Philippine Meistersingers Win Grand Prix In Italy, Qualify For World Choral Championships

ITALY—The Philippine Meistersingers swept top honors at the Rimini International Choral Competition in Italy, winning gold medals in both Musica Sacra (Sacred) and Musica Profana (Secular) and securing the Grand Prix, the festival’s highest award.

By taking the Rimini Grand Prix, the choir also earned a coveted slot at the World Choral Championship, becoming the first Filipino ensemble to qualify through the Italian festival. The championship, which gathers top winners from Rimini, Tokyo and Taipei, will be held next year in Kraków, Poland, one of Europe’s established centers for choral music.

Led by musical director Ramon Molina Lijauco Jr., the Meistersingers earned the highest marks in both divisions. Judges cited the disciplined blend and tonal control of their sacred program, while their secular set was praised for rhythmic precision and expressive storytelling.

“We’re grateful to God for this victory,” Lijauco said.

“More than a competition, it became a journey of faith for all of us, especially our younger members who rose to the challenge and proved what Filipinos can offer to the world stage.

”Lijauco shared that the group, whose members are mostly Seventh-day Adventists, rarely enters competitions partly because their Sabbath observance limits the events they can join.

“Rimini was special because none of the performances fell on a Saturday,” he said. “When theapplication opened, we felt it aligned with our mission to represent our faith everywhere we go.”

They bested choirs from the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Indonesia, Romania and Poland in the Grand Prix showdown, where each top-scoring ensemble returned for a final performance. For their winning bid, the Meistersingers performed works by Nilo Alcala II, the Filipino-American composer known for elevating Filipino folk traditions through contemporary choral writing. His rhythmically complex, technically demanding pieces showcased the choir’s precision and were central to their win.

“The European choirs had a distinct and beautiful sound, but the judges told us we stood out for how we shaped our interpretation — the blend, the intelligence of the repertoire, and the unity between the choir and conductor,” he said. The final decision was made by an international jury led by Belgian conductor Jeroen Keymeulen, joined by choral experts from Italy, Canada, the United States and the Czech Republic.

The Meistersingers now have less than a year to prepare for the world finals.

“We have to start preparing our repertoire and raising funds to be able to return to Europe for the finals,” Lijauco said, noting that finances have always been one of their biggest challenges and that every trip requires collective sacrifice.

Formerly known as the AUP Ambassadors, the Philippine Meistersingers have been active for more than six decades and are among the country’s most decorated vocal ensembles. They rose to international prominence after winning the Luciano Pavarotti Trophy as Choir of the World at the Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod in 2011, following their World Choir Games Champion title in Gospel and Spiritual at the 2006 Games in Xiamen, China.

This year’s Rimini roster included some of the region’s strongest ensembles, among them Moraviachor from the Czech Republic, Chamber Choir Ipavska from Slovenia, Indonesia’s

Padjadjaran University Choir and El-Shaddai Choir, and youth and women’s choirs from Romania and Poland. Many of these groups have long histories of competing and medaling in Europe’s leading festivals.

“We European choirs have distinct sound ”

Photo Courtesy: Rimini International Choral Competition