Singer-songwriter Acel Bisa -van Ommen recently launched Titik at Tono, an online songwriting workshop under Payong Musikero, a multi-platformcommunity that serves as a source of instruction, information, and inspiration for aspiring and established musicians which she started in 2018.
As part of the workshop, each finisher was tasked to record their song so it could be showcased during the online recital. They could either self-produce it or work with professional producers to get the full experience of making a song at home due to the pandemic.
Several of the participants who wanted to work with professional producers were tweens and teens. Two of these teens had a distinct British indie pop sound and Acel knew that the perfect producer and mentor for them was Mikey Amistoso of Ciudad.
The online class eventually discovered talented newbie and young songwriters whose compositions deserve to be heard.
The resulting album, A Slice of Sky features delightful HUES of music about the pandemic, hope, faith, healing, waiting, and acceptance. It showcases a multi-generation set of musicians, several of whom are tweens and teens.
The album starts with an edgy indie pop sound by 13yr old Ligaya Escueta with her song “The End” which explores all the fun things she’d like to do in case our world is possibly coming to an end. It is followed by 14 yr old Janna Mishka’s “Dance All Night” which dishes out positive vibes and assures us that, “It’s gonna be alright.”
Produced by Amistoso, these two songs will remind you of the Beatles and some Brit-pop bands.
“When I heard the demo for this (“The End” by Ligaya Escueta), I was astounded by her song, and her melodies, and the maturity behind it all! I was also intrigued with the similarities of our musical sensibilities (especially with my work in Ciudad). Long live our sound!” Soon after that post, Mikey also posted a photo with Janna Mishka and her band. He was obviously thrilled to work with these promising young musicians.
Track 3, “I Believe in You” is written by 12-yr old homeschooler, Andi Moran. Produced by Charles Bautista who heads the production team in Victory Worship Manila, the song is a reminder of God’s promises that will help us stand firm in times of trouble.
Mavene Gutierrez’s “Hope” and Ira Ting’s “I Will Stand Up” are empowering songs by the two 11-yr old songwriters that were produced by Jeremiah De Leon. These feel good and light hearted tunes are about the beauty of nature, and letting one’s voice be heard.
18-year-old Zion Mallari self-produced his song, “Waiting. The ukulele-based number talks about how hard it is to wait for something if you don’t know what you are waiting for
The song “Paghilom” was produced and performed by Shekinah Shalom and is characterized by an OPM pop rock sound that perfectly complements its theme of healing and forgiveness. Meanwhile, “Back Home” written by Sheggz Nepomuceno is a pop ballad produced, arranged, and performed by Brad Coronel and provides a sense of acceptance and peace even it will result in losing a loved one who is now in a better place.
During the online recital of these exciting young artists, Acel enthused, “Their works are all amazing! I am not exaggerating! I don’t think I could have written a song like that when I was 11 years old. I was surprised with the melodies they came up with! This just shows that age is just a number and you’re never too young or never too old to learn and develop new skills.”
2 comments
Amazing and talented young people meets passionate, creative and experienced mentor in Acel! Fantastic!
kuddos to coach Acel for doing a great job!!!