Wanted: New talents for music camp

GARY Granada at the 1st Elements National Songwriting Camp in 2010. Eddieboy Escudero

Learning about music couldn’t be more fun and inspiring than this.

In November last year, some 60 aspiring music artists were chosen from nationwide auditions and sponsored to learn the tools and tricks of the songwriting craft for five days at the 1st Elements National Songwriting Camp in Dumaguete, Negros Oriental. They were mentored by an informal faculty composed of some of the country’s best composers, arrangers and record producers.

This year, the mentors will pick 30 promising singers to join a new set of 30 budding songwriters for the camp on November 6-10 at Bahura Beach Resort in Dumaguete. The idea is to “marry” the singers and the songwriters so they can merge their skills to create music, said veteran songwriter-producer Ryan Cayabyab, who teamed up with former record label executive Twinky Lagdameo and corporate boss Jun Sy to form 7101 Music Nation—the group that organizes the camp. “It’s part of a five-year plan,” Cayabyab said. He hopes the whole exercise will produce new Original Pilipino Music.

He announced a new batch of mentors for the singers, which include Dulce, Jed Madela, Martin Nievera, Jett Pangan, Aiza Seguerra and Raimund Marasigan. They will teach their stuff side by side with the original batch of songwriting mentors, such as Jim Paredes, Louie Ocampo, Gary Granada and Gary Valenciano, among others.

Online applications to the 2011 Elements National Singing-Songwriting Camp will be accepted from July 1 to August 31. Live auditions for Visayas-Mindanao applicants will be held September 12-15; for Luzon, September 21-22. Log on to 7101musicnation.com.ph.

Changing music landscapes

Rudy Tee, a record label professional who rose to become one of the most influential executives in the local music industry, will soon retire as managing director of Sony Music Philippines. He spent more than 30 years in various capacities as a record man, starting with WEA Records.

“I can now relax,” he told the Inquirer by phone on Saturday. Tee bows out in a time of changing music landscapes, as the record industry struggles to survive the decline of CD sales worldwide because consumers either buy songs digitally or steal them outright.

Tee, Vic Valenciano, Buddy Medina and Tito Tee bolted WEA and Dyna to set up Sony-BMG Records Philippines in 1990. The label launched the career of The Eraserheads that jump-started the alternative band craze in the country.

Narciso Chan, Sony sales and marketing director, will take over as general manager.