Bacólod Heritage Watch

[sugarboy]

when did you pick this up kyle? seems like dated news. CS has already moved to manila.

[SugarFreak]

September 2, 2007
WITH THE MANILA SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
Night of Helen and Cristine

A night of fine music awaits Negrenses when two distinguished musicians perform with The Manila Symphony Orchestra, Asia's oldest, at the Sanctuario de La Salle in Bacolod City on Wednesday at 8 p.m. The performance is a fundraiser of the Bahay

Pag-asa Youth Center and the Negros Forests and Ecological Foundation.

Helen Quach, dubbed as Asia's Queen of the Baton, will conduct The MSO with Cristine Coyiuto, described by critics as "shimmering and powerful on the keyboards", as the piano soloist.

The performance will feature the works of three composers Beethoven (Leonora Overture" No. 3 in C Major, Opus 72a), Edvard Grieg (Concerto for Piano and Orchestra in A Minor, Opus 16), whose death anniversary centennial is observed this year, and Peter Ilyich Tachaikovsky (Symphony No. 5 in E minor, Opus 64).

The musical tandem was featured in a similar concert program in Manila last summer which was warmly received and widely-acclaimed as it was the first time the Sydney-based Quach, born of Vietnamese parents, returned to the Philippine stage in 16 years. She performed last in the country in a concert series in 1991, after which she - in her healing journey - went through a series of medications and therapy sessions triggered by a cancer lump in her breast.

The April concert in Manila also served as a national highlight of the death centenary celebration of Grieg, a Norwegian composer.

Quach gained acclaim as a symphony conductor about 40 years ago, in a competition in New York, which paved the way for her stint as assistant to Leonard Bernstein and the New York Philharmonic. Since then, she has performed in scores of symphony concerts in many parts of the United States, Norway, Germany, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan Macau and Hong Kong. Among the noted symphony performances she conducted in famous halls, including the Kennedy Center and Carnegie, are the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Washington's National Symphony Orchestra, the American Symphony Orchestra and the Gottinger Symphony Orchestra of Germany.

The maestra, described as one "with knowledge and showmanship… and with natural flair for conducting, which is a very rare gift," was born in Saigon of Chinese parents and studied music in Australia where she founded an orchestra in Sydney and later trained a children's orchestra in Taiwan.

Coyiuto studied piano when she was 3 years old and had her first recital at the age of 9. She later attended the Juilliard School of Music in New York where she earned her Master of Music degree with honors. She later honed her piano skills in various institutions in Europe, where she was featured in recitals. She has also performed in recitals in Canada, United States, France, Switzerland, England, China, Taiwan and Hong Kong.

Reports quoted Coyiuto as describing Quach as "passionate and exacting and determined to bring out the musical lines and colors".

Tickets for the concert are available at Prudential Guarantee (434-6954), Bob's Cafe at Lacson Street and Bob's Restaurant at B.S. Aquino Drive, Business Inn, K-Mart, L'Fisher, Luxur Place and the Blade Salon & Spa or contact Cherry (0917-623-8013). The concert is sponsored by Prudential Guarantee, Air 21, USLS and Philippine Airlines. .

[SugarFreak]

September 02, 2007

ON 'TONTON & BENJO' Talibong1 Talks

(Wanting to keep their privacy, the maker of the 'Tonton & Benjo' series and his friends show their many colorful faces.)

A 19-year-old Ilonggo has gained wide following for his Tonton and Benjo adventure series via the Internet's YouTube, a site that has made -since 2005- video sharing and blogging, and, lately, posting of comments, possible. The adventure series of the young Ilonggo, who assumes the name Talibong1, is apparently the most widely viewed locally-produced YouTube entries this side of the world.

Three of his most widely-viewed works are actually spoofs of the period films, Troy and 300. StarLife columnist Carlo Leonardia described Talibong's videos, in his Come to Think of It item on Aug. 12, as ones "which have spread faster than cellphone sex scandals and have gained him a cult-like following among wired Ilonggos".

A YouTube check showed that the final of the trilogy, Tonton ang Paghaharap, has registered 578,747 views as of Friday morning and the number continues to rise. Benjo kag Ang Batalyon Pitbull has 457,105 hits and Benjo Mangayo Ko Kwarta was viewed 353,053 times. While the hits should be waning by now, StarLife noted that the figures rose by about 14,000 for Mangayo Kwarta, about 23,000 for Batalyon Pitbull and 28,000 for Paghaharap in the past four days alone.

StarLife managed two weeks ago to know the whereabouts of Talibong1, who has requested his real name not mentioned - from a former high school classmate at Central Philippine University, where the YouTube sensation is presently a Nursing senior.

StarLife-in its attempt to find out the reasons of the series' phenomenon - compiled three reasons based on viewers comments: the Tonton and Benjo series are short, thus does not demand so much of the viewers' time, they use familiar language in the script- the Ilonggo dialect and expressions that are common (bords, pilo-pilo, clean cut, IR-or incident report -, a term used in Nursing classes when things go off the norm) yet given dimensions of humor and hilarity. Viewers also find appeal to the delivery of the script which is far from being studied or rehearsed.

The following is our email interview with Talibong1, who also sent us the photos (other than the YuTube screen reproductions) used in this article. He expressed appreciation for the Bacolod media's interest in his story (he has been featured, too, in the current St. La Salle's SPECTRUM magazine issue and acknowledged that grabe ang kagat sa Bacolod and acknowledging that the first interview requests came from the Bacolod media)

Why did you choose the name Talibong1?

Talibong is a place in Zarraga town where we had our Community Health Nursing duty. I thought it's unique monicker -- one of a kind.

When did you start your Benjo and Tonton production?

Sometime in April or May.

How did the idea of producing Benjo and Tonton and other videos come about? Why those names?

My friends and I just thought of it when they slept over at my place one night. Benjo and Tonton - these guys are by band mates (laughs). I chose their names because they're my friends. More names will be coming soon, (laughs).

Do these guys join you in your production?

I usually do it by myself. But sometimes Benjo, Tonton and a few others, like Myro - about five of us - are there for some ideas and effects, laughter especially (laughs), XD (term for "smiley" or laughing face").

Prior to your Benjo and Tonton series and other YouTube clips, what preoccupied your time?

My studies… computers and (laughs) sleep. I've been a computer fanatic since birth I think (laughs).

Since when did you get into YouTube?

Since it became operational. What made you decide to put your videos on YouTube?

Trip trip lang na.

YouTube shows a lot of feedback from viewers. When did you start gaining wide following?

What wide following??? (laughs). Oh, the feedback comes from anywhere in the Philippines and from any free country in the world. Like what countries?

Dubai, others in the Middle East, U.S.A. especially, all over, Africa included.

How many video shows have you made? Which is the most popular?

Ten. I really don't know which is popular but the one with the most number of views is Tonton: Ang Paghaharap. Each viewer has his own favorite.

How often do you produce?

Everything comes on the spot actually.

Whose voices are those of the characters?

They're mine. All mine, including the cat's. (laughs).

Where did you get your video production skills?

I didn't study anything on that. Everything is self-exploration (laughs). Piho ba. Did it ever occur to you that you might have violated copyright laws? Did you seek any legal advise?

There is a violation I believe but in YouTube many are doing it. Tani wala lang eh (legal problem) kay pasadya man lang ni. No, I haven't asked for any legal advise.

How are you doing in school?

I'm surviving. Kabit-kabit (laughs).

Has the production affected your studies?

Not really.

How would you describe yourself as a student?

Clean cut (this expression has become one of the most popular punchlines in his clip, apparently referring to soldiers who do not sport long beards).

Do people in the university know you as the mind behind Benjo and Tonton series?

I think some, other than my friends, know.

In one of your scripts, you mentioned your university as the school to go to. Any feedback from school officials about your works? What do they say?

I was told some officials met and talked about it. I don't know if it's really true...pero wala naman to kuno…but, thanks, my teachers love my work!

Tell us about your family.

Tagu-on ko lng ni ah…haha (StarLife later learned his father works abroad).

How do you manage to protect your privacy? Will you ever show or introduce yourself as the maker of Tonton and Benjo?

Well, a few people know me by now. But I don't mind it. Pabay-i da sila ah… Some know me. Now and then some get to know me.., but not always. The others know me long before I made the series.

Do you have a 'fans' club' now?

I learned there's a Benjo and Tonton Fans' club in Friendster (an Internet friendship link). Whahahaha, Salamat sa nag-ubra (While he did not admit it, StarLife learned of plans for the holding last weekend of a Tonton and Benjo activity during the University Week celebration at CPU).

How long do you intend to keep the Benjo and Tonton series going?

As long as it kicks! In your scripts, there appears recurring lines about education and going to school. Is this intentional to put across some values? Do you do a lot of brainstorming with your friends?

Because the production is on the spot, generally, the lines flow freely especially that they are not formally scripted. Wala na ko may mahambal nga daan..ti gaguluha lang na iya (laughs). Ga purutikul na lang ko nay a mag start na ko dub (laughs).

Online comments show plenty of positive feedback from your viewers. You get negative feedback too…?

Negative feedback? May ara gid na ya…damo (laughs).

What is the most touching feedback you ever got?

Honestly, the ones sent by viewers abroad telling me….nga dula ila mingaw kag enjoy gid sila.

Why do you think your series has become so popular?

It's funny… I really don't know why.

[SugarFreak]

09/02/2007

Mentors' Artworks

Mentors do and practice what they teach. This was the message that eight faculty members of the School of Architecture and Fine Arts and Interior Design of La Consolacion College conveyed anew when they held their week-long art exhibit which ended Friday at SM Bacolod City.

The display at SM City was the 15th annual show staged by the LCC-ARFIEN faculty. They included paintings, photo-based mixed media and mini-installation art works.

The faculty-artists and their were Antonio Tejado's oil on handpaper paper 'Icon Series 1, 2, 3 & 4'; Roy" Aguilar's' charcoal works, 'Tukap-Tukap Series 1, 2 & 3'; Mary Ann Manganti's Pastel on paper works, 'Kalong ni Nanay Serye Uno, Dos, Tres'; Arch. Hugo Flores III's 'Kulay 1 & 2' in water color; Raymund Fuentes 'China Silver 1, 2, & 3' - 'Gilded Buddha', and Objet d' Art photos; Cherryl Bacay's pencil on paper works, 'Papillon 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, & 6', Arch. Rogelio Diaz's iron on canvass pieces, 'Gintong Bakal 1 & 2'; and Dean Realino Alisbo's 'The View from My Window' and 'Modelo', acrylics on canvass.

[kyle@1008]

Originally Posted by sugarboy

when did you pick this up kyle? seems like dated news. CS has already moved to manila.

just recently, yes it's an old article, I actually never heard of csldi before, I thought lightings were a part of artenergy ... anyways there are a few other negrense artists I will try to higlight here, they're good at what they do locally and internationally and few people know they exist...

[SugarFreak]

September 5, 2007
IN SILAY: 2 museums open for free

Two lifestyle museums in Silay City, Negros Occidental, are offering free entrance to visitors starting 10 a.m. today, in connection with Silay City Tourism Month Celebration, a press release from the city said.

Balay Negrense showcases Edsie Sayon's "Community Life" in canvass and Ian Valladarez "Uninterrupted Wire Sculpture".

Other attractions are Cinco de Noviembre diorama, manuscript of Rizal's Noli Me Tangere, the profile of Miss Susan Magalona, a century-old piano, Silaynon buena familia comedor, and the gift shop.

Meanwhile, the Jalandoni Ancestral House centerpieces are the 31 ancestral houses of Silay which are considered architectural landmarks by the National Historical Institute, the Silaynon governors of Negros, Philippine Revolution in frames, and the prominent Silaynons of yesteryears, the press release said.

Other collections will be shown to the public are the bacarrat crystal, stradivarius violen and the 17th century European carpet. This activity is tagged "Our Museums, Our Silaynon Culture", and in coordination with the Negros Cultural Foundation, Silay Heritage Foundation Inc., and the Silay Tourism Development Council, the press release added.*

[kyle@1008]

List of historical national heritage houses in Negros Occidental

Infante Heritage House (La Carlota City, Negros Occidental)
Victor Fernandez Gaston Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
Carlos Arceo Ledesma Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
Jose Benedicto Gamboa Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
Angel Araneta Ledesma Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
Benita Jara Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
Amelia Hilado Flores Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
Alejandro Amechazura Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
Jose Corteza Locsin Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
Augusto Hilado Severino Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
Severino Building/Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
Manuel Severino Hofileña Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
Claudio Hilado Akol Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
Manuel de la Rama Locsin Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
Felix Tad-y Lacson Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
Soledad and Maria Montelibano Lacson Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
Kapitan Marciano Montelibano Lacson Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
Vicente Conlu Montelibano Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
Maria Ledesma Golez Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
Jose Ledesma Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
Teodoro Morada Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
Generoso Reyes Gamboa Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
Digna Locsin Consing Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
German Lacson Gaston Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
Modesto Ramirez Hojilla (Carlos Javelosa Jalandoni) Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
Dr. Jose Corteza Locsin Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
Bernardino Lopez Jalandoni Ancestral House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
German Locsin Unson Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
Delfin Ledesma Ledesma Heritage House (Silay City, Negros Occidental)
General Juan Araneta House (Bago city, Negros occidental)
Lacson-Claparols house ( talisay city, negros occidental)

not all houses are open to the public though, most of them are still kept as private homes by their owners...

[SugarFreak]

Gaston Ancestral House in Manapla, Negros Occidental
Kyle how about to this ancestral house

[kyle@1008]

oh that lovely house at hacienda rosalia.... aside from Balay Negrense it's supposed to be the most famous one,...

I should have added that, but it doesn't have an NHI marker , there are many old mansions without markers....

anyways that Mansion was the one used for Peque Gallaga's opus Oro Plata Mata, it has also been featured in various filipino publications and also international ones, it's near the Chapel of the Cartwheels.

It has also been featured among coffee table books on Filipino architecture...

[SugarFreak]

^wow nice to know Kyle...good historical landmark din pala ang manapla...hope they will still maintain it....lols

[SugarFreak]

September 10, 2007
A baritone, a soprano, a pianist and a departed tenor
By Jay Gallera Malaga

LUCIANO Pavarotti, one of the world’s greatest singers, died last Thursday. It was not my fault. Pancreatic cancer was the culprit. The only thing I’m guilty of is ignoring his music since that crucial day back in high school when I realized together with a friend that we didn’t have to listen to pop and at that specific period, hip-hop, to be cool.

Since then, my aural taste has been retrospective, getting kicks out of the fun and funky 80’s new wave and digging deeper and deeper each time into the archives of rhythm and melodies until I ran into Frank Sinatra’s sleek and suave vocal performance, and of course, the immortal classical music.

So while my classmates were wearing shirts bigger than their juvenile imaginings, and putting on their pants way, way below their NSAT scores, I always have had the irrepressible urge to tuck in my shirt, wear well-ironed slacks, slip on shiny formal shoes, and swing away into college.

All this time, Pavarotti had been dishing out his type of music closer and closer to the general public, and was quite successful at such endeavor. We could have had met somewhere in between my Beatles and Mozart phase. But I never really got into liking the opera, until I started listening to Josh Groban and upgrading to Andrea Bocelli maybe just because I was in Italy for a year and was able to understand a word or two of the lyrics to his songs.

A year or so, and perhaps, I could have reached a point in my musical odyssey where Pavarotti already inaugurates my Sunday mornings. But then again the man has left the stage. Wait, his music remains, therefore, there is hope.

The elements of the universe must have conspired pretty well because a day after Pavarotti’s death, during which I was in serious assessment of my audio inclinations, I got two tickets to a concert featuring opera, Broadway and Kundiman music.

The performance, in fact, started with an “Our Father” tribute to Pavarotti by baritone Noel Azcona. While Mr. Azcona holds a very compact resume – which includes being a member of the UST Singers and accustomed to critical acclaims and standing ovations – he admitted he was not in top form that night due to a recent cold that explains the sporadic cough intervals.

Nenen Espina, a NAMCYA-winning soprano, shared the stage with him in a string of duets and belted out arguably the concert’s unforgettable solos, a validation of the rave reviews she had received for her portrayals of operatic roles, among them, as Suzuki in Puccini’s “Madame Butterfly” side by side with world-renowned soprano Yoko Watanabe.

The program -- which saw fresh interpretations of Handel’s Ombra Mai Fu (from Xerxes) to Loewe’s I Could Have Danced All Night (from My Fair Lady) and Umali’s Ang Pag-ibig Mo -- was accompanied by pianist Mary Anne Espina. Ms. Espina has been collaborating with various artists including team-ups with renowned Filipino pianist Nena del Rosario-Villanueva, French violinist Frederic Pellasy and many others. Her most recent collaboration was with Filipino cellist Victor Michael Coo.

The concert was part of Music, News & Features’ 2007 Great Performance Series, and was organized for the benefit of the Negros Cultural Foundation, Inc.

It was a night of fine, elegant music made reachable and relevant to an eclectic audience of patrons, sponsors, young people like me, and yes, even seminarians.

Brief yet solid, which might not be sufficient to describe Pavarotti’s life and achievements, but the performances of the young artists were so.

A baritone, a soprano and a pianist may not be enough to fill the whole Ballroom of the L’Fisher Hotel, no equal to the likes of Italian Premier Romano Prodi, U2 lead singer Bono, movie director Franco Zeffirelli, and former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan occupying the pews of Modena, Italy’s 12th-century Romanesque cathedral to give Pavarotti his final standing ovation.

But I clapped happy and refreshed, and a departed tenor would have had at least smiled.

[SugarFreak]

September 11, 2007
AAB sets exhibit

The Negros Museum will hold an exhibit "Art is Tourism" by the Art Association of Bacolod from Sept. 14 to 28, a press release from the museum said.

The exhibit will open at 6 p.m. at the Phinma Main Gallery, The Negros Museum. Fifty local artists in Negros Occidental will display their most recent paintings and sculptures as contribution and support of AAB to the tourism month celebration.

On its 32nd year, the AAB headed by Nunelucio Alvarado, is reviving the spirits of the local artists on continuously creating art, to show the significance of local art in the tourism industry, the press release said.

The AAB and the Negros Museum promote art by nurturing artists and developing audiences by bringing art to the public and drawing tourists to the community. For queries, those interested may call The Negros Museum at Tel. Nos. 433-4764 or 708-5080, the press release added.*

[SugarFreak]

Sunday, September 2, 2007
WITH THE MANILA SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
Night of Helen and Cristine





A night of fine music awaits Negrenses when two distinguished musicians perform with The Manila Symphony Orchestra, Asia's oldest, at the Sanctuario de La Salle in Bacolod City on Wednesday at 8 p.m. The performance is a fundraiser of the Bahay

Pag-asa Youth Center and the Negros Forests and Ecological Foundation.

Helen Quach, dubbed as Asia's Queen of the Baton, will conduct The MSO with Cristine Coyiuto, described by critics as "shimmering and powerful on the keyboards", as the piano soloist.

The performance will feature the works of three composers Beethoven (Leonora Overture" No. 3 in C Major, Opus 72a), Edvard Grieg (Concerto for Piano and Orchestra in A Minor, Opus 16), whose death anniversary centennial is observed this year, and Peter Ilyich Tachaikovsky (Symphony No. 5 in E minor, Opus 64).

The musical tandem was featured in a similar concert program in Manila last summer which was warmly received and widely-acclaimed as it was the first time the Sydney-based Quach, born of Vietnamese parents, returned to the Philippine stage in 16 years. She performed last in the country in a concert series in 1991, after which she - in her healing journey - went through a series of medications and therapy sessions triggered by a cancer lump in her breast.

The April concert in Manila also served as a national highlight of the death centenary celebration of Grieg, a Norwegian composer.

Quach gained acclaim as a symphony conductor about 40 years ago, in a competition in New York, which paved the way for her stint as assistant to Leonard Bernstein and the New York Philharmonic. Since then, she has performed in scores of symphony concerts in many parts of the United States, Norway, Germany, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan Macau and Hong Kong. Among the noted symphony performances she conducted in famous halls, including the Kennedy Center and Carnegie, are the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Washington's National Symphony Orchestra, the American Symphony Orchestra and the Gottinger Symphony Orchestra of Germany.

The maestra, described as one "with knowledge and showmanship… and with natural flair for conducting, which is a very rare gift," was born in Saigon of Chinese parents and studied music in Australia where she founded an orchestra in Sydney and later trained a children's orchestra in Taiwan.

Coyiuto studied piano when she was 3 years old and had her first recital at the age of 9. She later attended the Juilliard School of Music in New York where she earned her Master of Music degree with honors. She later honed her piano skills in various institutions in Europe, where she was featured in recitals. She has also performed in recitals in Canada, United States, France, Switzerland, England, China, Taiwan and Hong Kong.

Reports quoted Coyiuto as describing Quach as "passionate and exacting and determined to bring out the musical lines and colors".

Tickets for the concert are available at Prudential Guarantee (434-6954), Bob's Cafe at Lacson Street and Bob's Restaurant at B.S. Aquino Drive, Business Inn, K-Mart, L'Fisher, Luxur Place and the Blade Salon & Spa or contact Cherry (0917-623-8013). The concert is sponsored by Prudential Guarantee, Air 21, USLS and Philippine Airlines. .

[Animo]

THE UNO-R Center for Cultural and Professional Development (UCCPD) is sponsoring a lecture on Cultural Heritage.

Various topics to be discussed are: Filipino Art in Architecture: Concepts and Experience; The State of the Philippines "Heritage Architecture"; "Praxis" of Preservation 1: Silay Houses and the Churches; Bricks: an Architectural Medium; and "Praxis" of Presentation 2: Pampanga Cultural Heritage, on September 14, 2007 at 9 a.m. at the President's Hall.

A heritage tour will be conducted on the 15th of September in Silay City. Details of the tour "Praxis" will be discussed during the lecture.

Architect Edgardo Mar Castro is the Resource Speaker. He is a national Restorer and Conservator of Philippine Arts and Architectures. Recently, he is restoring the Church and Convento of Lazi, Siquijor and the Church of Miag-ao, Iloilo.

For more details, contact Bro. Tagoy Jakosalem, OAR at 0918-9792-790 or Dr. Nena Samillano at 0920-9104-871.

http://www.sunstar.com.ph/static/bac....at.uno.r.html

I'll post some of heritage houses for Negros Occidental after I scan them.

[SugarFreak]

September 16, 2007
Big September Shows

Two performances by nationally -acclaimed student groups and the showing of the first Negrense independently-produced film highlight the September performing arts calendar in Bacolod City.

Ligaw-Liham, a film produced by local talents, will be shown at Robinsons Movie World on Sept. 26-Oct. 2. Its cast is led by Karylle, John Michael Lee, John Arceo and George Macainan. Ligaw-Liham, a Produksyon Tramontina, Inc./7th Film in association with Bridget Josef, was shown in the Cimemalaya Filmfest in Metro Manila in July.

Slated to stage its production is the Sining Kambayoka of Mindanao State University in Marawi City at the West Negros College Gym on Sept. 24 at 7 p.m. The University of San Agustin Little Theater presented Friday and Saturday its annual laboratory works, Juan Pusong: Pusong Juan at the Negros Museum.

The USA Little Theater annual laboratory program, on its fifth year, provides Humanities and Literature students with an opportunity to present scene studies through Eksena Cinco. The scenes were inspired by a collection by Amorita Rabuco of Hiligaynon stories and folktales doe her Ph.D. book requirement.

Sining Kambayoka recently returned from a world tour in a global-linking project in 2006 which gathered 12 youth performing arts groups from eight countries for the 'Contacting the World' program - which allows theater messages to be delivered across the boundaries of culture and geography. It will stage "Broken Dreams', which it presented in that gathering in Manchester, England, which was sponsored by the Arts Council of England, the British Council and the UNESCO International Fund for the Promotion of Culture.

It later performed in Liverpool, also in England, and in Aberdeen, Scotland as well as for Filipino communities in the United Kingdom, including Wales. In all the European perfor-mances, the group received rousing feedback.

The Bacolod performance of Sining Kambayoka is a part of the Cultural Center of the Philippines Outreach ad Exchange Program with the cooperation of the Negros Cultural Foundation and West Negros College. The USA Little Theater Visayan tour, which features five tales - Juan sang Katigulangan, Tamad Nga Ba Si Juan... Pusong?, Idol, Miss Philippines and Song at Bel - is a highlight of the 42nd anniversary of the Iloilo-based group in cooperation with the program of the USA Center for Culture and the Arts.

USALT has participated in cultural presentations of the Philippine-Spain Festival and the national Heritage Month celebration, the 31st UNESCO International Theater Institute World Congress, and the national University Theater Festival, among others. It is a member of TEATROKON, the Western Visayas regional theater network and has been regularly conducting institutional and outreach workshops in acting, movements, scriptwriting, play production and poetry in motion, said Eric Divinagracia, USA culture and arts coordinator.

Ligaw-Liham is set in a small Negros town where the post office has ceased operations in the 1970s - a pre-testing era where people's lives were dependent on the postal mail. Nor, the central character, finds the letters in an old warehouse and replies to a woman's letter under the pretense that he is her husband who was working in Saigon And he starts to fall in love with her.

Ligaw-Liham is directed by Jay Abello and Manny Montelibano with Peque Gallaga providing creative consultancy. Its script is written by Jade Dionzon, Carmel Osmeña and Jet Orbida. .

[habagatcentral1]

Join us at "Philippine Towns and Cities: Reflections of the Past, Lessons for the Future" on November 9, 2007 at the Sarabia Manor Hotel and Convention Center, 101 General Luna Street, Iloilo City.
The main objective of this seminar series is to enhance civic engagement with local governments units so the Heritage Conservation Society (HCS) can inform and guide them on the proper care and utilization of a valuable asset — built heritage resources. The first seminar was held last 8 November 2006, at the Development Academy of the Philippines, Pasig City.

In our towns and cities, wanton real estate speculation and over-construction are often mistaken for modernization when in fact these exert devastating pressure on the historic and cultural core of many of our human settlements. As a result, a valuable economic resource – built heritage — is left to deteriorate or is thoughtlessly demolished in the name of progress. Concerted effort is imperative to protect heritage resources because these are revenue and job-generating assets that can spark economic revitalization, as the case of Vigan clearly shows.

However, there is a general lack of awareness at the local government level, which is precisely where policies should be formulated and ordinances passed to declare heritage districts and protect these as the town's or city's prime assets. Built heritage resources should be the core of any master plan for urban development and inner town/city revitalization. Livelihood opportunities are generated by adaptive re-use, the revival of traditional crafts for restoration work and an increase in tourism receipts.

Significantly, communities begin to feel a "pride of place".

The "Philippine Towns and Cities" seminar series is a communications campaign to influence policy makers at the local government level. Through the "Mayors' Forum", best practices are shared. Other stakeholders in the Executive branch, the private sector and the academe are invited to participate because heritage conservation is a multi-disciplinary concern.

In a second seminar, the Heritage Conservation Society will take this awareness and education campaign to the local governments of the Vizayas, where built heritage resources abound in the cities of Cebu, Bacolod, Iloilo, Dumaguete, Tagbilaran, and many others.

For more information, contact Ms. Dorie Soriano (HCS): 521-2239, 522-2497, info@heritage.org.ph; or Ms. Len Diño (UPF): 895-1812, 896-1902, 890-2480, annalynn.upf@gmail.com.

[SugarFreak]

October 04, 2007
Tourism month ends with two bangs
By Tanya Lopez

THE Negros Museum has capped September as Tourism Month with a double treat via a visual arts display by local artists and an interface with a dance group from Mindanao. Dubbed "Arts is Tourism," the exhibit organized by the Arts Association of Bacolod emphasized the importance of the industry in national development. Meanwhile, the Sining Kambayoka Ensemble of the Mindanao State University - Marawi shared their culture through a series of interactions following their September 24 performance of "Broken Dreams" at the West Negros College Gym.

Sunni Noel, Executive Director of Sining Kambayoka Ensemble, conducted the interaction/workshops on the State of Culture & Arts in Mindanao and the Kabayoka Theatre Forms. He got help from the cast and production of the internationally renowned theatre company.

Workshoppers ranging from elementary to college students, public and private school teachers, peace workers and performance artists gained insights and developed fresh perspectives on Mindanao culture and its people through close interaction and exchanges with the SKE performers.

The Negros Museum continues its goal to celebrate culture and the arts with the support of the Cultural Center of the Philippines - Outreach Division, Negros Cultural Foundation, West Negros College, Silay City Council and the Sacred Heart Seminary. Events to Watch out For:

* Coastal Negros on Canvas
Canvas Documentary 2: The People and Life in Coastal Negros kicks off on October 5, 6:00 p.m. at the lobby of the Negros Museum. The exhibit is the second of a series featuring the daily struggle for survival and the simplicity of the lifestyle of people from coastal Negros - from battling for a single meal to how they spend time for recreation. Self-taught artists Roland Dayon and Chalmer Relatorre hope to culminate their works captured on 24" x 22" canvasses with a book called The Canvas Documentary Project. Canvas Documentary 2 will be on exhibition until November 5.

* Learn Calligraphy for Free
A Free Workshop on Calligraphy: The Art of Chinese Painting will be conducted by Pancho Uytiepo every Saturday at 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. at the Negros Museum. The workshop is open to anyone interested to try their hand in painting. For reservations and inquiries, please contact Niña at 433-4764 or 708-5080.

* Three Short Comedies Coming Right up
The Massadya Productions presents "Tatsulok," featuring "Trabaho Soliloquies," "New Yorker from Sum-ag" and "Ngape Ta" on October 3 to 6, 6:30 p.m. at the Gallaga Theatre of the University of St. La Salle. The three short comedies were adapted to Hiligaynon by the Stage Production Class of the USLS Mass Communications Department, and directed by Carrie Franz Mendoza, Helen Joy Azucena and Mikhail Sandino Gamboa. Ayn Denise Lamela serves as production designer, while Rendric Planella takes care of the lighting design. Kassel Serfino works on the marketing and promotions, and Rosabel Sebua is the production manager.

[whyte]

taken during my trip to silay last august

[kyle@1008]

repost

Originally Posted by habagatcentral1

SPANISH SCENTS

Housing our rich past

DANIEL BETANCOURT EXPLORES THE ANCESTRAL HOMES OF NEGROS’ CULTURAL CAPITAL

The criss-cross streets of Silay, a small town north of Bacolod in Negros Occidental, are lined by scores of bahay na bato (stone houses), built by sugar barons and the landed farmers who tilled the cane fields during the Spanish period. Today they stand testament to the city’s former glory as the center of the sugar industry.
You can find similar structures, some even older and more historic than those in Silay, in towns such as Taal in Batangas, Malolos in Bulacan and several places in Pampanga and Nueva Ecija. Vigan in Ilocos has the most old buildings in the country and has earned the distinction of becoming a UNESCO World Heritage site. Yet despite coming second to Vigan in number, Silay’s stone houses are special as they paint a detailed picture of the life of the wealthy in the early 20th century. According to Dr Fernando Zialcita, co-author of Philippine Ancestral Houses, the dwellings were reserved for the country’s principalia and the ilustrados. These included rich farmers, traders and successful professionals.
Today, 31 of the ancestral homes are preserved, having been designated heritage homes by the National Historical Institute. They are densely concentrated and you can easily walk from one to the other. Some remain in private hands with the people living there quite literally living in the past. These may be closed to the public, but there are many that are open and a stroll around the city will bring you face to face with history.
An offshoot of the bahay kubo (single-room dwelling), the bahay na bato was designed to address the stresses of the Philippine environment. Its sturdy stone-based first floor and a lightweight, wooden second withstand the country’s frequent typhoons and earthquakes. They vary in size, lavishness, degree of preservation and current function.
If you are coming from Bacolod, the first ancestral building you will encounter is the El Ideal Bakery, a Silay institution. Occupying the ground floor of the Cesar Lacson Locsin Ancestral House, this café-boulangerie has been running for nearly a century. Passers-by go to great lengths to buy its freshly baked native confections such as pastillas de leche (carabao milk candy), white frosted bañadas (soft cookies), sugarcane and paciencia biscuits and lady fingers.
West of El Ideal on Cinco de Noviembre Street is the former home of Victor Gaston, son of a French sugar baron who settled in the Philippines. Built in 1897, this balayong wood structure housed eight of the owners’ 12 children. In the later part of the century, it fell into disuse until a group of Silaynons decided to restore the house and turn it into its present incarnation, the Balay Negrense Museum.
Near the city market is the Bernardino Jalandoni Ancestral House which was built in 1908. Now managed by the Silay Heritage Foundation, the house is also a museum with period pieces as well as a venue for artistic performances. One of its galleries contains photographs of all 31 of the houses designated treasures by the National Historical Institute.
Another heritage home with public access is the Vicente Conlu Montelibano House with its collection of antique furnishings. Meanwhile, the regal Maria Ledesma Golez House has been converted to the Silay branch of RCBC bank, while the Angel Araneta Ledesma house, aka the “Green House”, is currently used as the Silay culture and tourism offices.
Fronting the Cathedral of San Diego is the Kapitan Mariano Montelibano Lacson House whose first floors have been converted into an eatery and two cafés. New Café is a long-time favorite for the older men of Silay. It is where they meet and catch up with the latest town gossip and cockfight results over coffee.
One man who knows a lot about Silay and everyone in it is Ramon Hofileña. In fact the city owes a great deal to him, a statement he would probably never allow to cross his lips.
The very building where I had my puto (steamed rice cake) and coffee was saved because of his efforts.
In 1977, there was a plan to widen Rizal Street as part of one of the many road projects under a World Bank program to help farmers who were made impoverished by the sugar crisis at that time. This would have meant the highway encroaching on treasured properties including El Ideal and the Golez building.
Hofileña submitted a petition to the national government to have the decision reversed, much to the ire of the incumbent mayor. He, then with the city tourism board, organized the homeowners to rally behind his cause and the debate was brought to the governor who heard and mediated over the matter. Some owners even offered to donate land to create a diversion road. In the end, the houses were spared and the national highway between Bacolod and Victorias now narrows when it crosses through Silay. Other gems of Silay, however, couldn’t be saved. Its main plaza, for example, became a casualty of a misplaced affinity for the new.
Hofileña is a welcoming host, ushering me into the dim dining room of his family home with its Art Deco furniture. After offering me guapple pie, he recounts the history of the lost plaza: “Before the Second World War, that sunken plaza won the award as the best in the country,” he recalls. “The prize was PHP10, which was a lot of money back then.
It complemented the style of the Church of San Diego, which was Romanesque. It had two great fountains and statues of women and fawn-like figures amid a green landscaping, But under martial law, they filled it up,” he says.
“I was not around. I was in Manila. When I came back, there was only one tree left. I tried to save it.” The tree still stands in plaza today and many still call it the Ramon tree.
Hofileña spent most of his childhood in that house, which his father built in 1934, on Cinco de Noviembre Street. Studies brought him to Manila, where he took up journalism, while work brought him to New York. He came back because of his parents’ old age, returning to a town that was in stark contrast to the cultural buzz of Manhattan. So began his attempt to turn Silay into a cultural center. He organized art workshops and exhibitions, inviting artists and high society from the nation’s capital to a possible cultural rival in the heart of the Visayas.
Hofileña also began his annual cultural tour (see above left), which includes a guided tour of his own father’s house. In 1962, the Hofileña house was opened to the public for the first time, the first ancestral home in Silay to do so. The living and dining rooms are decorated with pictures of his parents and eight siblings - all of whom were involved in the arts: piano teachers, ballet and flamenco dancers, theater artists. Hofileña describes their achievements with pride. The comedor (dining room) is filled with treasures – cupboards containing antiques and archeological finds from the area and China, some an incredible 3,000-years-old.
Spanish chairs and a 200 year-old piano from Germany adorn the living room; and the library contains countless volumes of Filipiniana (some written by Hofileña himself), indigenous toys and wooden images of the Saint Vincent Ferrer, saved from the island’s old churches. At the center is a table with piles of books made sepia-colored by time. I picked one up, Portrait of Jennie by Robert Nathan, a story about an impoverished artist in New York who searched for a woman who inspired him. “I don’t care for novels anymore, but I read that three times,” Hofileña says.
Perhaps the most impressive part of his art collection is on the second floor. It includes works by national artists such as Juan Luna, Felix Resurrecion Hidalgo, Fernando Amorsolo, Ang Kiukok and BenCab among others. A cross-section of the most important talents in Philippine art from the 19th century on, it is probably the most comprehensive personal collection on public display. However, the works that stir the most emotion are those by Conrado Judith, whose canvases Hofileña discovered in the thatch hut Judith was living in. Many were already damaged by the sun and rain.
A poor high school graduate, Judith painted billboards and posters for the movie houses for a living, while at home he painted abstract expressionist pieces. He died of tuberculosis at 34, long before any of his pieces could be mounted in an exhibition.
On the terrace on the second floor, I noticed the neighboring ancestral house across the yard, well on the slow road towards decay. Weather and termites are natural enemies of these houses, but far worse is neglect by the owners. Most of the real owners left these homes a long time ago, settling in bigger cities or emigrating abroad. Meanwhile, those who stay do not have the technical abilities to preserve or the means to do so.
Silay’s heyday may have passed a long time ago, but what is left are the stories of its sons and daughters – revolutionaries, statesmen, economic leaders, prominent artists – and the houses they lived in. This is what keeps it alive in our consciousness.
The Manuel Severino Hofileña Heritage House is a place that keeps this rich heritage alive. On the walls, are a story of our country, echoes of the past and an inheritance it is our challenge to protect. From the humble sugar farmer who built this house for his wife and nine children, to the Japanese commanders who met under its roof, to the siblings who sought shelter in its warmth after they were widowed, to the many children who played in its garden, to the countless national artists who have been its guests right up to its faithful caretaker and storyteller.
The houses in Silay are an umbilical cord that connects us to the past and the pastoral, and the best way for us to prevent it from being cut off is to support the tours and to visit our history.
PHOTOGRAPHS BY LESTER V LEDESMA AND IRWIN CRUZ

ANNUAL CULTURAL TOUR OF NEGROS OCCIDENTAL BY RAMON HOFILEÑA
Tour dates All Saturdays of December except holidays, 9am to 5.30pm.
Itinerary includes Bacolod, Silay (Jalandoni and Hofileña heritage homes), Victorias (Church of St Joseph the Worker); Manapla (Chapel of the Carwheels); Talisay.
Fee PHP600 (USD13.75), limited to 55 people
Tel Jara Laboratory (034) 434 6398.
USEFUL DETAILS
Where to stay: Fortuna Pension House, tel (034) 495 3981, email elleng@bacolod.worldtelphil.com, from PHP400 (USD9.15)
Where to eat: El Ideal, New Café, Sir – all on Rizal Street
How to get there: From Bacolod central market: a Bacolod – Escalante bus, or a Bacolod – Silay jeepney; PHP10 (USD0.23)
Silay Tourism Office, tel (034) 495 5145

Source: Cebu Pacific Smiles

[SugarFreak]

January 16, 2008
Lopez Jaena death commemoration reset

THE local commemoration of the death anniversary of national Ilongo hero Graciano Lopez Jaena has been reset for January 18, said Rolly Espina, chair of the Negros Chapter of the Lopez Jaena Clan.

The re-scheduling was due to the request by the city education department under Dr. Milagros Gonzalez it be reset for Friday, January 18, to allow students to attend and participate in the commemorative rites.

Espina had relayed the new schedule to members of the clan who normally attend the yearly ritual to honor the memory of Lopez Jaena.

He disclosed that the same announcement had also been relayed to members of the Association of Freemasonic lodges of Bacolod and the province through Restito Pahilanga.

The same had also been relayed to members of the Bacolod Capitol Lions Club and, hopefully, to the lions clubs like the Kanlandog who normally participate in the yearly affair.

"We hope that the affair will draw in enough participants despite the lack of time to get in touch with all participating groups," Espina said.

Incidentally, Espina said Silay City Mayor Jose "Oti" Montelibano will confer soon with Vice Mayor Mark Golez on what to do with the recent findings that Lopez Jaena had lived in Silay City some two years in the farm owned by his younger brother, Pedro, before he went into self-exile in Spain to carry out his propaganda movement.

Last year, the Silay descendants of Eustaquio Lopez, reinforced by the descendants of Placido Lopez Jaena, held their reunion in Silay City precisely to highlight the fact that the national hero had sent two years in Silay where he honed his oratorical and writing skills before going to Spain. (PR)