia is one of the youngest performing arts companies at XU.
Kwento ng pag-ibig at hugot
XU Soundtable also serenaded the XU community with heartfelt songs in “The Rhythms of Love: Mga Kwento ng Pag-ibig at Hugot” held on Feb 10 at XULT. The storyline emulated four themes, namely, the meeting, the relationship, conflict, and end of a relationship.
“It’s up to the audience to decide how they want the story to end,” said Yvonne Lampitao, executive chairman of XU Soundtable. They invited actors from The Xavier Stage to join them so the audience can visualize the stories told by the songs.
XU Soundtable started this kind of event in 2014 with the theme “Popcorn, Cotton Candy at Sorbetes” and eventually turned it into “Mga Kwento ng Pag-ibig at Hugot.”
“Gusto namo na ang mga tao maka-relate sa songs, that’s why there are scenes na naay acting para mas ma-feel nila,” shared Jude Batalia, the event’s project head of the event. (We want the people to relate to the songs, that's why there are acting scenes so they could feel the songs even more.)
This concert was not solely to express love through music but to also help other people. Admission was free but people could also donate for Niña Maria Foundation, an organization that fosters and nurtures the talents of musically-skilled children.
“Dili lang ni ato-ato (It's not just for us) but also we want to give something back to the people,” said Clarrise Yap, XU Soundtable’s secretary general, adding that they got the idea of staging a concert-for-a-cause when they organized one for the Valuing Ecosystem Services Together (VEST) campaign in behalf of the indigenous community in Miarayon, Bukidnon.