The Gilisingers from Taiwan brought home the bacon in this year’s 3^rd Bohol International Choir Festival and Competition (BICFC) consisting of a $10,000 prize money, a gold medal and a trophy.

This, from Romulo Tagaan, Center for Culture and Arts Development (CCAD) Head of the Provincial Government of Bohol (PGBh).

The three-day event opened with a street parade in the afternoon of June 9^th, followed by the opening program at the Bohol Cultural Center attended by no less than Gov. Edgar M. Chatto and Ferdinand Isleta, Arts Section Head of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA).

A welcome dinner immediately followed at the Bohol Tropics Resort.

Delegations vied for five categories.

The Dr. Cecilio Putong National High School (DCPNHS) Choir and the Tagbilaran City Science High School (TSCHS) Glee Club for the Junior Category; the Saigon Ladies Singers and the Cebu Male Singers for the Adult Equal; the Gilisingers and the Cebu Male Singers for Pop; the DCPNHS Choir and the TSCHS Glee Club for Folklore; and the DREAMHIGH Goyang Citizens’ Choir, with no competitor, for the Adult Mixed Category.

“This year’s festival was indeed a very colorful, memorable and a very successful one, which made it even more significant because two local choirs joined in the competition,” Gov. Chatto enthused.

For this year, a total of nine Boholano local choirs joined in the festival, including the TSCHS Glee Club and the DCPNHS Choir, our official entries to the competition.

The two Boholano delegations gave their best in the series of performances required by the organizers.

Gov. Chatto said that “we might not have won this year, but still, kudos to our two Boholano delegations who obviously fared very well in the competition and gave their best to make us all proud.  Hats off to our young Boholano world-class performers.”

The youthful Boholano singers admitted that joining in the competition gave them the golden opportunity of bonding with their foreign Asian counterparts.

“Signing up for this annual festival has given our young Boholano talents the break they needed to engage in cultural exchanges with the youth from other countries, an excellent way of honing their skills and bringing their singing prowess to the fore,” Tagaan said, gladly sharing what he had observed.

As part of the BICFC outreach program, a free public concert was held in Dimiao town in the evening of June 8 by the Saigon Ladies Singers and by the DREAMHIGH Goyang Citizens’ Choir.

Another concert was also held at the UCCP Church in Tagbilaran City in the evening of June 11 by the Goyang Choir and the Bohol Meister Singers.

The Cebu Male Singers bagged the Second Place with the prize money of $2,000, a gold medal and a trophy for the Adult Equal Category; while Third Placers, the Saigon Ladies Singers, the TSCHS Glee Club, and again, the Cebu Male Singers, got $1,000 and a gold medal each.

Best Stage Performance went to the Saigon Ladies Singers, Best Folklore Performance to the TSCHS Glee Club, with the DREAMHIGH Goyang Citizens’ Choir given the Best Conductor Award.

The DCPNHS Choir was given two special awards, a silver medal and a bronze one; while the TSCHS Glee Club received a silver medal special award.

Tagaan said that everything was made possible by the Provincial Government and his office due to the invaluable support from, and concerted efforts with, the City Government of Tagbilaran, the Department of Tourism (DOT), the Tourism Promotions Board, Liwayway Marketing Corp./Oishi and The World Mice. (JLV/PGBh/EDCom)