The DJ who's not a DeeJay

It's been a while since I've written about Original Pilipino Music (OPM). Even if I haven't been in direct contact with the Philippine music industry in the last decade, I've been following OPM hits and listen to Filipino songs whenever I can.

That's why it was a joy to learn that my good friend Adjeng Buenaventura is releasing her first solo single. I fondly remember Adjeng as part of the bands Sipol and Wink, which I still listen to till today thanks to Spotify. I clearly remember Adjeng having a soothing and distinct clarity in her voice which didn't need to hit the highest of notes (birit) to demonstrate power. It's definitely welcoming to know she's back in the music scene.

Listening to Adjeng's single "O Sige Lang" for the first time gave me the vibe of an 80's feel-good pop song. The upbeat tempo and catchy chorus strike you immediately before you realize that it's a song with a hopeful outlook on love expressed in the form of a dance. 

What's noticeable is that the lyrics are purely in Tagalog. It's not common to hear lyrics like "nasasabik sa udyok ng ating galaw at tiyempo" and "nais ko sana ang tanging kasayaw mo" but the poetic lines fit the melody.     

Follow Adjeng on her official Facebook page for updates.

Since I got my new MIDI controller a few months ago, I wanted to try make a lot of devices and apps work.

Here's what I wanted to do:

1. Use my Akai Professional MPK Mini MIDI controller to enter the notes and data for the song.
2. Use my Korg nanoKontrol 2 to control the record, play and stop buttons and control the track volume.
3. Use FL Studio to connect the 2 MIDI controllers, and sequence the live looping.
4. Use my Xiaomi mobile phone as a second webcam to record video of my hands while playing live.
5. OBS Studio for recording the audio and video live.

I thought I had all my bases covered in terms of bringing everything together. What I failed to realize is that every take I recorded occupied more and more disk space on my laptop. By the time I recorded my third take, I ran out of hard disk space. And so even though the song had gone well live, it suddenly got cut by a disk full error.

Sorry Senorita. We'll have to backup some files before we record again.

I've been dabbling on the piano from time to time trying to play some songs that catch my interest.  I was originally hoping to play and record one every Tuesday, but that was too ambitious.
I did post a couple on a Tuesday which I dubbed as "Tugtog Tuesdays" (play Tuesdays).

I kinda miss arranging songs the way I used to when I was doing this for a living as a musical arranger.  I'll give it a try this year and see if I could compose again.  And I just realized that I still have some compositions that I never published online.

Meanwhile, here's a playlist of what I've posted in the past.
In case it won't play, click here to watch my playlist on YouTube.
Hope you enjoy!

I usually pass by this Department Store every weekend and there's a band that regularly plays at the entrance. This is the first time though I heard them play Eraserheads songs. Awesome rendition. They played Kaliwete and other Eraserheads hits but unfortunately this was the only song I caught on video.  Imagine me hearing this from the basement.  I had to rush one floor up to see them up front and personal.  Awesome rendition.  Kudos to the Landmark band!

I've always admired the efforts by foreigners learning a Filipino song and actually singing a good version.  Here Matthew Mannucci arranges and performs his own acoustic version of Yeng Constantino's hit "Chinito." His version is obviously called "Chinita."  Kudos to you Matthew!

Since Michael Jackson's unreleased song "Love Never Felt So Good" in his new album Xscape debuted worldwide last month, I've fallen in love with the song.  Its retro Michael Jackson sound makes me relive the sound I grew up with.  After each new popular song released nowadays, do a YouTube search and you'll find dozens if not hundreds of versions of each song.  Name it you got it: acoustic, acapella, choir, opera, rock or even reggae.  So far by the best instrumental version for me of this song is this rendition by Stot Juru  Check out his sax lead for "Love Never Felt So Good."

This was so hilarious that I had to share it ! These guys from the military make their own music video version of Lady Gaga's "Telephone". I couldn't imagine guys in fatigue dancing like this. And the others ? Well, let's just say that they got creative with whatever props they could use to spicen up the video. Oh and the chubby guy ROCKS !

A Rube Goldberg machine is a deliberately over engineered machine that performs a very simple task in a very complex fashion, usually including a chain reaction. The expression is named after American cartoonist and inventor Rube Goldberg.

Don't have a set of drums ? Wanna be a drummer but never tried ?

I've been accustomed to taking a backseat role or hiding behind the scenes and taking on a low profile in much of what I do.
I've been a musical arranger but been behind the scenes, with our karaoke product in the limelight. I've been webmaster and creator of several websites but been distancing myself from the websites so I don't get associated with them. Last year, I also remember being the official photographer for the prestigious Awit Awards, another behind the scenes role. And for the past 2 years, I've been one of the judges for the Awit Awards.

Not that I'm not proud of the other projects and positions I've held in the past, but being invited to judge for the Awit Awards is something I'm proud enough to announce rather than be passive about it. It's nice to be considered and acknowledged for having an ear for musical talent, not just by friends or peers but from the very industry that recognizes Original Pilipino Music, that being the Philippine Association of the Recording Industry (PARI). And through the PARI's Awit Awards, the best artists are given due recognition.

This year, it's an honor to be judging side by side with the likes of Lito Camo, Christian Bautista, my good friend TBowne from 101.1YES FM, one of my favorite musical arrangers, Jimmy Antiporda and other distinguished judges bringing experience from various aspects of the music industry. It's also interesting to see if my picks win.

Check out the article I wrote with the list of nominees, winners for the pre-awarding and a couple of pictures I took from the event.