It was the year music, theater and dance thrived amid unpredictable monsoon floods and record-breaking typhoons and earthquakes.
Here and abroad, pianist Cecile Licad showed the Filipino musician as unbeatable interpreter in solo recitals. Appearing as soloist in orchestral engagements such as Liszt’s Piano Concerto No. 1 and Totentanz, Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 2, Tchaikovsky No. 1 and Rachmaninoff’s Variations on a Theme by Paganini and Piano Concerto No. 2, Licad proved what the Filipino artist is made of in landmark concerts which got her standing ovations from Texas to Rhode Island, from Hawaii to Miami and from Germany to Manila.
For this reason, Licad remains the Pianist of the Year.
On the basis of engagements here and abroad, tenor Arthur Espiritu remains the country’s number one tenor with well-received recitals and operatic engagements. He sang Cassio (Otello) in Pavarotti’s hometown of Modena in Italy. He was heard as Prince Ramiro in Rossini’s Cenerentola in Pittsburgh. He also debuted as the Duke in Rigoletto in Switzerland, and sang his first Barber of Seville in Manila to enthusiastic response.
Espiritu is now in Oper Leipzig’s new production of “Don Pasquale”; then he will be off to Baden Baden in March to perform Edmondo in Puccini’s “Manon Lescaut” with conductor Simon Rattle at the Baden Baden Festspielhaus.
For consistently raising the standard of bel canto in this country drowning in noontime amateur singing contests, Espiritu is my Tenor of the Year.
Pianist Najib Ismail figured in all the first-rate recitals during the year. He has a close affinity with the singing voice and proved to one and all that a singer, or any instrumentalist for that matter, is nothing without an equally good collaborating artist.
Ismail, who will team up with Korean opera superstar Sumi Jo, on Feb. 1, is my Collaborating Pianist of the Year.
Soprano
Almost always heard in the company of soprano Camille Lopez Molina, soprano Margarita Guannelli has come of age as a singer. Whether singing Micaela (Carmen) or as soloist in Rossini’s Petite Messe Solemnelle, Guannelli proved that maturity and versatility had settled comfortably in her vocal instrument and thus music lovers relished her ravishing sound during the year.
For once, she is my choice as Soprano of the Year.
As soloist in Bartok’s Violin Concerto No. 2 with the Manila Symphony Orchestra under Arturo Molina at the UP Abelardo Hall and Francisco Santiago Hall, violinist Diomedes Saraza let out a sound as electrifying as it was well-nuanced.
There is no doubt in my mind that he is the Violinist of the Year.
Mounting her latest choreography, “A Christmas Carol” for Ballet Philippines, Edna Vida proved her choreographic ideas remained fertile and versatile. Her latest work charmed and dazzled and in the end, bewitched the holiday crowd at the CCP..
She is my Choreographer of the Year.
Returning on stage as Scrooge in “A Christmas Carol,” danseur Nonoy Froilan gave us a simple but revealing insight into what constitutes character dancing. The Edna Vida choreography was cheered to high heavens but the audiences reserved their standing ovation for the Scrooge of Nonoy Froilan.
This devoted apostle of dance from Calbiga, Samar is my Danseur of the Year for an astounding portrayal as Scrooge in “A Christmas Carol.”
For two nights, the followers of theater, music and dance merged and applauded the best of each supreme world-class talent. For this reason, prima ballerina Lisa Macuja Elizalde, theater icon Lea Salonga, pianist Cecile Licad and conductor Gerard Salonga are my Collaborating Artists of the Year.
Albay Gov. Joey Salceda used the magic of theater and dance using Bicol songs and folklore to promote tourism in the Bicol region. For using the power of the arts to improve the quality of life in Albay, Governor Salceda is my Cultural Worker of the Year.