Cebu’s Classic Youth Orchestra (CYO) and Christ Our Mighty Savior (CoMS) Chamber held separate performances during the holiday season. Both orchestras were founded by Prof. Reynaldo Abellana.
CoMS Chamber went on a music tour of Hong Kong and Macau from Dec. 12 to 14, 2025. Its international music ministry concert, titled Praise in Harmony, carried the theme “Songs of Hope, Healing, Faithfulness and Advent Light.” The Dec. 14 performance was staged in collaboration with the Hong Kong Adventist Academy Symphony Orchestra.
The concert opened with a reflection on the ongoing wars in Israel and featured Christian songs including “All the Way My Savior Leads Me,” “In Christ Alone,” “Nearer, My God to Thee,” “He’s Been Faithful,” and “Let There Be Peace on Earth.”
The program then turned to recent calamities in Cebu, particularly the 6.9-magnitude earthquake on Sept. 30 and the onslaught of Typhoon Tino on Nov. 4. This portion included “Jesus, the Very Thought of Thee,” “Dwelling in Beulah Land” and “When We All Get to Heaven.”
A third segment focused on the fire that struck the Wang Fuk Court apartment complex in Tai Po district on Nov. 26, highlighted by the songs “Side by Side” and “Happiness Is the Lord.”
The final part of the concert marked the Advent season with “Mansion Over the Hilltop,” “Carry the Light,” Handel’s “Hallelujah Chorus,” and “Joy to the World.”
Meanwhile, CYO presented An Evening of Classics on Nov. 16 at the San Carlos Seminary College, with maestro Obette del Rosario conducting.
The program opened with Mozart’s Symphony No. 25, first movement, followed by Saint-Saëns’ Allegro Appassionato and Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso, with soloists Jaque Mabalcon on cello and Paul Gilbert Ramos on violin.
The second part featured Haydn’s “The Bird,” Anderson’s “The Syncopated Clock,” and music from My Neighbor Totoro, performed by the Classic Orchestra Young Ensemble and conducted by France Mabalcon.
The final section included Doyle’s “Potter Waltz,” the Tanging Yaman overture, Mga Awit Binisaya, “Piliin Mo ang Pilipinas” with 4 Voices, and “Golden,” performed by both CYO and the Classic Orchestra Young Ensemble.
Christ Our Mighty Savior Chamber is a music ministry group from Cebu composed of young musicians aged 9 to 21. The ensemble represents the Seventh-day Adventist faith and has performed in more than 50 churches in the Philippines and abroad, including in Japan, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Thailand and Europe.