Baker Artist Portfolios

In the past, composers were free to write different kinds of music. Operas are drastically different than string quartets or piano works. These days musicians are often expected to write music under a genre or style, and hopping around is looked down upon. But different purposes, situations, and collaborators will necessitate having a different approaches and output. I have a wide variety of solo and collaborative projects, but I believe they are all related. Creative endeavors when worked on a deep level will pull it closer to a creative core. A pop song left at the surface level will stay at the surface level. A soundtrack left at the surface level will also stay at the surface level. Both of those things will remain unrelated, but if both are approached with full intention and spirit, they will be pulled closer to the creative core of their creator giving them a voice that will be related, without feeling eclectic  

I am a multi-instrumentalist and composer who was born in Quezon City, Philippines. Over the years, I have contributed to many different musical projects, locally and abroad. I have a handful of long time collaborators, some of whom I have been working with for over 20 years. These projects have allowed me to tour throughout the United States and Europe. One project was awarded a grant through the Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts, which allowed me to hire students from the Peabody Institute to perform a song cycle I wrote for an art opening. We were able to record and later perform it again at a music festival. Outside of these works, I have a variety of solo projects and have also written music for film, theater and dance productions, art installations, and have been a member of live DIY theater ensembles. In 2019 I was a Baker Awards music finalist.

The solo works I usually write require extra people to play them live, or backing tracks. In 2024 I came to a new project that I could perform without the aid of other performers. The project consists of playing 2 keyboards simultaneously. One of the keyboards is tuned down slightly, making both keyboards out of tune with each other. Writing music this way required me to find a new approach to writing, as more traditional methods didn’t work. While the project continues to evolve, I found that the language I am using in this project sounds more elemental and as one person said, sounds more like a "field recording". For the first time in my life after years of writing music, I feel like I have found a new voice, and a deeper language that feels closer to my creative core. I have been performing this new project under Stephen Santillan / Double Spectre. 

Other premieres happened in 2024 as well. I made a soundtrack for a short film by Zoe Friedman. This is our third collaboration and it has shown at New Works and the Sweaty Eyeballs Animation Festival. Another new project, is a trio called AM Tango. I have been collaborating with the other members on and off, in different projects, for many years. We have been slowly exchanging ideas dating back to 2020 and we played our first show in August for Current Gallery’s anniversary. We went into as studio in October we recorded a few songs at Beat Babies .

I continue to live and work in Baltimore, with my partner and one of my long time collaborators, Wheatie Mattiasich. In 2023 we released a collaborative record, titled “Old Glow” which was spotlighted on NPR. We both took time off and set aside November 2024 for a “self-residency” in which we will focus on writing new material for this particular project.