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Monday, October 11, 2004
A musical triple treat
Three’s a crowd to some, but for Jenara Regis Newman, it’s a perfect number to make beautiful music with.
That was what was in store for classical music enthusiasts when the Arts Council of Cebu presented Albert Tiu, pianist, Joseph Esmilla, violinist, and Wilfredo Pasamba, cellist at a piano trio (yes, that’s the term, even if there’s only one pianist among the three) concert.
All accomplished musicians in their chosen instruments, the three are native born Filipinos who have this in common, they’ve all been to famed music school Julliard, though not at the same time. Their musicality is such that they mesmerized their audience, who gave them a standing ovation.
This, despite the fact that the three returned to the Philippines only a few days before their concert. Albert from Singapore, Joseph from Maryland and Wilfredo from Kansas.
All three have been featured soloists and have played with orchestras here (the Philippines and Cebu) and abroad where they studied under some of the world’s best music professors.
Cebuano Albert says that piano was forced on him when he was five, but at 11, he was good enough at it to be admitted to the Philippine National High School for the Arts, after which he went to UP and became even more interested in piano, and then on to Julliard.
Joseph was practically weaned on the violin, his father, Sergio Z. Esmilla, being a violinist. He went to Julliard at age 14 where he finished his bachelor and master of music degrees. From there, he took post- graduate studies in violin and chamber music.
Wilfredo first started to study the violin at the Pasaknungan at Nayong Pilipino but shifted to cello when his brother started to play it. He fell in love with the instrument because of its baritone sound. He finished his undergraduate studies at the Moscow University.
If all these musical artists are living abroad, it’s because they can’t make a living being classical musicians in the Philippines. Willy has his studio in Kansas city where he also plays with the Kansas City Symphony; he also does cello transcriptions. Joseph lives in Maryland, near the border of Pennsylvania where he plays with the Harrisburg Symphony and teaches at Elizabethtown. Albert teaches at the National University of Singapore and does musical arrangement, some of which was used during the Cebu concert. All of them have been concertizing, whether solo or with orchestras, so it is not surprising that when the opportunity arose, they did a concert here, after performing in Manila.
Is music the only thing in their lives? Albert says he does giant jigsaw puzzles with his wife, also a musician, and goes cycling. But for him really, to unwind is to play the piano or listen to more music (classical, please). He’s very fascinated with the (classic) tango sound which is why their Cebu repertoire featured it (Fuga y Misterio and Soledad by Astor Piazzolla). Joseph watches old movies and builds vacuum tube amplifiers (“the old kind, it has a better sound”). Willy occasionally plays basketball and watches the game and dotes on his seven-month-old yellow labrador.
Do they cook, now that they are all living abroad? Like the typical pampered Pinoy, they don’t, unless they really really have to. But who cares? As long as they continue performing with the skill, the artistry and the body-and-soul passion like they did that night. Bravo, Albert, Joseph and Willy!
(October 11, 2004 issue)
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