MUSIC?
You hear it whenever you turn on your radio, your Ipod or even your TV. You hear it when a band plays in a gig or orchestra plays in a concert. Music comes in different sounds, moods, tones and kinds. Sometimes, you can't help but move to its beat, sing the lyrics of the song, do "air guitars" or "air drums", or even headbang during most extreme cases. It's alright to do all these my friend. Music is everywhere!
MY MUSIC STORY:
Music has always been a part of me my whole life. As a baby, my mom would always sing lullabies to me to put me to sleep. As a preschooler, I listened to and sang songs of Gary V. and some other singers. In early grade school, I listened and danced to the music of Michael Jackson, the Backstreet Boys, Code Red, and some other pop groups or boy bands. Back in grade 5, I listened to the music of 80's groups such as Spandau Ballet, Johnny Hates Jazz, Huey Lewis and the News and the Police. I remembered that I even "air drummed" to the song Billy Joel, "Sometimes a Fantasy". It was one of the silliest things I did, but you can't blame an 11 yr. old kid for doing that. Back in grade 5, I played one of the very first instruments I have even set my hands on, the Yamaha Recorder flute. It was a requirement in my music class but I grew to enjoy it. Playing the recorder also made me dream of being a saxophone player one day, because it is also a wind instrument. However, the saxophone was quite expensive and I never got my hands on one.
Perhaps one of the milestones of my "music life" was back in grade 7. I started listening to rock bands such as Linkin Park and Creed, which somewhat shaped my musical preferences. This also somewhat gave a preview of my future as a musician. Listening to U2's "With or Without You", I was attracted by the simple, yet intoxicating bassline (of course I never knew what a bassline was before, I just liked the 4 note progression of the song) of that song which ran through my head. I asked my dad, "What is that instrument that makes that sound?" he replied "That's a bass guitar, it is similar to a guitar but has a lower tone." I liked the sound of the bass, and I then started dreaming of becoming a bassist one day. I became steps closer to my dream as a freshman in high school. I asked my parents to buy me a bass guitar, but they found it too expensive, as I was just a beginner. It was not practical yet to have P 10,000++ worth of equipment, because I did not even know how to play it at the first place. My mom told me that I should learn how to play the guitar first, since we have a guitar at home. So, I did learn how to play. My dad taught me the basic chords of the guitar, and then I carried on after him. I would download songs, chords and tablature from the Internet, and play my guitar while following the music. I also jammed with my neighbor and schoolmate, Ernest. I never took a single lesson, but I learned how to play, because I loved it and I wanted to learn. A few months later, an accident happened to that guitar. It suddenly dropped, because the strap somewhat gave way, so it left a large crack underneath. But that did not stop me from playing it. It was a treat for me during Christmas 2002, when I got a new acoustic guitar. My parents also gave me an amplifier, together with the new guitar.
I also joined my community's music ministry, as a guitarist. It was there where I learned how to play with a group. This is also a reason why I know many worship songs. I was already playing guitar for a year as a sophomore in high school. I thought that I am already ready to have my own bass guitar. I remembered that I was looking around at JB music in SM Southmall, when I was a packaged bass guitar with a small amplifier. I thought that would be perfect for me as a beginner. So, I did buy it after Christmas. It was a 5-string Rocker bass guitar with a Samick 15-watt amplifier. It wasn't much, but that made me very happy. I also formed my first band during my sophomore year. Ace, Vinny and I formed our band "Dakila", but unfortunately we disbanded after I quit the band due to personal reasons.
One of the greater milestones in my "music life" was back in my junior year. The school opened a new club, called DLSZ Jammers. It was a club specifically for modern musicians. I auditioned for the club as a bassist, with just 6 months of experience. I was very happy when I got in the club, I couldn't believe it! My first ever gig was during the opening of our school fair last November 2004. My group played John Mayer's "Back to You", Vanessa Carlton's "A Thousand Miles", Bamboo's "Masaya", Moonstar 88's "Torete" and Lisa Loeb's "Stay". I had a blast during that performance! It was in senior year when I truly realized one of my dreams, to join the Battle of the Bands. Two months prior to that, I jammed with Denis, my friend and a "rusty" drummer since he stopped playing drums during his freshman year. He still had the skill, but forgot most of it, which I understood. I saw him as a worthy bandmate. Remember my neighbor Ernest? Well, he became the guitarist of our band. Our only problem is finding the vocalist, that was until we recruited Antonio or "Agi", my classmate back in my junior year ( I tell you, he was one heck of a class clown!). His passion to sing made us choose him for our band (not to mention his antics). We jammed in a studio, the chemistry was perfect! All we had to do is practice for the battle of the bands. Time went on and it was time for the auditions, and still no name for the band. We were still arguing what name to put on the form, until we finally agreed to name our band "Sweet Spot". We played Red Hot Chili Peppers' "By The Way" as our audition piece. The only complain we got was we needed to tune our instruments and my bass was too loud (I forgot to mention that a month before the auditions, my parents got me a new bass guitar, an Ibanez RD500. I still wasn't used to making the right blend of sound with it so it turned out too loud!).
Around a week later, we were called to the Student Council office for the announcements of the ones who got into the semifinals. We were one of the ones who got in! I think were were ranked at top 5 during that time. So, the semis came, I remembered that everyone was chanting out our vocalist's name when we were about to play. We played The Darkness's "I Believe in a Thing Called Love" and Parokya Ni Edgar's "Mang Jose". We had tons of fun playing there. Then, we were surprised that we made it to the finals, which we never expected. A few days later, the finals came, it was the moment of truth. We started off with an original instrumental number which we made up two days prior to the finals, We followed it with The Darkness's "I Believe in a Thing Called Love" (our trademark song!), then another song, "Growing on Me" by the same artist. Lastly, we played Parokya Ni Edgar's "Ordertaker", our drummer went bonkers during the song but we still made it out quite well. Consequently, we won second place after all that, we were outclassed by a more experienced Bulusan (compare their three years of experience to our two months of being together as Sweet Spot). It was announced during Zobel Night which culminated the annual DLSZ fair. We also performed during that night, it was truly a night to remember. We gained more popularity during the battle of the bands, we were asked to play during many events that followed. As for the Jammers, we also played during the concert last February. My band is currently inactive due to schoolwork. But we are looking forward to more gigs and performances together.
WHAT MUSIC MEANS TO ME:
As a musician, music is a form of expressing who I am, and what I really love. It has been part of my life ever since, but it grew into a passion more and more as I grew up. I can't imagine my life without music ever being a part of this world.
Music has also brought out the best of me. I found my true God-given talent in it and I am still doing everything I can to continue honing it, despite my busy schedule. Being a musician also developed my people skills and boosted my self-confidence; something which I never was strong at before. Joining the battle of the bands, and playing in various gigs or concerts also gained me many friends, who share the same passion with me. Music is a great part of my life, it runs through my blood. Thank God for music!