FALL 2025 CONCERT

Spice, Magic & Mystique

The title of this concert, Spice, Magic & Mystique, comes from a collection of Southeast Asian choral repertoire compiled by Dr. Andre de Quadros, one of the pioneers in bringing these traditions to audiences beyond the region. As Suara enters its second season as an independent community choir, we are inspired to carry forward this energy of discovery, creativity, and cultural connection.

Music is woven into every corner of life in Southeast Asia—floating through nursery rhymes, rising in the songs of weddings and farewells, and echoing in rituals that mark both the sacred and the everyday. In this concert, Suara brings these traditions vividly to life, culminating in the trance-like rhythms of the world premiere of a newly composed Balinese kecak.

We are especially delighted to present a recently discovered 18th-century chant from the Philippines, written in Tagalog but set in strict Baroque style—a melody shaped by centuries of colonial influence and the currents of the spice trade that once carried the archipelago’s riches across the seas. Alongside this, the program features a Thai piece with Dr. Supeena Adler from UCLA on the saw duang (a bowed traditional Thai instrument), a Burmese lullaby, and folksongs from Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, and Thailand, tracing the rich interplay of culture, history, and devotion that defines the region.

Join us on November 8, 8 PM at the beautiful St. Basil Catholic Church for an immersive, interactive choral experience that celebrates the living traditions of Southeast Asia.