Philippines bags top prize in Wales choir competition

A choir from the Philippines bagged the first prize in the mixed choir competition at the Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod in Wales from July 7 to 11, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) reported Wednesday. The DFA said the Adventist University of the Philippines’ (AUP) Ambassadors Chorale Arts Society conducted by Ramon Lijuaco Jr. won the “Choir of the World" award and was given the Pavarotti Trophy. “It was the second year in a row that the Philippines bagged the award. In 2010, the University of Santo Tomas Singers also won top prize," the DFA said in a news release. Singers from the AUP choir bested counterparts from Algeria, Australia, Barbados, Belarus, Canada, Czech Republic, England, England (Kurdistan), England (Ukraine), Germany, Ghana, Hungary, Iceland, India, and Indonesia. Other competitors included ensemble from Jamaica, Kenya, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Northern Ireland, Poland, Peoples Republic of China, Romania, Russia, Scotland, Singapore, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Turkey, Ukraine, United States, and Wales, the DFA said. Philippine Charge d’Affaires Reynaldo Catapang lauded the choir at a lunch hosted by the embassy. He said the group “gave distinct pride to the Filipino community in the UK and the entire Filipino community in the UK and the entire Filipino nation." “It is another tribute to Filipino artistry and [an] undeniable proof of our people’s ability to inspire and to give joy to the entire world," he added. The first International Musical Eisteddfod was held in Llangollen in 1947. It has since become one of the world’s great music festivals participated in by music legends such as Placido Domingo and Luciano Pavarotti. — JE, GMA News