PRAYING FOR THE healing of the ailing Pope Francis, the Benedictine Abbey of Our Lady of Montserrat Manila, in partnership with Treble Choir Association of the Philippines, Inc. (TCAP) and Alsina Formwork, organized a concert tributed titled Viva La Musica last February 26.
A day after hosting “Resonentur: A Concert of Pipe Organ Music from Montserrat, Barcelona” which commemorated the 1000th anniversary of the Abadia de Montserrat in Spain and the 130th anniversary of Benedictine presence in the Philippines, the Abbey and San Beda University (SBU) collaborated with the Embassy of Spain in the Philippines to organize Viva La Musica.
Vicenç Prunés Lloret, a Spanish organist from the Monastery of Santa Maria de Montserrat, performed alongside his son, Ignasi Prunés de Riba, who were also accompanied by the Young Voices of the Philippines (YVP) children’s choir.
The father-and-son duo played an interpretation of Prokofiev’s “Peter and the Wolf,” complemented by the narration by YVP’s Maria Sophia Roldan,
The concert’s repertoire included sacred songs such as Ama Namin (The Lord’s Prayer), Ave Maria, and A Song of Blessing. The latter was composed by YVP’s co-founder, artistic director, and renowned composer Jude Roldan. A Song of Blessing was previously performed by the choir before Pope Francis at St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City last May 2024.
“So, our plan was really to perform sacred choral music composed by Spanish and Filipino composers as a prayer for Pope Francis. We would like to thank the Benedictine community for allowing us to use this beautiful sacred space for the concert,” Mr. Roldan shared.
Sharing this sentiment, Dr. Maria Theresa Vizconde-Roldan, an accomplished choral pedagogue and children’s choir conductor, said “I am very happy and fortunate because we were able to collaborate with Spanish organists and create beautiful music together. At the same time, it is an honor to sing and offer this concert for the Holy Father’s good health and complete healing.”
In an interview with The Bedan performer Ignasi Prunés de Riba stated that, “It has been such a pleasure to share this concert with the Young Voices of the Philippines. It’s not very common to find choirs as exceptional as this one—with such wonderful voices, a clear timbre, and strong musicality.”
“For me, it has been like a miracle to perform with them. Also, performing alongside my father has made this experience even more special. This is something I will always cherish. So, all I can say is thank you, Manila. Thank you, Abbey. Thank you, Philippines. I hope to see you again,” he expressed.
Concluding the event, Dr. Vizconde-Roldan conveyed, “The songs that we sing are expressions of our faith. They are our prayers. So, if we can move even one person to pray because of our singing, we have accomplished our mission. We’re very blessed and very grateful for this opportunity.”