(Twenty-first of a series) If the end of the pandemic lockdown had a face, it was—at least for me—that of Michael Mark “Pikong” Guevarra. It was April 2022, the first night Tago Jazz Café opened its doors after nearly two years of silence. Setting up on stage that night were guitarist Riki Gonzales and Balooze,...
Category: Music
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When our all-Filipino choir sang Christmas carols at Martin Place
SYDNEY, Australia—Our all-Filipino choir, Himig Sandiwa, was invited by the City of Sydney Council to perform at Martin Place for its annual Christmas event, “Choirs in the City.” This is the first year the choir has sung at the event, and, according to the organizer, we are the first Filipino choir to be part of...
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‘Big Bang doesn’t make sense’: Deciphering Dionela and his musical universe
I feel woozy, coming out of Dionela’s “Grace Tour” concert in the New Frontier Theater, plus a good dose of ethanol from Cubao Expo, in Quezon City. Before I head home on a vertiginous Friday night, I ask myself: How do I make sense of what I’d just witnessed—and the meteoric success of this singer-songwriter...
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Argerich, Arendt, Akiko-san: Reflections on Hiroshima and Gaza
HIROSHIMA, Japan — It was a great joy to finally witness a performance by the legendary pianist Martha Argerich. My brother and I grew up listening to her renditions of the masters — Beethoven, Mozart, and Chopin most especially — and I tried, but failed, to watch her in Berlin back in 2023, when she...
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‘Matutunaw Din Lahat ng Nyebe’: SB19 and the Filipino Dream
BANGKOK—I am inside a performance hall here in Central World, one of Bangkok’s biggest malls, together with mostly-Filipino fans who are waiting for SB19 to begin their concert. Most of the fans, who call themselves “A’TIN” (pronounced “eighteen”), seem to feel at home in the venue, singing along to every song even without the lyrics...
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Portraits in Jazz: Riki Gonzales returns to the blues
(Twentieth of a series) On a dreary November evening last year, I sent a message to composer-guitarist Riki Gonzales, who was then performing aboard a cruise ship. I asked him to send me a short video clip of wherever he was at that moment, hoping that a glimpse of the world beyond my walls—whether night...
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Italian violinist Alessio Benvenuti is at home in the Philippines
Holding their violins and bows, Alessio Benvenuti and Sara Gonzales walked to the “stage” cordoned off by retractable belt barriers. Within minutes they were playing Antonio Molina’s “Hating Gabi,” weaving a blanket of serenity over those present. They segued to Niccolò Paganini’s “Violin Duo,” a piece said to be not the composer’s best-known piece but...
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Portraits in Jazz: Color her Skarlet
(Nineteenth of a series) I’ve known Skarlet Brown longer than almost any other jazz artist featured in this section. That’s probably why it took me so long to tell her story: I was too close, knew too much, and wasn’t quite sure how to frame her wild and magnificent mess. In fact, my first piece...
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Portraits in Jazz: And in walked Chuck Joson
(Eighteenth of a series) There’s always something disarming about young musicians who play jazz like they were born sitting at a baby grand, striking silken chords long before they could say their names. It’s not even about sass either; if anything, these guys are those that tuck themselves in a quiet corner of the bar...
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Morobeats invite Filipino artists to take up ‘Teritoryo: West Philippine Sea Rap Challenge’
“Wala naman dapat pag-awayan kung di lang kayo sakim/ Karagatan at lupain pilit na inaangkin/ Di pa kayang tanggapin sadyang makitid lang ang utak/ Filipino ang tatak kailanma’y di pasisindak.” Morobeats rapper Dizzy Caday performed before a crowd of journalists on Monday morning, chanting in dynamic rhyme about the Philippines’ fight for sovereign rights...