Although Pop Diva Kuh Ledesma sings with
other Champions in "ASAP 05," Christian
Bautista seems to be her favorite in the
league as she guests him yet again in
tonight’s George Canseco tribute
concert, "Paano Kita Mapasasalamatan,"
at the PICC Plenary Hall.
Last February, Kuh not only bankrolled
but shared equal billing with Christian
in her Captain’s Bar concert series "Kuh
Ledesma sings Streisand & Groban."
That tandem somehow anoints Christian as
Champion most likely to succeed in the
business. Kuh does not perform with just
any neophyte in her concerts. The last
time she did so was with then-upstarts
Regine Velasquez and Gary Valenciano—both
superstars today.
During a recent one-on-one, Christian
returns the compliment by saying that
Kuh "is a study in professionalism and
hands-on approach to the craft." "You
learn a lot just from watching her,"
says he. "Kahit rehearsals
lang, kita mo agad that she’s not
the type to compromise how a song should
sound even if it means na paulit-ulit
niya itong gagawin. Getting the
bottom line right is what Kuh is about."
Although extremely flattered with the
privilege of working with the superstar
again, Christian says that his bigger
reason for acceding to "Paano" is chance
to pay tribute to the master songwriter
who died of cancer of the liver last
year. "Mr. Canseco’s songs are the type
that do not grow old but turn into
classic immediately," Christian says. "I
admire his kundiman-style of writing
that employs deep Tagalog for lyrics.
You rarely get that from songwriters
today."
Christian first heard of Canseco works
from his dad who used to play cassette
tapes of Basil Valdez (one of George’s
favorite interpreter) at home. He only
fully understood how big a clout Canseco
has in the industry, however, during one
of the "Return Of The Champions" dates
in the U.S. last year.
"I will never forget that time because
it was the day Mr. Canseco died," says
he. "All of a sudden, a Canseco medley
was incorporated in the repertoire na
inaral namin dali-dali. Hindi daw pwede
na hindi gawin because it was the
least we could do to pay homage to
someone who has contributed immensely to
Original Pilipino Music." Christian’s
favorite Canseco song is "Kung Ako’y
Iiwan Mo."
Presented by SMART Gold and Mossimo, "Paano
Kita Mapasasalamatan" also guests
harpist Noelle Casandra, Zsa Zsa
Padilla, Dulce, Pilita Corrales, and
Martin Nievera. |
