50TH BIRTHDAY PARTY AT THE LITTLE SISTERS OF THE POOR

The Little Sisters of The Poor, an international Religious congregation, in Pasay City run a home for the elderly where we performed for a birthday celebration at their main function room. More tables outside the hall for other guests were provided. A special place was set for the elderly for their entertainment.

The house is for older people, 65 years and above, who are abandoned, others found on streets  and the rest turned over by the Department of Social Welfare to the Home of the Little Sisters of the Poor.  They depend on God’s Providence working through generous benefactors.  It is such a relief that a place like this exists for elders who need comfort and a sort of longing until their last moment.  And nuns can do the sincerest task for them.

My brother, Manny Lupato, had an interlude with one dying woman with no relative to be found and his story pinched my very soul. She also asked for Ensure milk and my brother handed an undisclosed bill to one of the sisters to grant her simple wish. It’s such an experience for him and signalled me a lesson.

Well, we as music artists did the best we can to liven the party with not only upbeat songs and music but some love songs. Others joined by rendering some songs for the celebrant and some dance numbers that surprised Jessielyn, the birthday girl.

Augustine Music and Events performs all kinds of music and songs that fit the theme of the celebration. We do their music requests on the spot or they can perform them with the able hands of great Philippine Musicians who are not only into weddings but all events requiring music entertainment.

Such relief was felt for another experience sharing our love of music. Someday we will go back at The Little Sisters of The Poor Home to serenade the elderly with songs of the past.

A Wedding Near Tagaytay - Augustine Music and Events

A wedding destination was set for a 2 pm at a quaint church in Silang, Cavite a distance away from a rough road but the grandeur of Antonio de Padua Church stands as a solemn replica  for devotion. The place is such a delight to watch and have photos with. It really started on time with wedding musicians of Augustine Music and Events doing the solemn music from the processional march down to the recessional march. A relative did the bridal march singing their favorite song.

Almost all where teary eyed when the marital vows were exchanged by Ace and Melissa and spoke of their true love with each other despite their differences. There was no music opted during their exchange of vows and their words of love revealed their intense feeling for each other. It is such delight watching a wedding where guests don’t make much hush making solemn of a place. And this intensify a romantic set-up matching a certain wedding theme with the couple’s favorite songs and music played by dedicated musicians of the Philippines.

The wedding reception was held at Teofely’s Garden located near the national highway going to Tagaytay and fascinated by the place. You have to walk through a slim road but not that far to reach the venue but the moment you step into the entrance beholds such neat and wide space fit for many guests especially weddings. The wedding program started a bit late to catch up with shimmery light of darkness for a romantic feel of the place and it was indeed a very cozy wedding affair with the usual program where traditions are met, messages said, music played and games spiced up the celebration.

From our side, being performers of any affair, we enjoyed the moment having explored another unique kind of a wedding reception venue. This is another wedding destination fulfilled by Augustine Music and Events.

CORPORATE EVENTS MUSICIANS - AUGUSTINE MUSIC AND EVENTS

Corporate Events Musicians Plays Upbeat

The intimacy of events like corporate makes a musician feel important because guests on such a party appreciate performers and it is elating, to say. The music required doesn't need to be studied or pretentious but adding spirit during such special event is enough to be truly called corporate events musicians and musicians in the Philippines are gifted, undoubtedly.

This is the moment, too to showcase the versatility of true artist switching from classical to something upbeat or fast music and variety is magic to the ears. And playing favorite tunes is heartwarming and affective, thinking for the guests' entertainment. True, we can not please anybody but doing music of the past and the moment is safe. It is really called for events musicians to be imaginative often, isn't so?.

We had several corporate performances and the work is longer but that doesn't disturb us professional musicians. Still, quality is maintained and we always say to ourselves that music is a gift and it is worth sharing.

Light jazz music is the easiest to perform not because of the melody but the freedom to express the message of the piece. It also calls for musician who has the passion to interpret the song or music in line with the vocal rendition matching the feel of the singer to create the magic of a song. It doesn't require you to be musically schooled to perform such a feat. It also needs the ear for sentiment inherent in each of us. The more sensitive you are, the better performer can you be. 

Well, music has to be learned first to know its nuances and to exact the melody according to what it intends to send. Everyone can interpret or play particular music or piece but what sets you apart is the difference of talent, meaning a gift given to you especially if you are a singer. And the musician who rules such perfection can enhance the vocal part for both to shine. Of course, the vocalist has to match the cadence of a true artist.

 An example of such performance doesn't require you to raise your voice or reach high notes. The fluidity of carrying a tune is akin to a conversation where there's no need to raise voices but naturally expresses one's feeling. Even when joining a singing contest, it irritates the judges when you belt too much. They still long for someone who knows how to control his or her voice. What is singing for but control.

Canon In D - Augustine Music and Events

FERNBROOK GARDENS WEDDING DESTINATION: AUGUSTINE MUSIC AND EVENT

Supposedly, it was a Christian garden ceremony but because of the incoming typhoon the couple decided to do it indoor and all guests were informed timely to start the ceremony around 5pm inside the Colonial Hall of Fernbrook Gardens that typifies golden splendor. Music prelude was performed by Augustine Music before the rites began expecting some other guests. The wedding musicians kept playing until the ceremony started.

The first to enter was an American Pastor before the procession began. A relative of the groom sang during the processional march and when the bride walked the aisle, a popular song as instrumental music was rendered by the remarkable musicians of the Philippines. The wedding rites went so well and some touching moments where the couple on their own words exchanged wedding vows.

During the lighting of the candle and signing of contract, Augustine Music performed the most requested wedding music, “Canon in D”. It is the most popular music for weddings not only Catholic weddings or Christian weddings but all rites where solemnity is called for. Maybe, another composition will emerge and also become top wedding music that can withstand the test of time like Canon in D that has been used for 150 years and it is still being used for weddings.

The Multinational Baptist Church Choir took over during the pictorial as we proceeded to the reception venue ready for our music when the guests were received. The pictorial for thirty minutes and the guests kept coming as we performed popular requested reception music.

The wedding reception program started with the brother of the groom and the brother of the bride hosting the program. There were some lull moments but wedding music from wedding musicians filled them doing their favorites. Being young couple, their wedding music list were of the popular foreign music without any Filipino music. Well, that was their choice and being the performers must do what they want with a little suggestion to music choices but still theirs prevail.

The prepared wedding program went well and a little longer than expected but more guests still stayed ready for the DJ for some dance music, also to enjoy the myriad of colors scattered all around.

Weddings in the Philippines are romantic in nature and a great time to meet old friends and relatives from far and near to share lavish feast prepared by the couple. It is also a time where best clothes are worn, expensive jewelries are displayed and the best you standing with the rest celebrating the best wedding possible with beautiful music floating in the air, all wedding suppliers giving the best service at hand but most of all anticipating the marital bliss for the newlyweds.

Best wedding music, popular love songs, best food, solemn wedding ceremony, well-prepared wedding program, unique wedding souvenirs, wedding gifts for the couple and all that you can think about making a wedding day truly a special dream wedding is there for you at hand. A Filipino Wedding is kept to last forever.

WEDDING PLANNING, WEDDING MUSIC AND OTHERS - AUGUSTINE MUSIC AND EVENTS

A Philippine wedding is a hand-on event management firstly dreamed upon by the couple-to-be and how to plan a wedding requires not only imagination but a make-believe wedding ideas and themes ready to begin the work. The bride asks herself how to be a wedding coordinator and really starts from there for weddings in the Philippines entail expenses that soar upon belief.

Wedding packages are scrutinized, most often for there are many to prepare beside the simple last options of wedding invitations, wedding souvenirs or favors, but never the wedding gown that comes first and contemplating about where to hold the wedding ceremony and venue for wedding receptions are many but depends on where your guests come from, as considered.

If you have too little a time then planning a wedding requires a help from a wedding planner or coordinator who does most of what you intend to happen during the big day. Wedding planners are ready to start the work with you from scratch not to confuse her or his strategy and a wedding checklist is a must for a wedding planner. A wedding planning checklist has its form and it is a wedding guide, plain to say.

A wedding plan has to be laid out from the start of the preparations until the wrap-up job at the wedding reception and the bride’s wedding coordinator has the complete list of everything to be done.

As an addition for our wedding coordination service, we love to share wedding music for any wedding around being passionate wedding musicians here in Manila, Philippines.
Music during the wedding ceremony calls for right songs for a wedding and wedding music list is handy from us to share for some selections the couple might favor – love songs, classical music, top wedding songs at the moment, song or music for the bridal march, song for the first dance and THE WEDDING SONG to their hearts is most meaningful.

A live string quartet adds glamour during the celebration and a violin that carries the sweetest music brings nostalgia for the newlyweds, hand in hand with the dexterity of an outstanding pianist present for a live entertainment and from the rest of the wedding musicians comprising a quartet.

A wedding singer doing a number or two adds flavor during the wedding reception as if listening to a youtube music or merely listening to the music relaxes you during dinner for a live band seems intimate with maybe some involvement with the guests sharing wedding songs, for entertainers during the reception add flavor for the celebration.

A memorable day with the right ingredients for a perfect wedding design envisioned to happen has come true with a creative wedding plan and world class music. That was much asked.

Augustine Music and Events - Wedding Music and Coordination Portal

WEDDING EVENT DESTINATION DIARY - A GLIMPSE

A union of two people in love culminates by exchanging eternal vows through a sacrament called marriage with their guests as witnesses joining the solemn affair. A wedding is always a special event and the presence of relatives and friends fulfills the happiness of the married couple.

This was evident during an early afternoon wedding at Sanctuario de San Jose where for my observation was an organized one. The wedding started at exactly 2 pm and all guests as expected were around to witness the bridal march of Charisma choosing an original Pilipino song, “Ikaw Lamang.”

Special wedding music is an integral part of the ceremony and the couple were very exact with their choice. Yes, it was a part of their wedding checklist to regard important music integrated during the ceremony. The traditionally popular “Take and Receive” was chosen during the offertory and the widely-used communion song “Lead Me Lord” was sung.

Augustine Music Ensemble, dedicated wedding musicians of the Philippines added solemnity for the ceremony doing the best they could to maintain a certain blessedness as the proceeding went. When the ceremony culminated popular romantic music were performed as they had group pictorials that lasted around thirty minutes. The good thing with Sanctuario de San Jose is they let you take your time for pictorials when there is no other wedding to follow not like other churches who'll not let you extend time.

The reception venue is about 30 minutes to reach from the church. Glass Garden is becoming a famous Philippine wedding destination. They have two venues, the wedding reception of Willard and Charisma was set at the Emerald Hall that can house 250 to 300 guests. But the lesser guests, the better for more space but this reception had around 200 guests, more or less.

The wedding reception program started around 6:30 pm doing the most important parts of the program first before dinner. Well, the guests kept up with the time enjoying the first parts of the program prepared by the couple.

When they were introduced, they danced to their chosen music cascading downstairs to their seats at the presidential table. It was fun to watch their guests enjoying the moment. All of us felt the joy from the newly-married couple, enough to say that their wedding celebration was a hit.

The food was very good with three stations. One for the main buffet. Another for salad and desserts. A separate buffet of different pasta with eight sauces to choose from. It was really a big feast and everybody not only enjoyed the program devised by the couple but a superb dinner amidst the lush of the reception venue, subdued spectrum of lighting effects and world class physical set-up similar from foreign styles.

This event is a keepsake worth scribing about to say to ourselves, “We were a part of a wonderful wedding affair.”

WEDDING PLANNER AND COORDINATORS PHILIPPINES - VIEWPOINT

Wedding management is recalled when a good job is done. It simplifies the idea that knowledge always plays pivotal role in any achievement of event planner holding the banner of acceptance and added list to document no matter the celebration was not that grand compared to lavish ones by the rich and famous.

For us, there is no big or small wedding. A wedding event for us is sacred. We accept a service basing from a real need of help. Sometimes, we hate to discuss the fee but the soon-to-be-bride mentions this off hand and we go with the deal basing for what is fair. And most of the times, charity reigns in our hearts and just enough for the other members to have. The head coordinator always thinks that he is the brother of the groom or she is the bride's sister uncompromising.

Normally, our group consists of four coordinators and one wedding program host who is also on the go making things right for wedding preparations to materialize the best possible way by offering needed helping hand. The members are not there to display holding every now and then their radios and mumbling as if detectives. That is not our game. For us, every moment is precious and try damn hard not to waste any. When you are a wedding planner, you are there on your toes as if you are a family member of the couple. Of course, by then the bride feels the same way.

How to choose people to handle your most special event brings us to cast adjectives about your choice:

Sincerity - the bride feels this when she talks to one
Approachable - the bride immediately knows upon meeting one
Knowledgeable - the bride senses this when they discuss
Emphatic - the bride discerns this feeling for sure
Bubbly - the bride wants to deal with someone happy

These are only few traits a Wedding Coordinator must have and considered as the most practical way to find out the best person to hire. Beware to the ones who spread their credentials on a broad sheet mentioning so vividly the celebrities they've worked with, the places they've been to, the expensive weddings they've been with.

You are not there to tell your story. You are there to make history. When I say history - an event to mark as something to remember. Special events like weddings are chronicles to live by and treasure as PRECIOUS MEMORIES. One thing sure, a Wedding Architect to put it nicely is the prime mover.

EASY WEDDING PLANNING - AUGUSTINE MUSIC AND EVENTS

Now that the couple has arranged everything from scratch, a helping hand is called for and a coordinator is needed if a relative is not around to do the job professionally. It is best if a friend or someone else can offer assistance to curtail some expenses but remember that you can not demand if they do accept. Even if it is easier for them to do so, still the knitty-gritty of wedding details has to be attended and a professional coordinator is a solution.

Four coordinators is ideal
Two coordinators are assigned to where the couple are to pick necessary materials needed for the ceremony – flowers for the entourage particularly for the principal sponsors. The bridal bouquet is left for the bride for pictorial purposes. The rest of the entourage who are with the couple can have their needed flowers or bouquet. They are going to have pictorials, too and the best shots are having them at hand.
An hour and a half, the coordinators must be at the ceremonial ground or at the church to attend to the guests and the bridal entourage. Checking is done at the same time pinning buotonnieres for male entourage and handing the bouquet for the female entourage and the rest who don't have theirs yet.
At least an hour before the ceremony, offerings are set and remind those assigned for the offering. This is for a Catholic ceremony. They are grouped near the offertory table.
Fifteen minutes before the ceremony, the bridal entourage is assembled
Then, procession begins with a coordinator assisting with the march and one or two is assigned near the altar to assist members of the entourage for their seats.
Then, the parents of the bride walk until the middle aisle to wait for the bride ready to hand her to the groom waiting near the altar.
Ten minutes before the offertory, the ones to offer are lined up at the back.
When the ceremony is over coordinators assist for the sequence of the picture taking or do a roll call if nobody is assigned.
For the recessional march, entourage and some guests are gathered for some petal throwing and confetti to add gaiety.
Then, we gather everything left-off like the veil, cord, the bible, the unity candle, etc.

When the ceremony is over guests proceed to the reception area.Before the grand entrance of the couple, everybody has to be received. If there is a seat plan then it has to be implemented.

As guests are ushered in, music is played on either live if there are musicians or house music from the sound system.
When everybody is seated, the couple are briefed for their entrance.
Principal sponsors and parents are acknowledged then followed by the presentation of the entourage.
Then the Grand Entrance with all the flair needed like bubbles, smoke, confetti, flaming swords, etc.
The guests are assisted for the souvenir shots with the couple before proceeding to the buffet table.
During dinner, guest book is passed on
Middle part of the program, souvenirs are handed to some guests.
Assist the program host during the bouquet and garter games where single ladies and single guys are needed to participate.
Take care of the suppliers' fees, if designated.
Take care of the wrap-up job like food left has to be brought home by the couple, all paraphernalias are handed over.

These are the most needed details and following them will make a job well done. The reward of having to be in one place at the same time taking care of all the couple and guests' needs is a good feeling of having done something commendable.

Lesbian Wedding - It Happened In The Philippines

I stumbled on my video post about a lesbian wedding and I thought it would be nice to share with you. Gay marriages are not touted as sensational but something interesting to discuss about. I know gay marriage is not legal here in the Philippines but how come we were able to witness and perform for a gay marriage, particularly a lesbian wedding. Gladly, I was able to capture some scenes proof that it happened in our country. This is the second gay marriage we performed for. The first one was in Tagaytay and sadly I wasn’t able to take a photo or a video. It was a marriage of two men who were in love – A British and a Pilipino.
But the Lesbian Wedding I am speaking about is the union of both Pilipinos. They met in Hongkong and after few months when they came back to the Philippines they decided to tie the knot.
The ceremony took on a rainy afternoon schedule. It started past 4 despite the downpour. Supposedly, the ceremony takes place on the poolside of Coconut Palace and all preparations were neatly done but transferred on a covered area for the rites. When the ceremony was over the rain subsided and a brisk speedy relocation took place timely for the reception. It was around 6:00 pm when the program started – no more rain but strong breeze sheltered the area. It was refreshing more so with the soft flurry coming from the shore facing the poolside.
I heard that the Foreign Officiant in the video is the only one who can legally marry gays and lesbians. He seems popular but his name slipped from memory. I tried searching about him but can’t find one. Anyway, a full-proof that it is legal from several gay marriages officiated by him.
In the eyes of law is it legal here in the Philippines? They say it is not but why do we have gay marriages around? I know in some countries it is legal. If my memory serves me right, the very first legal gay marriage was held in Amsterdam in 2001.
Loving is beyond sex and it is not measured how much you give but the happiness shared by each. It is a certain longing. It is a feeling of delight whenever present. It is a total binding of heart, mind and soul. Sometimes it is indefinable but more often you can define it in a very special way you alone knows. It is true that love chooses no barriers. Go for the one you love. It is how you compensate life. As the saying goes, “Live life to the fullest.”

PLEASE WATCH THIS VIDEO ABOUT LESBIAN WEDDING