Sunday, Sept. 3, 2017 at 7 p.m.
Recognized by the UNESCO as Artists for Peace for “putting their fame and influence to promote cultural diversity, intercultural dialogue and a culture of peace,” the Philippine Madrigal Singers is one of the most awarded choral groups in the world, having consistently won all top prizes in major choral competitions, including the Grand Prix in the recently concluded 64th Concurso Internazionale di Guido d’ Arezzo last August 2016 in Arezzo, Italy. They hold the distinction of being the first choir in the world to win the prestigious European Grand Prix for Choral Singing twice (1997 and 2007).
The Madz, as they are fondly called, is the Philippines’ most active ambassadors of goodwill. They have sung for many of the world’s most influential and prominent leaders in state visits and command performances. Among them were Pope Paul VI, Pope John Paul II, Pope Francis, United States Presidents Gerald Ford, Richard Nixon, and Barack Obama, French President François Hollande, King Juan Carlos I and Queen Sophia of Spain, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, Vietnam President Tôn Đức Thắng, Princess Margaret of the United Kingdom, His Royal Highness Prince Haji ‘Abdul ‘Azim of Brunei, Queen Fabiola of Belgium, and Emperor Hirohito of Japan. Their frequent world concert tours have made them the most travelled and far-reaching performing group in the Philippines.
The Madz is a 26-person choral ensemble composed of students, faculty and alumni of the University of the Philippines. They perform a wide repertoire of various styles and forms: renaissance music, classical music, Filipino and international folksongs, contemporary and avant-garde music, opera and even popular music.
The group’s virtuosity across a vast repertoire range, its continuing promotion of Filipino choral works and the rousing and deeply emotional impact that each performance has on all audiences the world over as they sing in the distinctive set- up of sitting in a semi-circle without a conductor have establi
