Avida Land celebrates 30 years of enriching lives

Migrating the occasion to the digital space, orchestral music was brought closer to the Filipino people, thanks to Avida Land, Ayala Museum and Manila Symphony Orchestra.

Capping off its 30th anniversary commemoration with even more goodwill, Avida Land celebrated Filipino musicality and bayanihan in “The Rush Hour Concerts,” an event held on Oct. 30, featuring the renowned Manila Symphony Orchestra (MSO).

Avida partnered anew with Ayala Museum in patronizing Philippine art and history, while inspiring everyone to pursue their passions. However, to elevate the collaboration and fittingly mark Avida’s third decade in the business, they organized a concert that fit the peculiarities of these extraordinary times, featured some of the best homegrown talents and provided much-needed help to less fortunate kids.

“Marking our 30th anniversary in these unprecedented times is a challenge, but we saw this as an opportunity to celebrate life by enriching more lives,” said Tess Tatco, marketing head of Avida, a subsidiary of Ayala Land Inc. “As we look back with gratitude and look forward with hope for a better tomorrow, we made it our mission to continue advocating for Filipino talent while giving hope to our nation’s future—the children.”

At 6 p.m. last Friday, Avida, Ayala Museum and MSO mounted a concert that aired over the Internet. Migrating the occasion to the digital space, orchestral music was brought closer to the Filipino people. As audiences reveled in the musical treat from their homes, they were protected from the risk of COVID-19 transmission.

The MSO repertoire ignited a nationalistic fervor as it celebrated “The Best of OPM.” The group and its special guests from the Manila Symphony Junior Orchestra played superb symphonic renditions of chart-toppers from the 1970s to the 1990s, covering the works of maestro Ryan Cayabyab and the Eraserheads, among others.

The Manila Symphony Orchestra repertoire ignited a nationalistic fervor as it celebrated the best of OPM at ‘The Rush Hour Concerts.’

The music also carried great delight for the virtual audience, whose attendance helped many other Filipinos manage the difficulties of the new normal. In buying a ticket, each viewer subsidized the cost of a yearlong Internet access for some of the most underprivileged students, helping them cope with a school system that has required connectivity to progress with the lessons. This act of bayanihan was possible because of Ayala Museum’s “Get Access, Give Access” fundraising campaign.

“Avida has been a longtime partner of the Ayala Museum and we are grateful that in celebration of their 30th anniversary, they have decided to support this fundraising campaign and join us in bringing The Rush Hour Concert experience to the virtual public,” said Ma. Elizabeth L. Gustilo, senior director for the Arts and Culture Division of Ayala Foundation.

The proceeds of the virtual concert went to Ayala Foundation’s Student Online Access Program. Some 500 scholars aged between 5 and 21 are set to benefit. The number symbolizes the almost 50,000 middle-income Filipino households currently living in their dream homes because of Avida’s tireless commitment to its focus market.

The list of recipients comprises students from disadvantaged families based in Tondo, Manila, the province of Batangas and Mimaropa Region. Majority of them have limited access to all-important digital tools and the Web–about 8 of 10 rely on costly and largely unreliable prepaid services.

The concert followed another one of Avida’s goodwill initiatives still in line with its 30th anniversary. It recently partnered with brands Rags2Riches and Messy Bessy–enterprises that benefit artisans from urban poor communities and marginalized young people, and promote sustainability, one of the developer’s strong values. Avida’s anniversary initiatives dovetail with the Ayala Group of Companies’ advocacy to uplift the lives of the Filipino people.