Regine "Twenty"

Regine Velasquez
Twenty
Oct. 13-14, 2006, Araneta Coliseum
Raul Mitra / Ronnie Henares

I wish to to say that my first Regine concert was magnificent but I couldn't. Twenty, in my opinion, isn't at all as bad as others had said. (Frankly, though, I haven't read or heard of the bad reviews that came out after the concert.) It was good enough for first-timers like me. However, I felt that there was so much room for improvement. For a 20th anniversary concert, it has be extra special. It has to be different from the rest of her performances. (I am coming from what I've seen so far on TV - may it be concert telecast or SOP performances or TV guestings.) Sad to say, it fell short from my expectations.

I was expecting a great deal from Twenty's repertoire. I was hoping that Regine would sing songs that would range from her early Viva Records days (with songs like "Urong Sulong" and "Kung Maibabalik Ko Lang") to her Vicor Records days (with songs like "Promdi" and "You Were Meant For Me") to her Polycosmic Records days ("You Made Me Stronger"). But instead, audiences received a mix-mash of hits that were already sung from her past concerts like "I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing", "On the Wings of Love", "Sana Maulit Muli" among others. Of course, her singing such hits is not wrong. They are very much part of her 20 years in the business but rendering songs that she would often not perform in concerts would be a welcome treat for devoted and casual fans alike. I guess, the fans would also to be blame with the turnout since they applauded more of Regine's tried and tested hits rather than the not-often-perfomed ones.

I felt that what stood out that night was her performance of "Love Me Again" with Gerard Salonga manning the orchestra. It was such a nostalgic event since it was the song that introduced her to Phil. showbiz via Penthouse Live! Then, her "Bakit Ako Mahihiya?" rendition was terribly excellent! Her vocals was full and very much controlled. It was a song she dedicated to her parents. It was one of her contest pieces back when she was trying to make a name for herself. Unfortunately, those two were also the less applauded numbers during the night.

As for Raul Mitra being her musical director, something was off with his piano keys. Somehow, his notes didn't seem to jive with the rest of the orchestra. They would either stood out or sound flat. Plus, the choir and the kid musicians seemed misplaced. The arrangement of the songs where they were in was awfully not fitted for them.

Twenty's opening, though, was superb with Regine singing an original tune describing how her life in singing began. "Naaalala ko pa ang aking istorya mula nang ako'y magsimula. Unang awit na aking namemorya ay turo ni Mang Gerry. Habang nag-gigitara naman si Mommy V. Nais n'yo bang marinig?" (see and hear the clip below) Also, her nostalgia trip to her winning days via "You'll Never Walk Alone" and "And I'm Telling You" was extremely memorable!

To watch the highlights of the event, see Regine Twenty on Oct. 22 at SNBO, GMA-7! Would this mean that there would be no repeat performances?

P.S. Biboy said, "Di ako fan ni Sharon pero mas enjoy ako sa concert niya kaysa rito." Di ako nagsabi nu'n ah! :-)



Video Clips are by Kazumi from You Tube