Lilac Caña’s concert: A musical masterpiece

Lilac Caña’s concert: A musical masterpiece

TORONTO–The spirits of the earth seemed to be singing in glee on the day of Lilac Caña’s 4th CD launch Concert, aptly titled “I’ll Be With You on Earth Day.”

Even the rain seemed a blessing on that day, as concert guests, some coming all the way from Ottawa, eagerly showed up early at The Assembly Hall, located at Colonel Samuel Smith Park Drive in Toronto – an elegant and lovely venue near the lake for a special musical event.

After all, this was a concert that Lilac and her family – mother Ligaya, father Popoy and brother Jove – worked so hard for a year to organize, with the support of colleagues in music and the arts, friends, benefactors, patrons and donors.

The 250-capacity hall was filled to the rafters, so to speak, that some last minute ticket buyers at the site had to be politely turned away.

The two-hour show was a musical masterpiece that displayed the exceptional vocal artistry of Lilac Caña. She is equally at ease with the classics, as in her solo rendition of W. A. Mozart’s Alleluia; the opera, as in her powerful duet with tenor Leander Mendoza of Libiamo, from the Verdi opera La Traviata; and the Filipino classics, as in her exhilarating interpretation of Jose Estrella’s Ang Maya. Most memorable was Lilac’s and Leander’s soulful and moving interpretation of David Foster and Carol Sager’s The Prayer, which left the audience in silent awe, long after the last note was sung.

Adding variety and excitement to the show was the participation of Lilac’s professional music colleagues as guest artists, and her talented students. Among the guest artists were Fred Cacciotti, singer, recording artist and songwriter who performed his original compositions on his guitar, solo and with Lilac. Other artists were flutists Jane Johnson and Natalie Cabri; flamenco dancer Diana Keats; pianist Catherine Maguire; and artist/stage designer Omel Masalunga.

Lilac’s students were a joy to watch as they displayed exceptional talent, discipline and professionalism, that no amount of technical glitches could erode their stage composure or disrupt their performance. Among the student performers were Alexander Barrete-Tsaur, Alexandra Barrete-Tsaur, Jeremie Canagaratnam, Melanie Canagaratnam, Shannon Gellatly, Belinda Corpuz, Lita E. Ladislao, Julia Lim, and Diane Shepherd.

“There is more to Lilac, however, that makes her even more special as an artist, and this is her great humanity, which is reflected in the way she lives, loves and shares her music: her concern for the environment, her love of life, her pride in her roots and her compassion for the less fortunate – the poor, the marginalized and most vulnerable,” to quote a message from the spokesperson of the Citizens’ Disaster Response Centre (CDRC), one of the beneficiaries of the concert.

In a special presentation held at the start of the “Rebuilding People’s Lives Concert,” Lilac presented a generous $1,000 cheque from the proceeds of her own concert, to benefit the CDRC-managed livelihood project of the 470 families most affected by the mudslide in Guinsaugon, St. Bernard, Southern Leyte Philippines. M.A.G.