By Vic Sevilla
MELODIES, the harmony of notes, and the ability of the human voice to communicate a spectrum of sentiments give music widespread appeal. Recognizing the intrinsic power of music to inspire and the Filipino’s instinctive love for singing, Diageo Philippines recently launched Plan W Philippines 2015. This aims to hone the skills of music teachers and conductors in the proper organizing, sustaining and nurturing of choirs.
Why music? “We wanted to create a platform that we can sustainably invest in. I think that if we focus on one thing, the platform becomes a lot bigger and more powerful to make a lot of impact to the community. We chose singing and music for the Philippines because we believe in working according to the prevailing passion of the community—and Filipinos are just passionate about music and singing. In choosing music, I think we have been able to tap into the passion of many Filipinos,” Diageo Philippines General Manager Jon Good explains.
Growing up to the hymns of the island
Having been born in Wellington, New Zealand, Good has had early exposure to different types of music. He relates, “We have lot of diversity in our culture because the country has had cultural influences from Europeans, Maoris, Polynesians, Tongans, Samoans, and Cook Islanders — and all of these groups have their own languages and music. So I grew up listening to a variety of music. New Zealand is a very musical country. In fact it is the only country in the world whose national rugby team, the All Blacks, starts every game with a haka.” The haka is a traditional Maori war cry and dance.
Although he admits that choral music was not something he has had a lot of exposure to before, he promptly fell in love with the music of the Philippine Madrigal Singers. “When I first heard the Madz [the nickname given to the internationally-awarded choral group], I was amazed. I couldn’t believe how talented these people are. Every time I hear them, they sound better and better. So I am now a big choral music fan,” he adds.
Plan W Philippines and the empowering force of music
Sadly, despite the huge number of excellent Filipino singers and choral groups, the music industry offers limited formal music training. In far-flung communities, most especially, grassroots music teachers and conductors continue to struggle to raise the quality and standards of singing. This dilemma is further aggravated by inadequate employment opportunities and little prospect for artistic growth.
In light of the sorry plight of music teachers and choral conductors, Plan W Philippines aims to increase the competence, credibility, and long-term sustainable employment of 35 women choir conductors and teachers in all regions of the country.
Its target participants must possess the potential and ability to teach music, but have limited opportunity, resources, and access to formal training and education.
Good says, “We, at Diageo Philippines, think that the community can only benefit in many positive ways when we give women the means to earn money, to have confidence, and to have leadership skills.”
Partnering with Sing Philippines
Realizing that choosing the 35 participants from tens of thousands of church-, school- and community-based choral groups from all over the country presents an enormous challenge, Diageo partnered with Sing Philippines to fulfill the vision of Plan W Philippines. “The program is something that Diageo wanted to do but couldn’t do by itself. We approached the Madz originally because they are the best in the world. We were very happy to hear that they’ve already set up Sing Philippines. We saw that we could collaborate together, so we’re very excited to be working with Sing Philippines,” Good tells.
A pet project of the late Andrea O. Veneracion, Philippine National Artist for Music and founder of the Philippine Madrigal Singers, Sing Philippines remains a valuable skills development program. “When I became a member of the Madz in 1992, Professor Veneracion was already conducting the outreach programs. We trained, and continue to train, mostly the choir conductors. That also gave us the opportunity to work with local choirs, so we get to train the singers as well,” says Mark Anthony Carpio, former Madz member and current artistic director of Sing Philippines.
To select the 35 women participants for Plan W Philippines, the organization released an application form requiring a potential candidate to write something about the choir. This, says Carpio, will help them determine the number of people that will benefit from the program. Obviously Sing Philippines will put a considerable weight on the talent and skill of the conductor. “Since only 35 choir conductors will qualify, we want to get as many representatives as possible from the different regions of the country,” he adds.
The training program is a rigorous course divided into two stages. Initially the selected women teachers will fly to Manila to attend a weeklong immersion program that includes sessions on musicality and musicianship, choral conducting, teaching techniques and organizational management skills. After that, participants will be sent back to their communities to form and develop their own singing groups.
In the second stage, workshop trainers will visit the participants to observe the application of their learning. They will also guide the women as they work with their choirs in their respective localities. The culminating activity will be a concert that showcases the fruits of the program to the local community.
This reinforces the goal of empowering women to nurture Filipino culture in their communities through the inclusive nature of ensemble music. “Choral singing is a form of musical art that’s most accessible to everyone, especially in this country. For example, a church in a single locality will have more than one choir that need skilled choral conductors and singers. So Plan W Philippines is important because there are so many people who can benefit from this,” Carpio emphasizes.
Plan W is part of Diageo’s new 2020 sustainability and responsibility targets which aims to build thriving communities. To realize this vision, it recognizes the need to empower women across all socioeconomic profiles. In Asia Pacific the goal is to reach two million women across all socioeconomic demographic profiles by 2017.
“When we empower women, when we hone their abilities and use these to their fullest potential, a lot of positive things can happen in their families, their communities and their countries,” Good says.
A global leader in beverage alcohol, Diageo’s outstanding collection of premium brands include Johnnie Walker, VAT69, J&B, Smirnoff, Baileys, Tanqueray, Gilbey’s and Guinness, among many others. It is the first beverage alcohol company to sign the UN Women’s Empowerment Principles globally. To date the company’s Plan W program has empowered more than 115,000 women and trained more than 43,000 men across 16 countries, impacting more than 575,000 people.