VIRAL: Youth choir surprises LRT passengers with serenade

MANILA, Philippines – The Sing Philippines Youth Choir (SPYC) surprised oblivious LRT-2 passengers on Friday afternoon, June 3, when they sang The Dawn’s “Iisang Bangka,” in an effort by the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) to promote culture and the arts to the public. 

The viral video, uploaded by CCP in its YouTube account on Saturday, shows members of the SPYC entering the train in Recto Station along with commuters, and suddenly bursting into a song performance in V. Mapa to an astonished crowd. A dabakan (Philippine drum) was used to signal the start of the performance.

As of posting, the video on Youtube already reached more than 40,000 views. 

Pauline Arejola, 20, soprano singer from Laguna, said the flash mob experience was fulfilling because they were able to share music and provide happiness to the commuting public.

“Kahit mainit ‘yung biyahe at kahit siksikan sa LRT, the experience was very fulfilling and worth the long wait. Nakakataba ng puso na makitang ngumiti ang mga pasahero na alam din naming init na init na sa mahabang biyahe,” she told Rappler. 

(Even if the trip was hot and the LRT was overcrowded the experience was very fulfilling and worth the long wait. It was heartwarming to see the passengers – who we knew were feeling very hot because of the long trip – smile.)

Arejola added that the advovacy of SPYC is “to encourage the whole nation to sing.”

‘Not about fund raising’

Tenor I singer Joshua Cadeliña, 18, from Rizal shared how an elderly woman approached him after their performance and told him the SPYC should have passed a basket around to collect money. The woman told him the collection is being done in Europe whenever there is a flash mob.

“Sagot ko, ‘okay lang po. Ang goal naman po namin ay ibahagi sa inyo kung ano ang nangyayari sa loob ng CCP at ang kagandahan ng chorale music’,” Cadeliña, who is also a member of Acapellago, told Rappler.

 (I replied, “It’s okay, because our goal was to share to you what is happening inside the CCP and the beauty of chorale music.”) 

The Batch 1 and Batch 2 of the SPYC are comprised of 100 talented singers hailing from various Philippine regions. Launched in 2014 by the Philippine Madrigal Singers (MADz), in partnership with CCP Center for Choral Performance, the program aims to enhance the skills of the singers, and promote choral music through workshops and cultural activities. Part of the members’ responsibility is to share their SPYC experiences in their respective communities.

The SPYC stemmed from the vision of the late National Artist and MADz founder Andrea Veneracion of “a nation singing in harmony and united in songs,” as stated in the CCP website. – Rappler.com 

Katrina Artiaga is a Rappler intern and a Journalism student at the University of the Philippines – Diliman.