Rhap Salazar and The Young Voices of Negros win top prizes at 2009 WCOPA

Team Philippines has done it again at the grand finals of the 13th World Championships of Performing Arts (WCOPA) held at the Westin Bonaventure in downtown, Los Angeles.ABS CBN’s original Little Big Star Rhap Salazar won the coveted titles Junior Grand Champion Solo Vocalist of the World and the Junior Grand Champion Performer of the World. The vocal quartet The Young Voices of Negros won the title Junior Grand Champion Group Vocalists of the World.Twelve-year-old Rhap sang a one-minute version of Celine Dion’s All By Myself at the final show.“Hours before the finals, Rhap’s voice was getting tired due to extensive rehearsals for two straight days. He did everything to conserve his voice. Despite the odds, he gave a stellar performance worthy of the top prizes in the junior division. The American judges were simply blown away by his soaring vocals,” said WCOPA Philippine National Director Carlo Orosa.On the other hand, The Young Voices of Negros (Katrina, Kristina, Aissa and Kristopherson Madrigal) performed a highly polished rendition of And I Am Telling You from the musical Dreamgirls in four-part harmony.WCOPA’s newest junior champions Rhap and The Young Voices of Negros will be featured on ABC’s Good Morning America through the My Life in Three Words segment.During the weeklong competition, Filipino celebrities showed their support for the team – Isay Alvarez, Louie Reyes, Butch Jimenez, Tricia Jimenez and Rhap’s best friend Charice Pempengco were among them.Since the Philippines joined the WCOPA in 2005, seven Filipino performing artists have won the global competition’s top prizes: Jed Madela (2005 Grand Champion Vocalist of the World and Grand Champion Performer of the World), The Cercado Sisters (2006 Grand Champion Group Vocalists of the World), Reymond Sajor (2007 Grand Champion Vocalist of the World), Aria Clemente (2007 Grand Champion Vocalist of the World and Grand Champion Performer of the World), Catherine Loria (2008 Grand Champion Vocalist of the World and Grand Champion Performer of the World), and Rhap Salazar and The Young Voices of Negros this year.[via]