S Magazine: Blog StarShowbiz Stars and Scoops

by Karylle

Art connoisseur, I am… not.

In fact, the only reason why I know the word “connoisseur” is because I would misspell it all the time on my spelling tablet back in high school.  I’d love to write something about the lights and shadows of the painting, its mood, the era it’s from but a sophisticated eye for art is not something I possess. I’ve been to the Louvre in Paris, I’ve seen the Mona Lisa (La Gioconda) by Leonardo da Vinci, I’ve got the Pop Art Andy Warhol Tomato Soup can in my bedroom but that’s as far as my “name-dropping” can go.  So, I’d like to talk about the art that I’ve encountered in the past few months now that I’ve gone beyond my beautiful doodles of stick figures, hearts, dots and stars as well as my erasable Microsoft Paint colored shapes which could rival the MMDA art that fill our streets.

My Internet addiction has gotten me bombarded with photos on Facebook and Multiply.  Images upon images of everyday life… it makes me thirst for something more. Something more than what’s real: blurry photos that are not well lit, inanimate objects like food from various restaurants, people taking photos of themselves which they’ve perfected by stretching out the hand on the side of their face that they think is their best angle wearing an overly practiced smile, and faces or bodies “photoshopped” beyond recognition.

So here’s the story of my journey as I’ve immersed myself in the art world. I don’t think I did the steps in the right order but that’s the way the story goes.

STEP #1

I test the waters by diving right into the art pool.

Me and my painting that I made during my retreat with Tita Maribi Mapa-Garcia and the Assumption sisters in their beautiful retreat house in Baguio

Around this time last year, I went on a retreat in the Assumption retreat house in Baguio City to heal my broken heart so to speak.  One thing that people don’t really know about is that I painted for the first time while I was there. My retreat master was Tita Maribi Mapa-Garcia (Bethesda Springs of Hope). Tia Maribi—my partner in Centerstage Family KTV on both Jupiter and Tomas Morato as well as Mei Lin, Tomas Morato—is actually a painter. She just had another very successful exhibit at Le Soufflé called 3 is Company together with Father Paul Yntig and Father Armand Tangi, famous painter of The Laughing Christ, Jesus with a cellphone and on a motorcycle, and different images of Jesus in modern times.

I did not make enough paintings for an exhibit, but sitting on a rock on the hill looking at the pines of Baguio city where I had spent summers and Christmas vacations as a kid was my favorite part of the retreat.  Though I had the most colorful, kindergarten-like painting, I am proud of the paint stains on my jogging pants and fingers which made me feel one with the other artists of the world in their studios with their big ‘ol berets. I finally tried something I’ve wanted to do for a long time even if I was so scared of painting something ugly.

STEP #2

Okay, so maybe diving into something isn’t the best first step so, I took it easy by “putting my left foot in” in perfect Hokey Pokey song-and-dance style. Step #2 was to pose as Maria Makiling in the UP Los Baños Botanical garden for various painters and photographers.  I received an invitation from my Tita Angel Tatlonghari in behalf of the UP Alumni Association and the Mt. Makiling Foundation to be a muse! Imagine that.  Any fears of posing nude were squashed when I found out that Bill Gustilo would be making my baro with tulip sleeves made of the local fabric sinamay combined with chiffon. Of course, I gladly posed as Maria whom I’ve always watched in awe as a child every time I would visit my Lola in Laguna while she slept soundly on the mountain named after her.

I thought that wading in the art pool would be cool and refreshing, I didn’t realize that I had to pose all day from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Okay, it wasn’t so bad because I had short breaks in between insect bites and posing without batting an eyelash. I think I got gently scolded a dozen times for shifting my eyes which was not allowed.  It was difficult to focus my eyes on one spot while the onlookers were waving their hands in abandon causing me to be cross-eyed.  And of course there were the memorable kamote chips they served during lunch break which canceled out the difficulty of keeping still for half a day.

Bugs and eye problems aside, it was fun and a big honor to reprise my role as Maria Makiling, a diwata who is a fellow native of Laguna.  It’s a memorable character for me because it was actually my first-ever acting role for Senator Bong Revilla’s movie Agimat: Anting-Anting ni Lolo. Among the artists who shared the cause of preserving Mt. Makiling’s beauty that day were Cheloy Dans, Jess Abrera, Angel Cacnio, Cris Cruz, Dominic Rubio, Tessie Duldulao, Fred Liongoren, Jonah Salvosa, Adi Baens Santos, Boy Valino, Mar Bongalon, Gig de Pio, Ding Hidalgo, Romy Mananquil, Pit Santiago and Janice Young. The event was also graced by Batangas Governor Vilma Santos-Recto and singer Dulce.

Read the full blog of Karylle in the November 2009 issue of S Magazine.

by Ogie Alcasid

I’m into music and showbiz because of my sheer desire to create. I don’t think of myself as a genius. I love to compose, perform and act.  I have been in entertainment for over 20 years.

Whatever I do—whether songwriting, performing on TV, acting in films or others—those are all creative works. I believe that as an artist, one shouldn’t limit oneself to being a singer, or a songwriter or as an actor, or as comedian. I prefer to be versatile.

When I was still very young, around seven years old, I used to copy the way Rico J. Puno performed on TV. I also started writing songs when I was seven years old, just some silly childish songs.  Even though those were quite simple songs, they already had structure and melody. I believe songwriting is a gift from God. I love doing it.

Through the years, I have already written more than 300 songs. My idols in songwriting include Rey Valera, George Canseco, Basil Valdez and, of course, Rico J. Puno. Among the musical greats abroad, I really look up to and admire the songs of Barry Manilow, also of Billy Joel, the late Michael Jackson, Prince. Among musical groups, I admire Chicago and Earth Wind & Fire.

My dream is to someday work on a musical. Actually, I’ve been offered to do a musical before based on the various songs that I’ve written. If ever I’d be able to finally sit down to create it, it would of course be a love story; that’s what I like and I believe that’s also what everybody would like.

Love stories are ideal subjects or themes for songs or musicals. Whether happy or sad, love and music seem to symbiotically contribute to each other and help each other. Whenever one writes music, it’s almost always out of love—love of God, love for others, love of nature.

Based on my personal experiences, I believe the basic root and the best inspiration for writing of music is love. When one is in love or when one is problematic because of love, those are the best times in a person’s life to compose and write music. Why? Because the music wouldn’t be fake. It’s not hard to write when inspired by love. It’s not something you just invent or imagine—it’s real, it’s overwhelming, it’s overpowering and true.

Of all my songs, my top favorites are Kailangan Kita, Huwag Ka Lang Mawawala, Kung Mawawala Ka and Bakit Ngayon Ka Lang.

If my life were a song, it would be My Way which was popularized and immortalized by the great Frank Sinatra. I think it’s the everyman’s song too. That song is melancholic, yet at the same time it’s also triumphant. A man in his life will always experience tumultuous ups and downs, and in times of troubles, just believe in yourself and do your best. It’s a great song by Paul Anka, and sang so well by Frank Sinatra.

As a singer, songwriter and music lover, I also admire my fellow musical artists in the Philippine entertainment industry. I look up to Lea Salonga who is a perfectionist; Gary Valenciano who has great groove and is very soulful; Martin Nievera whom I consider as the ultimate balladeer; Jaya, the Soul Queen; Janno Gibbs, the Soul King; and of course, there is Mr. Rico J. Puno, my childhood idol.

Rico J is Mr. Entertainment himself personified and he has—up to this very day—the best-sounding voice ever. I wish to add that in my book, the No. 1 in music artistry in the Philippines is none other than Regine Velasquez. She is remarkably capable of singing anything. It’s a rare gift.

Read more of Ogie Alcasid’s blog entry in the August 2009 issue of S Magazine.

by Gerard Salonga

When I got the call asking me to write about my love for music, I first thought, “Sure, piece of cake, I’ll have lots to say.” When it came time to sit down and actually write, it turned out to be more difficult than I could have imagined.
How does one describe in plain words one’s love for something like music? After all, music is something that expresses the inexpressible, and to reduce something like my feelings for it into something merely verbal seemed daunting a task. How was I going to do this without it sounding like an autobiography? I wanted it to be honest and candid, but not seem self-congratulatory.

It would have been easier for me to describe my love for my wife, or my mother, or my dog Rocky for that matter… but here we are, so let’s give this a shot, and if anything, it may at least allow me to share with you a little bit of how I feel for this thing we call music. Many a feature article and souvenir programme have described my education and professional experience, so I’ll spare you from all that. Here we go.

How did we meet? I have no recollection of the first contact I ever had with music. For all I know it could have been from inside my mother’s womb as she listened to the radio. I do remember my first listening experiences. It was in our living room, where I would be fed a diet of The Carpenters, James Last, ABBA, Chopin, and Chinese opera. These were on reel-to-reel tapes, which were the thing back in the mid-‘70s (I was born in 1973). I remember my dad teaching me how to turn on the machine and thread the tape so I could listen whenever I wanted.

There I would be, listening for hours to The Sound of Music, or a recording of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5, sitting totally still throughout the whole thing. I was four. My mom thought I had some form of autism, because if the machine weren’t plugged in, I would thread the tape, and turn the reels to the end, singing what was supposed to be on the tape. I actually remember singing Beethoven 5 all the way through while turning the reels. Sometimes it would all be in my head, and I wouldn’t sing anything, which I’m sure was quite alarming to my mom.

One afternoon, there it was. I didn’t see it come through the front door. I walked into the living room and it stood there, a shiny upright piano. My sister Lea began taking lessons on it but I wouldn’t get my hands on it till a year later. I still remember vividly that first lesson. Mrs. Miraflor came over for Lea’s lesson as usual, and after they had finished she called me over and sat me on the bench. She showed me each of the notes in the C major scale. I was in love. On our piano, the G above middle C had a different tone, and from that day it stuck in my head. To this day, G (not A) is my surefire reference pitch.

More of Gerard Salonga’s love for music in the March 2009 issue of S Magazine.

by Chin Chin Gutierrez

Tragedy can happen to anyone, rich or poor, to a celebrity or a private individual. But grace can happen to anyone too. In what seems to be a test, a trial or a tribulation, one could recognize grace. And this can be done with a deep sense of gratitude.

I learned that we need not suffer anything to distract or draw us away from knowing that each of us is a child of God: a loving being in a loving world. I wouldn’t say this with utmost urgency and importance if it was just simpler said than done. God’s love is the very anchor of grace and gratitude in this journey and one doesn’t need a tragic experience to know the joy that comes with living this truth.

I saw the fire that razed our house two years ago this month as a grace, for beyond what I know and truly accept, life took away what was no longer necessary. And this may perhaps be for the good of all. Yes, this is not just my story and not just about me.

When I was a little girl, my grandmother and I used to spend time putting together those jigsaw puzzles that had a thousand pieces. It was always so difficult to begin with, all those colors and shapes scattered around. Lola Nena would always say, “Be patient, let’s have fun… Start with the corners. Look for all the ones with a flat side so we could create the frame and see the size of the picture of the puzzle.”

But then soon after the frame was done, I’d start getting confused. “That’s why it is called a puzzle”, Lola would chuckle, “but if you look at what colors are similar and find the clues of the guide picture in each perfect piece, that would help you see that no two pieces are alike.”

What she told me made me feel that every piece of the puzzle was so special and perfect, and I valued the joy of finding even just three clusters of pieces to join together for along with a beautiful picture in the making was a beautiful soul sitting right beside me — with whom I would laugh and sing in awe at what we would find next, on whose lap I would lay while she told stories, and through whose eyes I would see the loving gaze of God.

Each of us is a special and perfect piece of this puzzle called life. Life is beautiful. And I’ve learned that we can see how we could all fit together in accordance with the beautiful vision that God has already given to us as we look at this picture through the eyes of God’s love. To see Creation through the heart of our Creator which is love… and compassion.

In this light, I cannot really say I’m going through a recovery stage because I truly recognize that I’m already “covered”. It may seem idealistic or impossible to respond in this way but with what I went through, I could sincerely witness that when we lose everything that we seemingly have become accustomed to having, we realize what life is not about.

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By Precious Lara Quigaman

The story of Esther in the Bible has always fascinated me and inspired me to pursue my dream to be a beauty queen despite all the discouragements thrown my way.

Ever since I was young, that had always been my dream, to be like the beautiful women I saw in the Miss Universe competition. Little did I know that God would sow a seed in my heart to fulfill His great plan for my life, my family and the people I would encounter.

I was a very shy, fragile girl. When my lola used to leave me in one place, she would come back in two hours and find me in the same position, in the exact spot where she had left me. That was how shy I was. I was seldom allowed to play outside because I was asthmatic; I was always in the hospital. My parents and the people close to me would never have imagined that I would one day grow up to compete in a beauty pageant, let alone have the confidence to stand in front of millions of people.

I joined the Binibining Pilipinas pageant in 2001 but failed to make the cut. My mother, who was offered work in the United Kingdom, took the opportunity to have her children live with her. I stayed and studied in Bristol, UK, for four years. In 2004, I had my mind set on joining the Binibining Pilipinas again.

A lot of people did not understand why I wanted to join a beauty contest. I was already in the UK with my family and others questioned my motive. They asked how I could give glory to God wearing a two-piece swimsuit in a beauty pageant. I was discouraged in every way possible — with financial problems, situations and people. But I knew in my heart that this was God’s will for me. And I prayed that all obstacles thrown my way would all disappear. And through all this, God directed me to the book of Esther in the Bible.
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