MANILA, Philippines - Arnel Pineda, the Filipino frontman of rock band Journey, apologized Tuesday to the National Historical Institute (NHI) for singing the Philippine national anthem incorrectly during the March 13 bout between Pinoy boxing champ Manny Pacquiao and Ghanaian challenger Joshua Clottey.
"I apologize for my dissatisfactory performance dun sa fight ni Pacquiao and Clottey sa Dallas, Texas, according to their standards. What can I do? I'm just doing my job... but then again hindi ako sorry kasi artistic freedom ko yon. It doesn't make me less of a Filipino dahil sa nabago ang pagkakanta," Pineda said in an abs-cbnNEWS.com interview.
Pineda said that he really did his best to represent the country while singing the anthem. The NHI earlier said it is looking into the possibility of filing a complaint against him.
"Ano ba ang bago? 'Yong traditional na pagkanta ng 'Lupang Hinirang' ang gusto nilang marinig. On my part, I'm just doing my artistic freedom. I was there as Filipino representing Pacquiao and the Philippines. 'Yun ang importante," Pineda added.
On Monday, Teddy Atienza, chief of NHI’s Heraldry Section, told abs-cbnNEWS.com that the board was not pleased when it heard Pineda’s version of “Lupang Hinirang†during the Pacquiao-Clottey fight in the United States.
Atienza lamented that Pineda sang the anthem slowly instead of of its original march tempo. He also scored the singer for belting out the last 2 words of “Lupang Hinirang†and being out of tune.
He said this was a clear violation of Republic Act (RA) 8491. RA 8491 prescribes that any person who will violate its provisions may be punished by a fine of at least P20,000 or imprisonment of not more than one year.
Pineda, meanwhile, admitted that he went off-pitch near the end of the song because he could no longer hear himself sing.
"Alam ko naman na nag-flat ako kasi ang parte na yon na nagsimula ng magsigawan ang tao. Wala akong ear monitor. Hindi ko na marinig ang sarili ko noong pumapasok ako doon sa line na 'lupa ng araw ng luwalhati't pagsinta.' Sumisigaw na sila, highlight ng melody ng kanta 'yon sa unti-unti hindi ko naririnig," he said.
Aside from his performance, Pineda is also being criticized for wearing a cowboy-inspired polo instead of the traditional Barong Tagalog.
In the interview, the crooner cleared that what he wore during the Pacman-Clottey bout was a modern Barong Tagalog made by Filipino fashion designer Ariel Agasang.
"Barong 'yon. 'Yon ang modern barong gawa ni Filipino designer na si Ariel Agasang na siya ding gumawa ng damit para kay Piolo Pascual," he said.
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