Reviving Original Pilipino Music through CFM’s Awit Paulinian
by Louise Navarro
Flaunting the musicality of paulinians, the Center for Music recently premiered “Awit Paulinian” last October 24, 2020. This contest includes two different divisions with three performers for the junior division and two performers for the senior division.
The overall theme of this event revolved around finding hope in the midst of difficult times — a theme timely and relevant given current circumstances. The mechanics mandated all performers to perform a song that best manifests this chosen theme and record their performances.
In the junior division composed of students from grades seven to nine, one solo performer served as the representative of their respective batches. For the youngest in the department, age was definitely not a limiting factor as Purple Quintos confidently carried out her performance of Isa Pang Araw of Sarah Geronimo. On the other hand, the representative of Batch 2025, Audrey Imbao, most definitely did not back down with her calming cover of Umagang Kay Ganda by Ray-an Fuentes and Tillie Moreno. Finally, Jesse Nativadad of Batch 2024 manifested her skills and creativity with her own rendition of Natutulog ba ang Diyos by Gary Valenciano.
As for the senior division, band representatives from grades 10 and 12 carried out performances aligned with the set theme. From Batch 2023, a group of students who initially did not expect to bond over music formed Aster, which comprises Maia Arnaez on percussion, Asia Maristela and Tony Rilloraza on guitar, Andrea Mineses on the keyboard, and Allonah Santos on vocals. Their performance of Antukin by Rico Blanco most definitely enlivened and energized the audience to groove to their music. As for the eldest of not only this division but the entire department, the band Oblivion, which consists of Steph Dinglasan on guitar, Steph Flores on violin, Nicole Juinio on vocals, Mary Laurel on the bass, and Jasmin Mariano on the drums gathered together in hopes of leaving a legacy of their shared love for music on their last year in school. Riding to the beat of music, Oblivion made its way venturing into the great unknown with their performance of Sunrise by Ben & Ben.
All performances were carefully judged with certain criteria per division by a panel of judges composed of Ms. Marianne Miguel, Ms. Sheila Pedrajas, and Ms. Honey Jose. Among the performers of the junior division, Audrey Imbao prevailed and nabbed the first place prize with her commendable performance. As for the senior division, there was no stopping Oblivion as they rose to the top of the competition. The remarkable performances from these two performers have definitely revived the essence of OPM in finding light during dark times.
