Rey Alan Lacuin. He’s the guy. In 1988, Rey Alan was a college freshman, as in fresh out of high school. Graduating from the Davao City High School was not that big a deal for him, except that he missed singing with his old high school chums in the Singing Teens (cute name for a high school choir). What better thing to do than gather his graduated high school friends and form — what else? — The Himig Singers.

Their first music director was the gregarious — and hilarious — Greg Canceran of UCCP. Their Singing Teens conductor, Mrs. Vangie Lapore, was their adviser. There was just a handful of them, but they sang at parties, school affairs, even fiestas. In 1990 Greg gave up the directorship to the controversial Bong Aviola, whose unorthodox style and authoritarian manner gave the fledgling group a nasty dose of culture shock. Fortunately, they survived and went on to win some choral contests, including the NAMCYA 1990 edition.

(The NAMCYA –National Music Competitions for Young Artists– is only the most prestigious musical competition in the Philippines. The requirements for its college choir category are even tougher than those of many international choral contests!)

The group won again in 1993, trouncing its rivals with a world-class repertoire and heartfelt musicianship.

From then on The Himig Singers never looked back. The group toured Germany and the Czech Republic in 1995, won a couple of competitions in Austria, Spain and Italy in 1997, crisscrossed the North American continent in 1999, and celebrated the millennium with an 8-month extended concert tour of the US and Canada.

The group has been given an award for community service by the University of Mindanao for facilitating seminars and workshops to improve conducting and choir skills locally. The city of Davao has also appointed the Singers official cultural ambassadors of goodwill in an ordinance made effective in 1997.