The legend has a name:INGRID SALA SANTAMARIA.

On Saturday, February 26, 2017 at 3:00 p.m. the Cebu Youth Symphony Orchestra together with a legend, Ms. Ingrid Sala Santamaria (the woman who was assisted in the picture below) organized an event which they believe will have a beneficial effect on the students, it is an educational concert of orchestra in which the structure and the instruments that composed it were explained singly. 

The concert opened with Nabucco by Giuseppe Verdi (1841). This piece began quietly but when strings were plucked in unison as the orchestra tried to intensify the emotion inside the Waterfront Hotel, Grand Ballroom Hall, the violin and the cello dominated the hall as the sound resonated across hundreds of people watching the concert. It was a very overwhelming experience really.

 I  personally was amazed with the thought that I was actually sitting few meters away with these amazing people, maybe one thing that have influenced me, liking this type of concert is the movie If I stay and wait also, the anime Your Lie in April which also talks about classical music and artists. 

Photo taken by Gale Catubig  
(UP High School Cebu-SHS student)

I do believe apart from me, the other students from other schools were also obviously excited with the educational concert, as it is evident in their body language, who have patiently waited for Ms. Ingrid to finally get on the stage and hit the keys. And when she was actually on her way to the stage and was introduced to perform, the audience applauded, but it was cut shortly when Ms. Ingrid started caressing the keys of the piano she was facing.  

She performed Concierto, and within the whole play she managed to convey her message and moods to hundreds of pairs of ears listening to her perform for the last time. She made every part of her play very astonishing, leaving every audience awestruck as she successfully hit the keys and note by note. And that's what makes it a far more involving concert experience. She hits the tiles as though she was telling us to look at her, and that she still have a lot to give and show,as if she was proving us that NO, "Age really doesn't matter". People may age but your talent, your skills and your passion for music never will. For it'll stay forever in your heart, as it is already part of yourself.  

 I was so lucky to be there, to have witnessed all these as I laid my back on my seat, stiff, open-mouthed. I sit there like a kid watching her mom walk towards her with a cotton candy in her hand, I was so excited, amazed and I was pretty much caught up in the excitement of the moment that I care less about where my friends are sitting and I don't think a lot about what might happen next. 

Maybe, that's how passionate I really was that time. I even appreciated more the Classical Music  than to be that music I used to play whenever I study . Now, I consider it to be more than just that "kind of music" I use to refer to.  It is like an escape to me now, a remedy to my stressful and hectic student life. 

I don't know if it's appropriate to mention it here but I actually kind of already consider a Classical Concert to be an ideal date now. What do you think? Well, you can leave a comment below, I'd love to hear a feedback from you soon :)

The Fine Line: Islamic Arts and Spanish Arts

Arts of the Islamic World

      Have you heard about Taj Mahal? Have you seen it? Did you know the story behind building this mausoleum? Did anyone told you it is an Islamic Art? Well, if you don't and you haven't seen it then you must have skipped that part of your life where you could have watched  and witnessed a very fascinating product of how Art has evolved. But, there's no need for you to worry because I will show it to you right on your screen. 

       Taj Mahal is an immense of white marble built by the order of the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in Agra between 1631 and 1648 in memory of his favorite wife, the Taj Mahal is the jewel of Muslim art in India and one of the universally admired masterpieces of the world's heritage. 

Now, you might wonder why is Taj Mahal considered to be a Muslim art when in fact, it is not a religious artwork. So what really is an Islamic Art? 

One of the most common misconceptions about the art during the rise of Muslim regime is that it is aniconic; that is, the art does not contain representations of humans or animals. Too often this misconception is pretty much legit that we tend to believe it, the idea that Muslim or Islamic Arts are highly focused on religious arts and architecture like that of their early examples such as the: Dome of the Rock and the Aqsa Mosque---both in Jerusalem) --and the Great Mosque of Damascus--which was built under the Umayyad rulers--- and it didn't include human or any animal figures which gave more emphasis to the misconception they used to believed long before. 

A certain artwork is called or labeled to be an Islamic Art when the art discussed was created in the world where Islam was a dominant religion or a major culture force but was not necessarily be a religious art. Today, the word Islamic is often used to describe something religious; thus using the phrase Islamic art is mistakenly interpreted to mean that all of this art is religious in nature. However, these artworks are not solely made for Muslims or by Muslims. 

Spanish Arts

Pablo Picasso, El Greco, Francisco Goya, Salvador Dali, Joaquin Sorolla and Francisco Pancheco are only few of the most renowned spanish artist.  Spain has been the homeland of a lot of famous artists over the centuries. With that, Spanish art has been highly recognized by those who studied Spanish in Spain as a very important part of Spanish  culture and history. 

However, Spanish art is not only shaped by the history and  culture of the Spain alone, but it is a combination of different influences from their neighboring countries and the continent they are in. 

One evident influence that has left its mark on the Spanish people is what they call the Moorish rule which has shaped the Spanish architect Lluis i Domenech's style in his creations.  Apart from that, we know that the geographical situation of Spain has molded their art styles in so many ways as well. Just like how Pablo Picasso often spend his time in Paris where he met Pablo Gallo. 

And since, Picasso was one of the greatest Spanish artists, he became an influence to other cubist in his time such as George Braque and Juan Gris. But the most significant thing that has happened in history for the people in Spain in terms of Art is when the artist started to use their artwork before to show protest against the certain events in Spanish History.