ILOILO CITY, Jan. 10 -- Iloilo City and Guimaras province are among the first stops of the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra's (PPO) free concert to be held outside of Metro Manila since the start of the health pandemic.

Gabriel Felix Umadhay, co-chairperson of the Iloilo Dinagyang Festival, said the three-leg concert will be held in Guimaras on Jan. 11, and on Jan. 13 and 14 here.

"This allows us to be the center of tourism activities in the whole Philippines. Meaning we have spaces available for concerts, people are appreciative of arts and talents. Because we want to be the art capital, so it's not just the virtual arts, but also music, but also dances," Umadhay said in an interview on Tuesday.

He added that it will also showcase th...