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'St. John Passion' performance marks 200th year of Bamboo Organ

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Jervis Manahan

ABS-CBN News

<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/GHJpcSQaEAA4E39.jpg" style="width:950px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span id="isPasted" style="color:rgb(65, 65, 65);letter-spacing:normal;orphans:2;text-align:left;text-indent:0px;text-transform:none;widows:2;word-spacing:0px;-webkit-text-stroke-width:0px;white-space:normal;background-color:rgb(255, 255, 255);text-decoration-thickness:initial;text-decoration-style:initial;text-decoration-color:initial;display:inline !important;float:none">Photo by Jervis Manahan, ABS-CBN News </div>MANILA — The famous &quot;Bamboo Organ&quot; in Las Piñas City is celebrating its 200th year with an ethereal performance of &quot;Saint John Passion&quot; held in Saint Joseph Church on Saturday, February 24.&quot;Saint John Passion&quot; is a 2-hour musical performance of the Passion of the Lord in German. It was conducted by Beverly Shangkuan-Cheng, featuring Filipino and foreign artists from the Collegium Vocale Manila, the Manila Baroque Ensemble, and guest artists from the Bach Academie Alden Biesen. The cast included baritone Kris Gonzales as Jesus Christ, bass Lawrence Jaytana as Pontius Pilate, and tenor Jan Van Elsacker as the Evangelist. Soprano Shiela Ferrer, tenor Agustin Chan, and bass Steven Verrosa completed the cast. The Saint John Passion, a work of Johann Sebastian Bach, was first performed in the Philippines in February 1985. It was performed again in 1991. This year, it was performed again as part of the International Bamboo Organ Festival at Saint Joseph Church in Las Piñas. Those who watched were stunned by the performance.&quot;It’s not every day you get to see Bach’s &#x27;St. John’s Passion&#x27; performed, and how moving to listen to it in time for Lent. Our local musicians performed excellently together with the visiting artists,&quot; said Aaron James Veloso, part of the audience last night. &quot;The luminosity of the Bamboo Organ lent itself well for the performance, blending perfectly with the strings and flutes,&quot; Veloso added. &quot;Absolutely mesmerized by the sublime blend of Bach&#x27;s St. John Passion echoing through the unique resonance of the renowned Las Piñas bamboo organ. A truly enchanting fusion of classical mastery and organic beauty,&quot; said Rufus Thomas Adducul, also part of the audience. &quot;Truly an experience of a lifetime,&quot; he added. This version of Saint John Passion is scheduled to be performed again this March in Belgium. The Bamboo Organ is a 19th-century church organ well-known for its pipes made of bamboo. It was declared a National Cultural Treasure in 2003.

'Saint John Passion' is a 2-hour musical performance of the Passion of the Lord in the German language.

'Saint John Passion' is a 2-hour musical performance of the Passion of the Lord in the German language.