Philpop 2014 Songwriting kicks off in Davao

Philpop 2014 Loud and Proud Songwriting with the Maestro kicked off earlier today at the Ateneo de Davao University. Davao City was not just another leg for the Philpop Songwriting tour; Davao was the first destination to be graced with the presence of the Maestro, Ryan Cayabyab.

For a moment, I felt quite lost. I could barely relate to anything they were talking about. I decided not to fret about it and just pay attention to whatever Maestro Ryan had to say. The one thing that really got my attention was the awesomeness of Maestro Ryan Cayabyab who managed to create beautiful melodies out of just a few notes. It really shows that he knows (and loves) his music. The audience was also very participative. We were lucky to have Philpop 2014 Finalists namely, Toto Sorioso, Chi Datu-Bocobo and Davey Langit present during the Q&A session. The talks, tips and answers to the audience’s questions were really inspiring and insightful.

It’s been a long time since I last wrote a song or even a poem. Poetry and Songwriting has been one of my favorite pastime in High School. I had high hopes that attending the Philpop Songwriting tour would give back some spark to that hobby of mine; it really did. I now feel like I can bring back the passion for that pastime hobby of mine. 🙂 I’m still overwhelmed by all the stuff I learned today. I’m really a #noob in this. However, I’m also very much willing to learn. I think I’ll start by learning how to play an instrument first. The Piano, perhaps?

All in all, it was great to be in the presence and in the midst of a very enthusiastic crowd.

Some things that I remember on the top of my mind about the Songwriting Forum (paraphrased):

“Everyone has his ups and downs. It’s important to be consistent. Don’t give stop writing.”

“Be open and be humble to accept corrections. Be also open to accept criticisms and rejections. You can’t always create a hit, but you surely won’t create one by doing (writing) nothing.”

“If you experience a ‘Writers Block’ while writing your song, try to sleep on it, meditate on it, or do other things to keep yourself busy. It will come back to you eventually.”

“If you lose the drive in writing a song, try to recall the purpose of the song. Are the feelings that the song attempts to convey still true? If they are not, then it’s better to not continue with the song.”

“If you are in the mood of writing a song, if an idea hits you, don’t let go of the idea. Go on with it, don’t stop writing until you finish it.”

“Composers are like magicians. Composers/Songwriters can do something amazing out of nothing.”

“Nasa hangin lang ang mga ideas/lyrics.”

The 2014 Davao leg for the Songwriting with the Maestro has just finished earlier today, yet I’m already eagerly looking forward to next year. Hopefully, by then, I have learned more about music (and can play the guitar or piano). Maybe, just maybe, I will have finished writing a song by then. 🙂

3J and “Seen Zone”

Since I already mentioned ‘writing a song, 3J (that’s yours truly, Jonas and Alyssa) is planning to compose a song. As of this moment, we have the main idea in place. I’ll update you on that on my personal blog, or maybe in a future post here on Pinoy Teens. 🙂 What I can tell you for now about it is that the song will have something to do with being seen zoned by your crush, friend or loved one on Facebook. LOL.

The Philpop 2014 Loud and Proud Songwriting with the Maestro was brought to you by the Philpop Foundation and Smart Communications. (Sorry, can’t remember the others, lol)