Linggo ng Musikang Pilipino holds 2nd online edition

ONLINE platforms and streaming performances have allowed performing artists to continue their craft amidst the long coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) lockdown. Even music festivals have gone digital, with Linggo Ng Musikang Pilipino (Philippine Music Week) going the online route for the second time as it continues to promote Filipino artists from all over the world through social media platforms.

Organized and produced by the Organisasyon ng Pilipinong Mang-aawit (OPM) and the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA), 2021 marks the annual music festival’s 7th year.

This year’s celebration has the tagline “Ituloy Ang Awitan” (Continue the Singing). The virtual events of Linggo Ng Musikang Pilipino (LMP) are currently ongoing and will run until Aug. 1, streaming live via OPM’s Facebook page and the Kumu mobile application.

LMP Project Manager Gab Cabangon noted that collaboration was an important factor for the success of last year’s online celebration.

“One thing that we learned is that things can be bigger through collaborating with more partners,” Mr. Cabangon said at the online press launch on July 22 held via Zoom. “That’s why we reached out to Kumu this year,” he said, stating that artists are also able to interact with fans on the app. “And since LMP is about celebrating Filipino music, what better way [to do this than] to partner with a locally created app to feature Filipino artist.”

The programs include online performances on #DigiGigs, #LMP2021Sessions, and #LMPConcertSeries.

This year’s online concerts will feature performances from Noel Cabangon, Christian Bautista, Sandwich, 6cyclemind, Gracenote, Bayang Barrios, Cookie Chua, PhilPop Grand Champions and Chud Festejo, Miss Ramonne, and artists from Warner Music Philippines.

LMP has also partnered with AmiananPop, MinPop, Kadasig & Artist Ko, and Soupstar Music to ensure that artists with different backgrounds and from different regions are given equal opportunities to perform and engage with the community.

“We wanted there to be a balance between independent artists and mainstream/signed artists from all over the country and to try to cover as many styles and genres as possible. OPM already has a large roster of artists and we wanted to be able to feature as many as we can from the organization. We took into consideration their music and styles as well as the platforms that they are active in for the artists performing [in] the LMP DigiGigs,” singer Christian Bautista, who returns as one of this year’s performers, said in a statement.

Aside from the online concerts, LMP and the theater group Philippine Educational Theater Association (PETA) will present a special online showcase featuring the songs from Rak of Aegis. PETA’s very successful musical about a flood features songs from the local jukebox band Aegis.

Other activities include a music industry lecture series on July 28 to 31, 6 p.m., by the Filipino Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, Inc. (FILSCAP) with songwriters Louie Ocampo, Kitchie Nadal, Yeng Constantino, and Moira Dela Torre.

Ang mga programang ganito ang tumutulong para hikayatin ang bawat Pilipino na mahalin natin ang ating musika (Programs like these help encourage each Filipino to love our music),” singer, songwriter, and OPM board member Noel Cabangon said.

Bagamat may paborito tayo na mga musikang banyaga na naririnig natin, bigyan din natin ng puwang ang mga musika na likha dito sa atin. Patuloy tayong nagpapayabong. Marami ang nasusulat hindi lamang sa Wikang Pambansa kung hindi maging sa mga wika sa iba-bang rehiyon (Event though we have favorite foreign music that we listen to, let us give room to music created here. We continue to enrich it. Many songs are written not only in the national language but also in the various regional languages),” he added.

For more information and the full schedule of performances, webinars, and masterclasses, visit www.lmp.com.ph/ and www.facebook.com/PinoySingers/. — Michelle Anne P. Soliman