Ode to Joy

Jeanne had been asking me for years to get the Harana Sax Quartette to play again and I kept giving her excuses. ‘Gusto pa kaya ng mga bata?‘, We haven’t been playing for years. All the kids are now busy with their own lives, how can we ask them to give up weekends for rehearsals?

But when Joy picked up the phone one day and said : ‘Tito, can the quartette play at my wedding? I want you to play the Pachabel Canon as my bridal march‘. Without missing a beat, I said, ‘Of course sweetheart‘. Joy called each and every member and none hesitated. Such is the power of Joy.

To put it into context, even when we were regularly rehearsing about 10 years ago, we never dared try the Pachabel Canon. Individual parts of the music are relatively not too difficult, but as an ensemble, it’s an advance piece. For Ryan, Mark and Spyros to have said ‘yes to Joy’ meant we’re in for a few weekends of practice.

Celine sang on the Wedding Ceremony which earned her an invite from Jessica to her future wedding. Of course, she is yet to meet the man.

Our first problem was that we were not very sure how long the bridal march was going to be. Since Joy naturally would be the last one to march in, we wanted to ensure we are still playing her Canon as she walks down the aisle. So we decided to also have an extended version of the song. Again, to put it into perspective, the piece is already long, and breathing is tricky. By the end of the piece we feel like swimmers coming up for air – and yet we all decided to stay underwater for another minute to play the extended version. We were all determined to ensure we gave the best for Joy.

Joy is the second daughter of our friends Agnes and Rudy. We knew her as a child playing clarinet in our concert band. She is also a great filipiniana dancer. She is now a school teacher. Clarina, her older sister, summed it up really well in her toast, that her sister is kind, loving and generous as reflected by her choice of career. We’ve always known her as a gentle, soft-spoken character who would always say yes to lend a helping hand. She is very charismatic, as you can see, no one hesitated when she asks.

Even the gods are on her side. Her wedding day was not only picture perfect, it was the best Sydney spring day one could imagine. Flowers were blooming and it was neither chilly nor warm, thus the guests stayed in their best attire all day. The ceremony was flawless, a traditional Filipino Catholic Wedding throughout with a subtle difference. I notice that the homily no longer had the message of – ‘Man look after your wife, and wife serve your husband‘. Of course this message has already disappeared in non-religious weddings, but I am glad, being a father to two daughters, that women are no longer seen as servants to their husband but rather as an equal partner in life.

To Joy and Mark, my family wishes you all the best as you embark on your new chapter. We can tell that you truly are in-love with each other, and that is your biggest asset to build on. The 9 years you were together as sweethearts will now take a significant turn that is both enjoyable as well as challenging and it may be cliche but it is your love for each other that will hold you together. You both have wonderful parents to look-up too and if anyone had a better chance to start a new family together – you are off to a good start.

Thank you for inviting all four of us again to another Rupac wedding. It is a memory we will always treasure and value. Please tell us that Glen would also be inviting us (no pressure Glen). But please include in your proposal to your future wife that you have to invite Tito Rommel, Tita Jeanne, Celine and Jessica to your wedding.