Maning Velez Velez wrote music for playwright Kabahar (who was also known to write his own music). At least one durable song remains from this partnership: Sa Kabukiran (In the Mountains), from the play about a young mountain lass with the improbable name of Fifi. The song, made famous by the tragic movie personality Lilian Velez and performers like Nora Hermosa and Elsa Oria, was turned into a bravura piece by the late diva Conching Rosal. Her especially brilliant rendition of the song in a Cebu recital earned for her a lengthy standing ovation from a generally undemonstrative audience. In the early 1980s, Sa Kabukiran was the lead cut of a bestselling long-play recording by Susan Fuentes. Keyed much lower and minus the intimidating bravura touch, the song was thus reintroduced to a new generation of listeners. A similar service was rendered Manny Castanñeda’s Handurawan (Memory). This favorite Cebuano classic is another bravura piece rarely performed well. Although Castañeda died at the young age of 32, he was able to bequeth many songs of unusual charm. Many of these have been preserved by music-lovers of his hometown of Mandaue and have continued to be sung, especially during Christmastime. |
