A velvety encounter
It was Sana’y Wala Nang Wakas that the piped-in music system was dishing out when I arrived at the Bulong Pulungan at the Sofitel Philippine Plaza recently. I planted myself comfortably in a chair, relished the song, imagined romantic scenes, even romantic agonies, and found out it was not Ariel Rivera, Jed Madela or any Filipino crooner singing the song.
“It’s the Japanese group called Le Velvets singing it,” Donnie Ramirez, a member of Bulong Pulungan, told me. I listened intently to the song and initially argued with him. It was one argument I happily lost. Well, when the members of the J-Pop group were introduced to us that afternoon at a function room in Sofitel, I was all the more lost — lost for words to describe how on earth they could render a Pinoy contemporary classic song phonetically correct.
Le Velvets is a hot pop-opera group from Japan, whose members are gifted with incredible voices — Tatsuhiko Saga, Shinichiro Hino, Takanori Sato, Hironobu Miyahara and Takuya Kurokawa. They are all graduates of the most illustrious classical music academies in Japan.
Listen to their Nessun Dorma, though very much different from Pavarotti’s, and you will be lulled to another dreamland. Their prowess in “claiming” a song as their original is evident in O Sole Mio. Le Velvets’ Fly Me to the Moon is an enchanting melody of romance and hope. Again, though different from the Sinatra rendition, the J-Pop group successfully manages to thrill the listener as they ditty “Fill my heart with song, let me sing forever more. You are all I long for, all I worship and adore.” Listening to them will make a skeptic a believer of love.
With their rendition of Moon River, you get so involved as you begin to ask yourself: Are you a dream maker or a heart breaker? Then you find yourself singing along their CD. Even their enunciation of “my Huckleberry friend” is unique yet phonetically outstanding.
Aside from the songs I earlier mentioned, their self-titled album, which contains 12 cuts, also includes the songs Unchained Melody, Waterloo, It’s Only a Paper Moon, Vivere, Mas Que Nada, Never Ever Say Goodbye and Mi Vida.
Armed with boyish charms, they recently stole hearts of instant fans when they performed at a series of concerts at SM malls. The members of Le Velvets were brought to Manila by the Embassy of Japan, in cooperation with SM Mall of Asia, Philippine Airlines and Viva Records, in celebration of the Philippine-Japan Friendship Month.
Meet Le Velvets
The group Il Divo will conjure one’s mind when one listens to Le Velvets. The J-Pop’s music is the product of the velvety harmony of three tenors and two baritones. They excitingly blend classical music with contemporary pop and other genres.
Tatsuhiko (tenor), 31, has a soulful pitched voice that meanders in the air as he adds class and classic appeal to the group’s music. He moves well on stage, perhaps because he has experience in theater, too. He packs his performance with a manly posture. He is a graduate of the Kyoto University of Arts.
Shinichiro (tenor), 27, plays two voices. Apart from tenor, he has the ability to sing soprano. This musical trait of Shinichiro is both magical and mesmerizing. He also plays the piano and arranges many of the group’s music. He is also a good dancer. He is a graduate of Musashino Music University.
Takanori (tenor), 26, is the one who brings the vocal harmony of the group. The four other members of Le Velvets credit him for being the emulsifier of the group not only because he is the youngest but also because he is the “mood maker of the group who brings laughter and joy.” Well, he has the smile that can make a young girl cry — for more of his music. He is a graduate of the Kunitachi University of Music.
Hironobu (baritone), 32, a graduate of Tokyo University of Arts, is known as the “sexy voice” of Le Velvets. His vocal prowess is not only confined to classical music as he can sing a wide range of repertoire.
Takuya, 30, because he has the lowest voice in the group, holds the melody from the core. His groupmates know that his very calm and quiet personality, not to mention his great looks, “has created a mysterious but loving character” that makes his fans in Japan crave for more of him.
The gift of humor and soul
As humor should be an intrinsic part of a performer’s armament, members of Le Velvets do not run out of it.
Well, like most artists, they also have a deep understanding of things around them.
I cracked up when they said they take care of their voices by taking honey and ginger and drinking Coke. Coke? It turned out they were serious about it as a secret to their velvety voice.
Takanori, on behalf of Le Velvets, also thanked the Filipino audience for “your help” when disasters befell Japan as a result of the March 11, 2011 killer earthquake. “Your help encouraged us to stand up,” he told me after the press con. He hails from the Fukushima prefecture.
For their final song on the day they were introduced to the press at Bulong Pulungan, they said they would sing a traditional Japanese song. They did sing a traditional song but not in Japanese. It was Dahil Sa ‘Yo that they sang.
And the crowd rolled in joy as Le Velvets spun their velvety rendition of the song.
(Le Velvets’ self-titled album, released in the Philippines by Viva Records, is available in record stores nationwide.)
(E-mail the author at bumbaki@yahoo.com or my.new.beginnings@gmail.com. You may want to follow me on Twitter @bum_tenorio. Have a blessed Sunday!)
