'Wa Tay Snow! Wa Tay Snow! Wa Tay Snow!

A Cebuano songwriter proposed to release a song called 'Wa Tay Snow'.

Imagine this: lyrics written in Cebuano describing the Filipinos' delusion to white Christmas sung to the tune of 'Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!'. It's not only brilliant, it's also comical and an eye-opener. 'Wa Tay Snow' means we do not have snow. The context of the lyrics will tell you of almost every Filipino's obsession to the western practices of Christmas.

I would hear foreigners saying how weird it is to see Christmas trees, mock snow, and all the winter-like decors in December inside the hotels and malls in the Philippines when it's oven hot outside. Imagine that. It's not only funny, but stupid - snow, Christmas tree, Santa Claus, reindeers, and so on. We are trying to be what we are not and I think it's a shameful culture.

And so when I heard the demo, I immediately saw the potential. And I'm sure a lot of people, although they may not admit it, can very much relate to the Filipinos' stupidity of embracing the western practices of Christmas.

But I advised the songwriter to hold the release of the song while I work on the adaptation license to record it. 'Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!' is originally written by Jule Styne and Sammy Cahn under Cahn Music Publishing Co. (ASCAP). After a few more research work, I ended communicating to Warner Music NY and because the Philippines is in Asia, they forwarded me to their Asian head office in Malaysia. This was a year ago. We had a long email discussion and they charged me PhP25,000 to record and use the song.

I think it's a reasonable rate. However, if we are to invest on the license, it has to be recouped somehow and so I asked what percentage of ownership should they share with us on the new musical work. This is their reply (name of the respondent removed):

Hi Ian,

The Cebuano lyric is included in composition. Which mean the original composer & original lyricist will be remain by their own share. (Publishing rights)

Regarding the recording rights, it depend the future new cover artist intend to use which recording version, or their also can do their own recording without pay for recording rights.

Best Regards,

XXX

I'm not sure if I understood this accurately but nothing happened and Christmas 2012 eventually ended.

This year, I decided to revisit the project and as I was advised, Universal Records turned out to be the copyright administrator of 'Let It Snow' in the Philippines. I managed to contact them. In our email conversation, they again included Warner Music Asia in the thread. This time they charged me USD20,000 (USD not PHP) and after a very long discussion and attempts to persuade on the ownership issue, this is their final response (name of the respondent removed).


Hi Ian,

Please understand that the rule for adaptation is that you can change the lyrics with prior permission and approval of the owner but that should not diminish or lessen the rights and or the ownership of the intellectual property owner over the song or the musical work, thus owning 100% still to the owner.

In the same way that it doesn't follow that if you create a new lyrics to an existing song, then you already own 50% of the right over the original song because of your creation of the new lyrics. That wouldn't be a fair to the original intellectual property owner.

Hope that above clarifies why we have to charge 100% rights over the song you wish to adapt and cover. In addition, every new version by any performer / interpreter shall be subject to new license and payment.

Note that any adaptation without proper consent by the original owner is subject to legal implications.

Please confirm if you will pursue usage of the song. Thank you.


Best regards,
XXX


Sad.

Though I understand and respect this so-called standard practice, the principle that it promotes actually impedes creative options.

Creative work is made when artists bend rules, not break them. The copyright law on the other hand is authored to protect these creative works. I believe adaptations can be considered new creative works too. If the Batman story is franchised for a movie, I'm sure the franchisee would never invest on the license if he cannot own the rights to the new story. How is that any different to a musical adaptation?

Had they ever heard of the term Creative Commons? It's a similar idea except that it's non-profit.

I wish there was a way to negotiate on the terms with the original publisher for us to release 'Wa Tay Snow'. Apparently, the standard practice permits none. It is sad to note that it is by this practice why the record companies are downsizing globally. I'm simply requesting for a different license to a different story of an existing melody. A unique license in fact because after all, copyright law is supposed to be territorial. The irony is that the music industry, being a key player in the creative industry, turns out to be a close minded institution.

I didn't pursue the license.

Sad.

Creative Summit Update : More Speakers

Education is good and expensive. But learning can sometimes be affordable too. In fact it can be ridiculously cheap to as low as PHP 250, you get inspired from the works and ideas of Dr. Joe Adam Fry (Google UK), Kenneth Cobonpue, Arch't Jason Buensalido, Lloyd Tronco, Insoy Niñal, Butch Carungay, to name a few. The topics of this year's summit revolve around the creative process behind every great design.

This project is made possible by the people behind Creative Cebu Council, British Council, Campaings & Grey, DTI, and of course the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Here are the creds of our speakers so you'll have an idea what to expect.

Lastly, you get to enjoy a 2012 Academy Award Winning documentary film.  That's why I said it's really cheap.


Google UK DR. JOE ADAM FRY
Topic : Digital Explores Creative Ideas For Small Business

Dr. Joe Fry is the Planning Lead in Google's Global Creative Team (known internally as 'The ZOO'), based out of London. His team fosters deep working relationships with global businesses, creative agencies and Google product teams to deliver best practice digital creative work across the web. Joe's role is to lead creative strategy, creative process, and insight. Before joining Google 18 months ago, he acted as a strategic/creative consultant at several independent UK-based Creative Agencies and has a PhD in Creative Process Management.

KENNETH COBONPUE
Topic : Inspire | Desire - from inspiration to objects of desire

Kenneth Cobonpue is a multi-awarded designer and manufacturer from Cebu, and the creative director of Hive. He graduated in Industrial Design from Pratt Institute in New York with highest honors and subsequently worked in Italy and Germany. Integrating locally sourced materials with innovative handmade production processes, Cobonpue's brand is known around the world for its unique designs and roster of clientele that include Hollywood celebrities like Brad Pitt and members of royalty.

Awards to his credit include 5 Japan Good Design Awards, the grand prize at the Singapore International Design Competition, the Design for Asia Award of Hongkong, the American Society of Interior Design Top Pick selection and the French Coup de Coeur award.  Several of his designs were selected for several editions of the International Design Yearbook published in London and New York. The books "& FORK" (Phaidon) and "DESIGN NOW" (Tashen) underscore Kenneth's position as a leader of a new movement incorporating technology and craft.  He has appeared on European television, countless international magazines and newspapers around the world. Various Cobonpue designs have also appeared in full-length feature films and television such as Oceans 13 and CSI.

Kenneth reveals new work each year in design shows from Paris to New York. He also speaks regularly about Southeast Asian design all over the world. In 2007, TIME magazine called him "rattan’s first virtuoso."

Architect JASON BUENSALIDO
Topic : S,M.L,XL - Design Excellence On Every Scale

Arch't Jason has won numerous prestigious competitions, including UP’s Pinakamagandang Bahay sa Balat ng Lupa, and was a finalist/awardee in the CCP’s Arts Theater and Artists Center competition and Bahay Pinoy competition.  His firm, Buensalido Architects, is an architectural, interior, and urban design laboratory committed to creating original, avant-garde, innovative, and progressive solutions. Its vision is to broaden and uplift the design profile of the Philippines and share this with others around the globe, thereby helping to put the Philippines on the global design map.

PJ ONG
Topic : Experimentation As A Medium Of Graphic Design

PJ Ong has been running his own design studio/art collective known as !NODORO for more than 10 years.  He has produced designs for clients both commercial and exhibition works in the fields of arts, music, culture, fashion, print and design.  PJ has increased experience in the areas of design, with focus on: Art Direction, Graphic Design, Illustration, Packaging, Graffiti, Consulting, Branding, Identity, Stingers, Strategy, Photography, Video, Motion Design, Custom Typeface, Typography, Art installations.  He received his Education at the International Academy of Design & Technology – Toronto.  Some of his Awards & Recognition are as Speaker - Visual Design Conference 2011 (Topic: Experimental Arts); Speaker- Pecha Kucha Cebu 2012 (Topic: Digital Design); Nominee - CSS Design Awards 2012 for the !nodoro website (Category: Best Websites in the World). He has been featured in numerous publications both local and international.

INSOY NIÑAL
Topic : Songwriting - Preserving Local Culture for the Global Audience

Lorenzo "Insoy" Niñal is a very talented writer, musician, songwriter and well-known champion of original Cebuano music and songwriting.  An advocate for education and preserving local culture, one of the recent projects he worked with was VISPOP, a Cebuano Songwriting Campaign & Competition that was organized by Artist KO (Artists & Musicians Marketing Cooperative) in cooperation with FILSCAP (Filipino Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers).  As VISPOP education coordinator, Insoy conducted songwriting workshops for young and budding artists to hone and further professionalize their songwriting skills.

Insoy founded the Cebuano rock band Missing Filemon, of which he is also the songwriter and vocalist.  He won the 2008 FAMAS Award for Best Movie Theme Song for his composition “Sine-Sine.”  He finished AB Philosophy and AB English at the San Carlos Seminary College in Cebu City.  He works as editor of Sun*Star Cebu and as Columnist for Sun*Star Cebu and Sun*Star Superbalita.  He teaches Literature and English at the Cebu Normal University, and English at the Seminario Mayor de San Carlos.

JOEL RUIZ
Topic : Film Making With Your Voice

Joel is a freelance television commercial director, and an independent filmmaker.  He is also resident producer/director and co-founder of Arkeomedia, a production shop that specializes in features and commercial work.  He is a graduate of the Mowelfund Film Institute. An award-winning director with several movies under his belt, his previous short works include Mula Sabado, winner at the Gawad-CCP Awards, and Sa Mata ni Chico, winner at the Gawad-CCP and Urian nominee for Best Short Feature.

REESE FERNANDEZ-RUIZ
Topic : Micro Entrepreneurship Through Creativity And Innovation

Reese is an innovative and passionate leader who champions revolutionary ideas that would help the world become more sustainable and ethical.  She believes that quality and integrity should always go hand in hand. Thus, she became the co-founder and CEO of Rags2Riches Inc., a for-profit social enterprise based in Manila, Philippines, which creates eco-ethical fashion and home accessories out of up cycled scrap cloth, organic materials and indigenous fabrics by working with women living in the poor communities across the country. Rags2Riches’ philosophy stands upon its four bottom lines: People, Profit, Planet and Positive Influence.

Reese is a recipient of numerous awards & recognition, among these: World Economic Forum-Young Global Leader 2012; People Asia’s Women of Style and Substance; Entrepreneur for the Year Award (Young Entrepreneur Category, World Entrepreneurship Forum and EMLYON Business School);  The Outstanding Women in the Nation’s Service (TOWNS Awards) 2010 - Youngest recipient of the award in Philippine history.  Reese was also selected as one of the five inaugural Rolex Young Laureates by the Rolex Foundation in Switzerland for recognition of her work. In 2010, Rags2Riches linked up with its current investor-partner, LGT Venture Philanthropy.

BUTCH CARUNGAY
Topic : Left Brain Meet Right Brain - Creativity Ain't Enough

Wharton graduate Gil "Butch" Z. Carungay is the Managing Director and Chief Creative Officer of Avatar Accessories Inc., Cebu’s top costume jewelry house.  Avatar Accessories is a leading manufacturer of cutting edge, meticulously crafted costume jewelry in the region. Butch has already garnered numerous awards and press recognition for excellence in design, and he is one of Cebu’s most recognizable names in design and creativity. A former President of the Fashion Accessories Manufacturers & Exporters (FAME) Foundation Phils. and instrumental for the establishment of the Bijoux Cebu Show, Butch is a key industry player in the exports and design-driven products sector and one of leading advocates for promoting Cebu’s creative industries.

His latest endeavor is operating and designing for District32, the collective name for the community of commercial non-aviation concessions at the Mactan-Cebu International Airport. It will be the country's, if not the region's first branded airport experience. More importantly, District32 will be a complete re-imagination of how a small airport can still provide a very memorable traveler experience.

LLOYD TRONCO
Topic : Exploring The New Tri-Media

Lloyd is Vice President of the Outdoor Advertising Association of the Philippines (OAAP), the country’s industry association for practitioners of out-of-home advertising (or outdoor advertising).  With more than 30 years of experience in the business, Lloyd is a well-known personality and leader in the field of outdoor advertising.   He formed the Philippine Center for Out-Of-Home Media Research and Science, which serves as a repository of information for out-of-home media in the Philippines.  More commonly known as PhilCourse, it is also considered as the catalyst in pushing the growing trend in outdoor advertising known as Digital Out-Of-Home media in the country.  In 2010, Lloyd served as the Conference Chairman of Asia’s first Digital Out-Of-Home Media event, Digital Signage World Asia held in Singapore and has been a regular speaker since then.  Lloyd is also a Certified Digital Marketer as certified by the Internet and Mobile Marketing Association of the Philippines and is involved with various digital media projects.

Architect BUCK SIA
Topic : Does Identity Define Design? Does Design Define Identity?

Buck Sia is President of Creative Cebu Council, the co-organizer of the 2nd Cebu Creative Industries Summit.  Creative Cebu Council is an industry association composed of creative entrepreneurs from various sectors who have banded together to promote, develop and champion the creative industries in Cebu.  Arch’t Buck is also President of the United Architects of the Philippines (UAP)-Sugbu Chapter.  His firm, Zubu Design Associates, is a design studio that is dedicated to creating progressive and modern architecture. It combines innovative and experimental concepts, as well as the international style to the culture and climate of the local setting. Arch’t Buck believes that a well-designed building should not only comply to its basic use but should also be a beacon for provoking thought and creating emotion through space, light and form.  Zubu believes the design process is just as important as the finished product.

Curtain Raiser
SAVING FACE (2012 Academy Award Winner for Documentary)

FILSCAP comes to Cebu for "Music In Your Business" forum

Finally here it is.

The Filipino Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, Inc. (FILSCAP) in cooperation with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI)-Cebu Provincial Office, will be holding a forum  dubbed as "Music In Your Business" happening this Friday, Oct. 28, 2011 starting 8AM until 12noon at the Marriott Hotel.

FILSCAP President Noel Cabangon
(photo taken from Facebook)

Topics include:

Music Copyright
Speaker : ACCRA Lawyer / Ateneo Law Professor Atty. Antonio Ray Ortiguera
A discussion on the rights of music copyright owners over the use of their works and the licenses that should be secured by business owners who intend to use copyrighted music in their business or events.

Copyright Societies
Speaker : CISAC Regional Director for Asia-Pacific Mr. KT Ang
This topic covers the collective management of copyright by copyright societies.

Licensing Operations of FILSCAP
Speaker : FILSCAP General Manager Debra Ann P. Gaite
FILSCAP shall talk about how they license, collect and distribute royalties from public performances of copyrighted musical works.

Social Value of Music
Speaker : FILSCAP Trustee/Socio-Cultural Committee Member/Composer Gary Granada
A topic that defines the socio-cultural value of playing music to the public in events or establishments.

"Music In Your Business" is in partnership with the International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers (CISAC), Artists and Musicians Marketing Cooperative (ARTIST KO), and the Creative Cebu Council, Inc.

In the evening will be a solidarity meetup for the local songwriters at The Outpost. It's going to be fun.

CC-OBB

And here's the Creative Cebu OBB with music by Urbandub courtesy of Sonic Shape Records.

Deanery says...

"Why sell if you can give.  Why buy if it's free?  Buy only what you need.  The want is free."

That's what CARTONATA also stands for.   Cebuano indie pop group Deanery believes in that too.

So tell me... if someone gives you this band's single, would you take it?  Yes?  Would you want to have it if it was free?  Maybe, yes, maybe.  If someone sells you this band's single as download, would you buy it?

Errr...

So answer me this... what's better than never?

What's Better Than Never by Deanery

'Rochelle'

It's obviously a girl's name.  It's also a fictional film from the television show Seinfeld.  In Illinois, it's a name of a town.

In this blog, 'Rochelle' is the latest single of Happy Days, a Cebuano geek rock group.  The band's been keeping the song in their personal players until CARTONATA.

Have a date with 'Rochelle' for P350 only at Hareld & Gumer's merchline.

Here's a sampler.

Rochelle by HAPPY DAYS

Introducing CARTONATA

So yes sharing music is epidemic.

Since people are now sharing them, why not embrace it.  Then I thought a redesigned music business platform could do just that.

About two years ago, Artist Ko member Lucille (Palot) Umali at one time focused on helping me design a logo. The name's CARTONATA.

The logo and name was registered for trademark
in the Intellectual Property Office on Jan. 13, 2011 at 2:08PM
with application no. 42011710005.

What it does is to allow free music download whenever you buy something that is useful to you.  When that something bears the logo, it means you'll get a code with it.  And yesterday was a blessed day.  I got the approval notice from the Intellectual Property Office for its trademark.  Bless me.  Bless me.  Things are moving forward as planned.

But this is as far as I can say for now.  There's too many things CARTONATA in my hands

Cheers!  Music should be free.

There's a new film school in Cebu

Russian-American Misha Anissimov had been working so hard for more than a year.  And this week, his hard work has paid-off.

In his Facebook page, he wrote, "It's Official ! University of San Carlos-Cebu President gives final APPROVAL for the new BFA Cinema Program within the Fine Arts Department! The Philippines' second University based film school is now official ! Lots of work to be done..."

USC's new BFA Cinema Program is the 2nd in the Philippines.  UP-Dilliman had it first.

Good times for a good change.  It's good to have people like Misha.  But this is just the beginning.  The fun has just begun.

2nd round of stories from the visual intellects

Haven't heard or seen Seph for a long time.  It's good to know that he's busy prepping up for the 2nd round of the Visual Design Conference this coming Feb 12.  If you haven't gone to the 1st, you should be in this forum this time.

The venue is at SM Cinema 2, that's in North Reclamation Area, Cebu City.  You know where that is.

Expect awesome speakers.  Some are good friends of mine.  Teaser's nice too.  It says a lot already.

Good work Seph.

Damn that mysterious Beatle chord

I stumbled upon this very interesting article about that famous Beatle song "A Hard Day's Night" and a mysterious chord in the intro that to the normal ear sounds like... chaaaaaaang!


According to Dalhousie mathematician Jason Brown, the chord used in the intro is actually a combination of guitar chords and... guess what? A piano.

Well I need to make this clear that I never realized this Beatle chord had been troublesome to millions of guitarists all over the world for 40 years until now.

Here are the facts:

The frequencies didn’t match the instruments on the song. Because George (Harrison) played a 12-string Rickenbacker, John played his 6 string, Paul had his bass and a 5th Beatle. Tadaaaa! Yep. George Martin, the band's manager played the piano on the record - the combination accounted for the "problematic" frequencies.

Brown figured out the chords. George Harrison played a2, a3, d3, d4, g3, g4, c4, and another c4 on the 12 string guitar. Paul McCartney played a d3 on his bass; producer George Martin was playing d3, f3, d5, g5, and e6 on the piano, while Lennon played a loud c5 on his six-string guitar.

Whatever this means.

Case solved.

Go and make your music stand out

In November last year, I was invited to speak about music production, music publishing, and online music distribution.  The event was Ad Camp 11.0 : Social Media Marketing held in Davao City organized by the University of the Philippines Visayas, College of Management.

Photo taken at Eden Nature Park, Davao City by Sham Leonora

At the end of my presentation was the usual open forum where students are encouraged to throw in questions.  Many questions were raised and I had to muster every inch I know to throw the right answers back at them.  Because they asked the right questions.  I didn't expect them to be that accurate.  But they are intellectuals.

I recall one question was thrown in, "How do you make your music stand out?"

A very curious yet common theme in fact.  So common that for a moment I caught myself unable to dissect for the right ticket.

There are a thousand and one ways to skin a cat.

If one is patient enough to count the ways maybe success can just be right under one's nose. Unfortunately, cats according to some only have 9 lives, reducing the option from 1001 to 992 (okay I'm just trying to be funny).

Observing around, many bands almost sound the same. For a time, most of them scream in the middle of a song. This I can't seem to digest what they're trying to convey here.  And it didn't have anything to do with my age.

Many start with slow intros and builds up to heavy riffs and "powerful" drum beats. I can deal with this.  Then some vocalists sing on "forced voice quality" trying to sound like Vedder, Stapp, or Weiland - at least by how it sounded to me.

Nothing wrong with this. It's just that if you have a band and you hope to get people to listen to your music, consider these as symptoms to becoming like them.  You're not really making a difference and you're not telling a new story.  Ergo, you don't stand out.

See?  When Urbandub's music significantly gained massive attention, almost every band I know seemed like they wanted to sound like them. When the E-heads got hype, all of a sudden the rest of the band population sounded like "Pare Ko". When Slapshock was king, bands mimicked screaming at the top of their lungs.

Scary thing is that they probably were not aware of this.  You don't believe me?  Take some time to meet with them, interview them and ask them if they find their music comparable to the above mentioned.  Chances are they'd give you a defensive 'no' backed by a supporting background of how their music transpired.

Because it's easier to take the safer route and play what is deemed "acceptable."

But when you copy and your goal is to stand out, you fail.

Making your music stand out is a bit challenging especially if you're part of a band or musical group yourself. I suppose it's because one has to be "vain" somewhat to make things work - of course not in all instances.

So how do you make your band's music stand out?

If all other bands are doing emo, rehash - do something else.  A derivative perhaps.  If all other bands are doing reggae and you dig "the joint" too, experiment under this blend but mix it with other music types. Death reggae perhaps (trying to be funny again)?

Do not do what other bands are doing. If you can, do not listen to any music in the radio.  Instead listen to anything off your comfort zone.  Play from your heart.  Music is an extension of one's personality - see if you can bring that creative character in you.

This may not be an absolute advise but it's worth considering and trying out.

The story of the Wonggoys

I know for a fact that Cattski Espina knows good talent when she hears one.  But sharp as she is, she almost missed this one... almost.  She wrote in her blog, and I quote, "I’ve heard about them way before that one dinner meeting that started it all.  I knew they were talented, I just didn’t know they were REALLY talented."

Wonggoys is a music trio of brothers - Gabriel, William, and Kyle .
The group's moniker, sounding obviously like onggoy, Filipino word for monkey, is a reinvention of their Chinese surname Wong.

My Wonggoy story begins at The Outpost boathouse area one evening working with my laptop on a weak wifi signal.  This was sometime January 2010.  I was working on a square bamboo table and beside me to the right were two young couples.  The lady was geek pretty and from the looks of it, they seemed to look romantically involved somehow.  The guy introduced himself and asked about ways to get a gig.

At first glance I almost mistook him for an old friend who owns DaVinci Pizza.  In seconds I figured he just looked like him.  His name is Gabe.  We had a long good talk.  Then after a while I veered my focus back to my laptop and worked again.

Then a month ago, Cattski asked me to draft a music publishing contract for a group called Wonggoys.  The name stuck.  I was sure I heard the name somewhere.  Ah yes, my nephew Gio mentioned them, that they perform in his high school events and they had a huge fanbase.  To me, it sounded like it was just another band story.  I heard this often times before.

Back to the cat, she said she's signing them up for 22 Tango Records and needs a publisher from the back end.  It was meant to be a lazy Sunday for me but after I listened to the songs she emailed, I had to change priority.  In other words I got hooked and jumped on the drafts.

That was a month ago.  And guess what?  My head still spins on their music especially on "Chase The Girl Or Rule The World", my personal favorite from their debut album I’m Not Sure What To Say But I’ll Say It Anyway.

22 Tango invited me to guest in her Dec 22 show at The Outpost.  I saw Gabe again.  He was still with the geeky chick only this time without glasses.  Cattski arrived and introduced me to him.  I said we've met.  Then she said he's Gabe, a Wonggoy.

Bang! There's the connection.

Impressed by their mp3's, I waited for their turn to come on stage.  They brought session musicians with them.  They played.  They're good.  No, that's an understatement.  These young lads can really write, sing, and perform.

The cat hit a gold mine.  And she did excellent work as the creative producer for Wonggoy's album - a producership debut she declares outside her Cattski career.  Altogether, if she purrs this out right, she can make quality pop music for Cebu come alive again.

Kudos.  Congratulations.  I'm now looking forward to see and hear more of Wonggoys this year.

What to say and what not to say

This is cliche but we all want to start the new year right.  In my self-proclaimed obligation to continuously reset stubborn thinkers, my first blog entry for 2011 are three basic guidelines in communication.

Using the word "problem".
Instead of saying "the problem is..." or "I have a problem with..." and so on, practice using "issue" or "concern".  It gives a better perspective for ease in challenges.  There's a significant impact between saying "the project is problematic and that it's buggy" and "the project still has bug issues."  While the first example gives you that heavy feeling that it cannot be solved, the latter feels like you're getting closer to a solution.

"We are not doing this for the money."
 C'mon.  Get real.  Even charity institutions do things for the money.  Saying this only makes you sound arrogant, funny, and stupid (pardon me for saying this but it's true).  I'd rather believe you when you say, "we're not doing this for profit".  But if you can avoid saying both, better.  Be cautious about what you should say because whether your business is non-profit or not, money is essential for its sustainability.

"I don't expect to get rich with this."
I heard this once and I heard it again so many times.  This is another statement that needs to be corrected.  Getting rich is about getting more than what you need.  Making money is about sustainability.  If you make more than what you need, treat it as a bonus for doing things right.  You deserve it.

Bottomline is don't be defensive about what you do or what you wish to achieve.  Be clear about your goals.  If you need to make money then declare it.  But say it appropriately - this is art too.  Chances are you will get better respect from people around your circle for simply stating clearly what's in your head.

Be honest but don't be angry.

Happy New Year Artist Ko!

Dearest members,

Here's to say farewell to 2010 and a warm welcome to 2011, another promising new year ahead of us.  I'd like to say a heartfelt thanks to all of you who have contributed in making this organization strong and cohesive despite the odds.  I'm sure there will be another set of challenges to embark.

Allow me to recount the blessings and the good works we have set for this year.

1. January - Matahum nga Cebu Sinulog Concert
2. March - Cattski Ten
3. June - MOVE! A Marketing & Financial Education Seminar
4. July - Shoot Up : A Video Production Workshop;  Artist Ko's CDA Registration approved
5. October - Artist Ko's BIR Registration approved
6. November - Artist Ko's BIR Tax Exemption approved
7. December - RCTV Anniversary featuring 'Matahum Nga Cebu'

And today marks the date of Artist Ko's domain name approval www.artistko.com.

You are the driving force in setting achievements for Cebu's arts and music community.  With that said, I'm proud to have you in this group.  May we have more good things to achieve next year.  See you on the 2nd of January, 2011.

HAPPY NEW YEAR and God bless :)


Sincerely,

Ian Zafra
Chairman, Artist Ko

Standing up for what we believe in

It's been a while since my last blog.  And while everybody's having fun, I was in my state of earnestness (I still am) - planning things out on what I'm supposed to do next.  Part of this was an email I sent to all the members of Artist Ko.  I'm publishing it here.



Dear members,

Word has it that some members are bothered by criticisms about the name Artist Ko.  That it is not appropriate.  That artists should not brag about being an artist and so on.

I'm not a bit surprised that criticisms happen.  Critics exist.

Whatever name was put out, we'd still get criticized.  We should not be concerned about this negative light.

Let us be open to criticisms, listen to them.  But let us be reminded also not to be concerned about what people think.  We all stood up for what we love doing - film, music, photography, or what have we.  We say we are film makers, musicians, photographers... even when we have not gone to school for it.  How is that any different from saying that what we do is art.  How is that any different from saying "artist ko".

Critics exist.  Let them.

Because the more they criticize, the more illuminated we become.  Then without them knowing it, they put us in a better position to be visible.

Criticizing our name is like criticizing your parents for the names they gave you.  So let us not be bothered by this trivial matter.  The name Sheila and the Insects used to get unfavorable comments from my friends back then but we believed in our music and stood up for it.  We believed that the name could work and it did work.  At the end it was the band's music that defined the name.

Critics exist.  Let them critics talk about us.  In fact, we need them.

While they do that (maybe it's their art too), let us focus our minds and efforts on the good and positive output we can achieve.  Let our works define what Artist Ko's name is about.  We are still in our baby steps so I seek everyone to be strong with our stand as we are definitely growing.  Critics cannot argue with that.

So dear members... let us remain proud of this and keep saying "Artist Ko".

 
Respectfully,

Ian Zafra
Chairman
Artist Ko

The Kismet Singles

It's not everyday that musician/artists get the chance to share ideas with visionaries like Ysai Perez (executive producer), and Cattski Espina (22 Tango Records label manager/proprietor). The experience of collaborating with these creative people felt more like a privilege.

I am also grateful and proud to have worked with people that helped this project move. Thanks to my bandmates - Jay Young and Marc Nadela, the ballad mates Jude Gitamondoc (the piano man), Miches Bianan, Junel Codilla, and last but not the least Cattski's musicians - Cedric Fernandez and Eimer Tabasa.

Of course I also am thankful for the very important back end people starting with Lucille Umali for the fantastic fuschia pink-ish album cover art; Paul, Mic-mic, and Jad for the great mix downs and masters; and The Outpost people for their patience during the ambush rehearsals having played Kismet over and over and over again (hope it didn't get any of those ears bleed).

I had the most fun with The Kismet Singles this year. This is an album with wonderful and priceless memories. From the time I wrote the lyrics (more than 2 years ago), to its early high pitched chord caught in video, to blogs and reposts and tweets and retweets, the brainstorm sessions, and now with the merch (shirt and journal)... it's amazing to finally see where it's going and how things could work perfectly...

...kismetically.

Paok and his pattern design contest

Idle hours - it kills us by making us see the tiniest unimportant things. There's also the possibility that we bloat up any available issue we can find, make a big fuzz out of it, and do irrational thinking - all for the simple reason that we got nothing else to do and we feel "lost".

The sad thing is that for most of those who can't get hold of their time and feelings, frustrations pile up and emotions clutter, reaching to a point that could blow us and even the people around us to smithereens.

Okay I'm exaggerating a bit.

Some people, when they get bored, they sleep. Some would go watch a movie. Some would tweet and retweet. Some would facebook.

The list goes on and people would do just about anything to kill idle hours... in the hope of becoming "productive" somewhat. If you got loads of ideas in your head, you might just as well be one of those who might succeed.

Paok, one of our good buddies in Cebu's creative industry and the latest graphic artist designing for Midweek Sessions digital posters, is using up that seemingly unusable time wisely and came up with his first D.I.Y. project he calls Pattern Design Contest.

This should be interesting.

Confirm if you're interested and kill that boredom.

The story of Jude, Insoy & Me (part 2)

After countless and never-boring studio sessions, Jude, Insoy, and myself finally decided last Sunday to release the track we've worked on months back. For the record, Jude published the song on June 1, 2009 with its final title 'Matahum Nga Cebu' in his song blog site.

So BS is?

Let's be glad we have musicians who write good songs despite the absence of an infrastructure. This blog's slogan says, "Cebu music scene : what it is without all the BS."

So what does BS really stand for?

I'd say the goal should be to construct, not destruct. Cheers everyone.

The plummeting catalogs

Although this had already been calculated, nobody knew exactly when the plummet of the music catalogs will happen.

Just recently I happen to chat with an editor-in-chief of a prominent Manila publication who shared his observations on how the music sector in the capital is doing. He outlined some specifics that lead to the understanding of the music industry and that the long anticipated big dive is finally happening and fast.

While the major labels are still hopelessly panicking to save their boats, music downloads had never been so legit and literally free as it is now. Ironic in The Philippines where copyright concerns are often shelved and ignored.

Thanks to digital technology...

The once-indie-then-signed-to-a-major-record-deal artists are going indie again.

The signed artists are going indie this time.

The big stars are not as big as they once were (unless you belong to the couch people who spend most of their days at home watching noon time shows daily then you won't agree with me).

Some labels settled for a distribution deal but eventually lost because the indies still own the rights to their songs.

Other labels tried the in-house talent management approach where they employ "band managers" to, well, manage a band. But they're missing the point. A band manager is not a business partner. Well it is but he/she is also the Nth band member... ergo the band's best friend. How can you build a best friend when it all started as a business?

Not so long ago, major labels refuse to sign indie bands because they think niche marketing is too small for their bank account. But nowadays the public is smarter, tasteful, and sophisticated and unlike a decade ago, the regular pinoy can now breathe through music by Up Dharma Down, Daydream Cycle, Sheila and the Insects, and the likes.

Contrary to the labels' old school and stubborn mindset, good music cannot be exclusive to typically structured pop songs. Nothing against the genre. It's just been misconstrued too often and dangerously misunderstood.

When was the last time the major labels signed a band? And if they did recently how good is it?

Things are a-changing... the vision that was foretold is unfolding fast. Today you won't hear labels saying '(band name - and feel free to fill in your band's name in) is good pero masyado lang silang niche'.

Niche marketing is what works these days. Well it's been there long before the indie clout has gone big time but it is only now that it is most appreciated.

The good news is that the indies are staying in their niche because that's exactly how their music is supposed to work. But wait... before we all make the last laugh, let's figure out how music can put food on the table first.

And if I am right about this...