Cocktails during International Music Conference Opening Night (NIME3)

Here are some of the pictures taken during the Conference Opening Dinner.

View taken from the venue (roofdeck area) right across College of Music

While GatheringBooks is mainly about young adult fiction and children’s literature, I can not help, as an educator to share bits and pieces of the things that strike me as well as an educator (particularly as it relates to the humanities, arts, and other forms of literary works), and the new learnings I obtain from these conferences and academic venues.

I would probably share quite a bit about new insights, realizations gained from the sharing done during the music conference (if I find the time to do this). At the moment, the photos would suffice.

Semantics and Soul in Pinoy Music - Brisbane, Australia - November 24, 2010

This project is essentially running on passion, advocacy, and commitment to highlight Filipino musical talents and artistry as well as unique pathways / trajectories of respected artists coming from developing countries – and to discern how Filipino music plays a role in shaping a sense of national consciousness and identity. It is such a blessing to be able to do this with Manong Noel Cabangon (whose music continues to inspire and move people across oceans, seas, mountains, and yes, “skies from end to end”) and Professor Tuting Hernandez (who has poured out so much passion, energy, and commitment to this project).

with Marta, our young Polish Psychologist friend

A toast to Pinoy Music (beautiful eyes indeed)

Our team is likewise grateful to so many people who have shared their generosity of spirit, kindness of heart, and prayers to make this project a reality. We are grateful to the donation given by FILSCAP (Filipino Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers), Universal Records, Rock Ed, my wonderful colleagues from NIE, lovely students Denise and Girard Aquino from Canada, Pinoy Musicians in Singapore who have helped organize the Benefit Gig with the blessing of the Philippine Embassy of Singapore (Retribution Movement Singapore, Quiver, Benjie, Rommel, Jeffrey and Kit), Dax who helped organize Benefit Gig in Manila, CSR Family in SG, UP friends in SG, Karen and Bojoe Caballero (for your indefatigable energy, enthusiasm and lovelovelove), Elena Flores for continually being a soulsister, Jac Cauyan for being such a prayer warrior, my wonderfully supportive husband Roel and lovely daughter Ela and to everyone who have sent us such blinding beams of positive energy and light and enthusiasm, we are truly grateful.

with my friend and colleague Esther Joosa

My psych mentor quoted once from the poet Rumi, and I believe that this gives perfect voice to my sentiments as to how this project evolved to begin with: “When you do things from your soul, you feel a river moving in you, a joy.” May we continue to semantically create things from our soul.