(Thirteenth of a series)
Between his sets more than a year ago at our favorite jazz bar in Cubao, Quezon City, bassist Dave Harder and I fell into a conversation about the creative life and how best to live it under imperfect circumstances. We agreed that while the creatives’ wish list was long and often improbable, it was also always hopeful, with doable workarounds.
Dave has been playing the upright bass for nearly three decades, and a few years into early professional gigs at “hotels, bars, festivals, fiestas, birthdays, company parties, or private events…from North Luzon to the Visayas and parts of Mindanao,” he decided that he’d at last played “Chiquitita” one too many times, and that it would be best for him to give that sound a rest.
It is less a knock on the ABBA classic than it is an epiphany that hits musicians when they want to break free and play something else, preferably music that they truly wish to focus on. In Dave’s case, jazz had been calling him back in a way, from the time he’d first seen and heard jazz shows on TV when he was 12.
While elementary and high school education at Don Bosco Technical Institute in Makati would’ve prepared him thoroughly for a career in engineering, science, and technology, he was also enamored with music, playing bass with the school combo for the weekly school masses starting in his sophomore year.
Teachers appear
At 17, while enrolled at the Mapua Institute of Technology, Dave wanted badly to go pro. He searched for suitable teachers to gain the confidence needed to break into the music scene. Unable to find any, he signed up for music classes at Santa Isabel College and shortly began accepting invitations to gigs. As these increased in frequency and variety, he started missing classes, until he ultimately threw himself to playing bass full time with different groups in as many venues.
This constancy would serve Dave well down the road. So that by the mid-1990s, not quite 30 and eager to dive into a fresh sound, he found himself at an open jam jazz night where a friend, drummer Mar Dizon, introduced him to admired bassist Meong Pacana, who would eventually become one of his mentors.
“This was what was then called a sink-or-swim night, or ‘sumabog’ (literally, ‘exploded’), when young musicians were called on stage to play with the seasoned ones,” says Dave. “There were many of us young ones in such one-off events, as well as the more advanced musicians. It was called ‘sumabog’ to describe those moments when all hell broke loose, and the newbies lost their way through a song. It’s a lot like when kids got lost in the mall—a moment of confusion, mayhem, a time for lessons.”
In one of those sessions, this time at the University of the Philippines, Dave was introduced to the renowned composer, arranger, and double bass player Angel Peña, now deceased, by pianist and jazz historian Richie Quirino. This encounter seemed to confirm that, indeed, the teacher(s) appear when the student is ready, as Angel himself would put Dave through his paces.
As he moved deeper into jazz territory, Dave found himself consulting with who has been described as “Asia’s best bassist,” the late Roger Herrera. “Mang Roger was so generous with his time and knowledge; one call and he readily shared his expertise,” Dave recalls. “I bought my first upright bass from him.”
The constant bassist
Today, Dave lugs his double bass—15 to 20 pounds, including the soft case—to shows or gigs with proper stages, and for recording. He has two other smaller custom-made basses, with detachable necks, ready for a plane ride.
He has also since played for a wide range of musical formats, some of which stand out more than the others: Between 2008 and 2010 he played for jazz-inflected television shows (“The Lynn Sherman Show” and “Sessions on 25th Street”).
Dave eventually got to play with the late saxophone legend Eddie Katindig, and sometime in 2013 with piano supremo Romy Posadas. In 2014 he was part of the orchestra for the musical “Chicago” in Manila. In 2024, he played the jazz bass parts for the Manila show of global sensation Laufey, with the Manila Philharmonic Orchestra (MPO).
“I enjoyed doing these—playing with the MPO, which was very new to me, and with somebody famous,” he says.
These days, Dave plays with five regular groups and then some, bringing the deep-throated joy of his bass wherever it’s needed.
With Sifu, he plays with keyboardist and arranger Elhmir Saison, drummer Rey Vinoya, and saxophonist Tots Tolentino.
With Zenfu, he plays bass with Rey and Tots, and pianist Yong Aquino, with the occasional vocals by Faye Yupano.
With Dixie Sheikhs, he’s with Rey, Tots, Joey Quirino on keys, bandleader Ronald Tomas, and trumpeter Glenn Lucero.
With Up All Night, he’s with Rey and pianist Mike Lichtenfeld.
With The Jazz Standard, he’s with Elhmir, Rey, Tots, and guitarist Daniel Ibasco.
Dave’s the trusty constant in these moving parts, the years of dedication to his instrument placing him firmly on the roster of go-to rhythm main men.
“Playing jazz calls for the same discipline and dedication required of doctors, lawyers, engineers, or athletes,” he says. “You can’t be half-hearted about it.”
He passes on his knowledge through individual mentorship, maintaining a virtuous cycle, and his mentees have subsequently found work as musicians, notably on cruise ships.
But to push the love for art further, Dave believes we all should find and cultivate it in everything we do—“from how we choose to spend our day and talk with people, to the food we cook, the coffee we drink, the way we do business, the books we choose to read, how we parent and nurture our most important relationships.”
Dependable Dave: Singers know he’s got their back, and friends cherish his life lessons and laughs, and reliable support—all in perfect timing.
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