Formed in September 1977, the all-girl group is one of the more successful bands to come out of Davao. It was a regular of JEM Records, owned by Jesus V. ‘Chito’ Ayala and wife-composer Fe Misa Ayala, compose of the popular song ‘Miss Kita Kung Christmas.’ It was Mrs. Ayala who handpicked Ruth Vergara, the sister of two Davao City councilors, as a member of the band.
The group had recorded a number of cuts with JEM and the Japan-based Victor Records, and was regularly tapped as a backup chorus for JEM recording artists like Janet Basco, APO Hiking Society, Maria Cafra, Hajji Alejandro, and Jacqui Magno.
One of its early gigs was in Singapore where it got a candid yet inspiring review in The Strait Times, Singapore’s oldest English daily published since 1845, Geraldine Tang, an entertainment scribe, penned “Passionata — lots of passion but no punch in their singing” on January 2, 1979:
‘These three Filipino singers call themselves the Passionata–after the passion flower–and they try to live up to their name on stage by showing great feeling in their singing.
‘They concentrate on soul music, jazz, funk, and rock as well as pops. The publicity blurb says they “put a lot of fire and spice into their song-and-dance numbers, and are noted for their verve and vigor on stage.”
‘But I didn’t find them hot enough in the 20-minute session when they delivered four songs.
‘They were dressed in sexy, fire-cracker red halter-necked pantaloon suits with deep plunging necklines and accessorised with bangles on their arms and flowers in their hair. Despite their appearances, they render their sons with little punch.
‘Nevertheless, they are a promising group and have potential. With experience they may develop a more expressive, well-defined style of their own.
‘The girls did not jive nor dance that much. Perhaps the limited floor space did not allow them to show more of the choreographed movements.
‘Ruth Vergara, 25, who is the first soprano, had been singing in nightclubs before she joined the group. Aida Diwara, 20, was the winner in a regional singing contest in Davao and Mercy (no surname cited), 23, who sings alto, had been a folk singer.
‘Back home, they have often been likened to the Supremes.
‘For their current stint at a local hotel, their repertoire includes a Supreme medley, a song from the Three Degrees, some ballads spiced with ethnic songs in Tagalog and some disco tunes to get you on the floor.
‘They are back by a four-piece band called The Equalizers, also from the Philippines.”
In the following decades, the Davao music scene, inspired by the successes gained by local bands in the national entertainment landscape, started to surface. The HiMiG Singers, a choral group formed in 1988 under Evangeline Matunog Lapore, a soprano from Davao who won in the National Music Competitions for Young Artists (NAMCYA), a trendsetter.
Then came the South Border, a Filipino pop and R&B band organized in the 1990s. Their song, ‘Kahit Kailan,’ became the Song of the Year in 1996 and the group won the greatest number of trophies at the 10th Awit Awards.
Two other local bands also made a name. The Freestyle a pop and R&B band founded in 1996 by Davao musician Tat Suzara; it disbanded in 2012, years after promoting songs like ‘Before I Let You Go,’ ‘Till I Found You,’ and ‘Once in a Lifetime.’
In 2009, Eevee, a 4-piece band from Davao City, became champions of the Nescafe 3-in-1 Soundskool. It was originally known as Enzo Villegas Band. They signed up with Sony Music and moved to Manila where they focused their major engagements.
