THE LITURGIKON Vocal Ensemble has let go of its roster of singers as a part of a reorganization that limited its membership to students from the Conservatory of Music.
Previously a University-wide choral group, Liturgikon had members from various UST academic units. However, when the Conservatory of Music opened screenings on July 29, it said “auditions for LVE [were] open to UST Music students only.”
A source close to the organization told the Varsitarian that budget constraints and the implementation of a new organizational structure caused the new restrictions on membership.
Liturgikon will now be led by conductor Anthony Go Villanueva, a piano and choral conducting alumnus of UST, who was appointed to replace Mark Wilson Estrada.
Villanueva said Liturgikon would start “from scratch” and recruit about 30 members this year.
Even members who were part of the choir in Academic Year 2023 to 2024 would have to go through the same audition process to renew their membership in Liturgikon, he said.
Liturgikon had only three members from the UST Conservatory in Term 1 last year, compared with 30 trainees who were from other academic units, based on September 2023 information obtained by the Varsitarian.
This figure excluded the number of incumbent members at that time.
Specializing in sacred choral music, Liturgikon has been a mainstay in various University-wide events such as UST Christmas Concerts and institutional Masses.
The choir’s Facebook page still described it as an “established University-wide choral group in (UST) which aims to hone a community with God-given talents through classical and contemporary sacred music.”
Scholarships
Because Liturgikon was a recognized large ensemble unit overseen by the Conservatory of Music, many of its members had enjoyed a Santo Domingo Scholarship, which is granted to students excelling in arts, music, and sports.
“The Conservatory of Music entertains inquiries, accepts applications and administers the processing of the scholarship. It also determines the benefits for the scholars based on its established criteria,” UST’s policies for music recipients of the scholarship read.
The amount of scholarship grants for Liturgikon members depended on their performance and ratings and could be affected by the number of absences during rehearsals and performances.
Following the reorganization and new membership limitations, incumbent members of the choir were stripped of their scholarships.
They reportedly knew of the change only after the Conservatory of Music released the list of scholars.
The Varsitarian has reached out to multiple officers of the choral group but they declined to give a comment. with reports from Sydney Venice V. Berba
