Seven years ago, I embarked on a different course in my career as a jazz guitarist. From “land-based” gigs at Tago Jazz Café, Manila Peninsula, and the Philippine International Jazz & Arts Festival, I began playing aboard cruise liners. 

My first seaborne experience was in 2017, on the ship Seabourn of Holland America Line. Among the first places on the itinerary were Spain and Greece, then Antarctica, the Caribbean, and Australia, over a period of six months. After a brief homecoming, I was travelling again around Europe, America, and Asia.   

Of the many countries I’ve been to, Italy stands out, particularly Genova, the birthplace of Christopher Columbus. Also known by its English name, Genoa, it’s one of Italy’s largest ports. 

I lived there for nearly two months last year while the Ocean Vista, the liner I was to work in, was being prepped in dry dock at the Fincantieri shipyard. It’s the new ship of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, with which I am currently contracted.

A new ship means new production shows, trainings, duties for staff—all exciting, although sometimes back-breaking. No complaints, though. We were billeted in a hotel. Every morning, I had coffee (90 eurocents, or about P57) at the vending machine in the shipyard. Then, together with the staff I commuted to the port office for seminars. In the afternoon, we walked over to the rehearsal studio.   

I didn’t mind walking. Italy has a mild climate. Even when the sun is at its peak, there’s a cool breeze. I enjoy traveling by train and bus but there’s just something stimulating about walking the streets of Europe. During my free time, I explored Genoa on foot and just experienced the culture. 

The only challenge was the weight of two guitars on my back and my pedalboard. 

Thrilling discovery

And then I discovered something else about Genoa that made me realize why I felt so at home there. It has a lively live jazz music scene, and a popular jazz club named after Count Basie. I was thrilled! 

Best known for swing music, William James “Count” Basie was the American jazz pianist, composer, and bandleader in the 1930s. Count Basie Jazz Club was established in 2008 by a group of Genoese musicians who wanted to keep jazz alive and promote it among the younger generations. 

The club is a venue for concerts and a meeting place for jazz aficionados to explore new ideas. It’s housed in a 15^th-century convent located in Vico Tana (Tana Alley) in the historic section of Genoa. About 100 live shows and jam sessions are held there each year, organized by the Count Basie Jazz Club Association which runs on donations and volunteer service.  

When I first set foot in the club I was so excited that I probably annoyed the locals. But I didn’t care. My cup was full; I was with jazz pros and aficionados. Occasionally I became teary-eyed, wishing the moment was happening in the Philippines. 

I owe the experience to my friend Bernard Cansier, stage technician of the cruise entertainment department. He sponsored my club membership so I could watch the concert of Kristin Berardi, Australian jazz singer, composer and teacher. The club fee was 30 euros (about P1,900) for a lifetime membership.  

There was a pre-concert al fresco dinner, which was something new to me. In the Philippines, you sit and dine indoors while enjoying the music. Count Basie Jazz Club is more of a show venue than a dine-and-drink place. To me this means that the Genoese have great respect for music and the arts. Show, gig, jam session—to the Genoese, they are all concerts.    

I later got to chat with Kristin, pianist Marco Detto, and bandleader Gianluca Salcuni (a great sax player!). 

I wondered if Alessio Menconi, music professor and probably Italy’s best jazz guitarist, was around. I stepped out for a smoke—and there he was! I was so starstruck that I asked for a video selfie with him. 

Proud community member

I’m proud to call myself a member of this community that lets me be myself and enjoy this beautiful art form called jazz.

According to its website, the Count Basie Jazz Club Association is dedicated to promoting niche musical genres such as jazz, blues, and singer-songwriter music, as well as musical readings and theater. Its goal is “cultural education in contrast to mass phenomena and…virtual media and communication.” 

The group sees the club as a school where music enthusiasts can watch and learn from professionals through performances, workshops and, best of all, onstage jam sessions. 

A couple of weeks after my first visit I returned to the club on my own. It happened to be International Jazz Day (April 30), and there was quite a crowd for the celebration. And guess what! I got to jam with the band, all regular club members! 

I played two jazz standards—“Just Friends,” a 1930s song by John Klenner and Sam W. Lewis (I didn’t get the band singer’s name), and “Mr. P.C.,” a “minor blues” piece by saxophonist John Coltrane (“P.C.” stand for Paul Chambers, the bass player to whom the song is a tribute).  I was in jazz heaven! The memory will forever be etched in my heart and soul.

Professional growth

When I joined the cruise industry in 2017, I only expected that playing on a ship, sometimes in the middle of nowhere, would be different. I didn’t know then how much it would help me grow as a professional musician. The workload—gigs, rehearsals, guest performances, tea time music—is different. You just have to keep going and learning as much as you can. 

I was once asked in an online interview with the newsletter Guitar Pusher Weekly what the schedule is like. 

The trips take from one week or 12 days to three to six months. The band plays five to seven sets a day. Sometimes, it feels endless. You can’t be choosy about the repertoire; you play all types of music. You just have to be prepared. 

When cruises and virtually all types of work stopped during the pandemic, I gave online guitar lessons. 

Debut album 

It was also during that time that I finally finished working on my compositions for my debut album, “Not By Sight.” 

The 11-track album was released on compact disc by Swingster Jazz Mecca Records and launched in April 2021 at Tago Jazz Café, where I play with drummer Chuck Menor, bassist Josh Tulagan, and pianist Emman Rodulfo. The band performs on the album tracks. 

Coming out during the pandemic, the album “absolutely drips with the message of hope,” wrote reviewer Rick Olivares. 

The title is from the Bible verse “For we walk by faith and not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7). St. Paul the Apostle wrote that we must fix our eyes not on what is seen because it is temporary, but on what is unseen because it is eternal.

The verse has a special meaning to me. I have a rare eye condition, which led to my dropping out of my music studies at the University of Santo Tomas. By faith, I have found my way though. I have since been on an adventure I would never have imagined. 

Early last year, I came home on compassionate leave because my Papa was seriously ill. He passed away months later.

My next trip out is in September. I am also exploring other options. Wherever it takes me, I surrender it all to God, my true producer-manager.

Read more: All that Jazz: The music lives here