MANILA, PHILIPPINES– The Cultural Center of the Philippines through the CCP Office of the President presents a music festival featuring all-Filipino jazz talents in JAZZ STAY AT HOME: Virtual Jazz Festival 2020, which will be streamed live online via Facebook on the CCP Office of the President page and the CCP page on September 25-27 and October 2-4, 2020 at 7:30pm.
The festival is free to the public, and forms part of the CCP Office of the President Outreach Program billed as “Sining Sigla”. “Sining Sigla” is the said program’s pivot to digital that further highlights its indefatigable mission of reaching out to its public despite the current ban on communal activities due to the pandemic.
During the pandemic, music and the arts have proven to be the most resilient and continued to bring not just entertainment and diversion but hope to everyone around the world.
A program of Sining Sigla, the virtual music festival JAZZ STAY AT HOME features an all-Filipino powerhouse of jazz talents that include Nicole Asensio, Baihana, Tots Tolentino, Michael Guevarra, Simon Tan Trio, Pipo Cifra, Lorna Cifra, and many other notable names in the Philippine jazz scene.
Hosted by Stanley Seludo, a musician himself and a CCP Trustee, this online event brings together jazz enthusiasts, both artists and audiences, in a series of concerts that showcases the different periods in jazz history. The best thing about this breakthrough event is that people can enjoy it at the comfort and safety of their homes.
Schedule for the jazz festival are as follows:
On September 25, the festival officially opens with a message from CCP President Arsenio J. Lizaso and a brief tour of the evolution of jazz. This is followed by TIMELESS JAZZ, a selection of all-time favorite jazz songs presented by award-winning singer and songwriter Nicole Laurel Asensio. Nicole is often referred to as the “Schizoprano” because of her prolific and versatile vocal abilities.
On September 26, a Lecture-Demo Concert titled “Saxophone Music Production at Home” will be conducted by multi-awarded saxophonist and musical arranger Michael Guevarra. His informative talk includes topics like live recording and Midi sequencing for Minus 1, and made more entertaining by interpolated musical numbers.
This is followed by PINOY JAZZ, a showcase of all-original jazz compositions with a touch of Filipino music featuring Baihana, an all-female vocal trio that creates, arranges, and performs music that is uniquely refreshing to audiences young and old.
On September 27, multi-awarded saxophone player Tots Tolentino performs online in FREE JAZZ, also known as improvisation where musicians play with liberty to create melodies on the spot. Tolentino is considered one of the leading and finest session musicians in the Philippines, as well as a legendary and multi-awarded saxophone player whose recordings are critically-acclaimed.
On October 2, THE WONDERFUL WORLD OF BOSSA NOVA features multi-awarded musical director, composer, and arranger Peter Paul “Pipo” Cifra as he talks about the fundamentals of jazz and its use in the composition of Bossa Nova, which is a mixture of soft samba and American jazz. This is followed by IMPROVISATION AND ALL THAT JAZZ featuring Pipo Cifra’s sister, Japan-based Bossa Nova artist Lorna Cifra.
On October 3, MODERN JAZZ will be presented by Simon Tan Trio. Composed of equally-accomplished jazz artists Simon Tan, Joey De Guzman, and Rey Vinoya, the Simon Tan Trio has been active performers in the local concert scene, in theater productions, and in festivals that resulted to collaborations with notable local and international artists.
On October 4, the festival closes in an evening showcase of the Philippines’ jazz greats featuring Baihana, Simon Tan Trio, Nicole Laurel Asensio and Tots Tolentino. This gala showcase promises a grand night of free-spirited jazz music splendor.
