Sister-brother act

• Rica Arambulo – Neo Records
• Matins – Jesuit Music Ministry

I received a couple of CDs over the holidays that reminded me again how boundlessly talented Filipino musicians are and how their efforts sometimes get lost in the shuffle of international boy bands and overhyped rap-metal acts. These two very different recordings feature a sister and brother, respectively – Rica and Ariel Arambulo, whose family has long operated the Greenhills Music Studio in San Juan.

The older sister, Rica, is a self-styled composer (she writes material for the singer Viktoria) as well as a keyboardist, and her self-titled CD (on Neo Records) offers a variety of pop songs a few shades more original than most of the OPM and Pinoy pop I usually hear playing over the Odyssey sound system (much against my will).

Opening with Summer’s Here, Rica picks up on a loose, Paula Cole-type vibe in an easygoing song about getting away from it all (her brother, Ariel, can be heard on violin in the fadeout). Most of the songs on Rica Arambulo are ballads, befitting a songwriter who has spent most of her time composing and arranging for others. The Viktoria hits Dahan Dahan, Missing You, Ako Pa Rin and Falling get the composer’s own personal treatment. Throughout it all, Rica shows off her strengths as a writer and arranger, as well as a professional – if somewhat restrained – singer.

Lush electric keyboard arrangements announce that this is a "pop" album, but lyrically, most songs are about hope and strength, a fitting Filipino theme. And while I’m not a connoisseur of Filipino pop music, I particularly liked the songcraft of Falling, the jazzy, Anita Baker-style chordal touches on Should’ve Been Me, as well as the Madonna-like So Demanding. Strident piano opens Amanda, while gentle acoustic guitar and flute lift Dahan Dahan beyond simple-minded pop.

What this album proves onced again is how much Filipino musical talent lies out there, waiting to be discovered and utilized. This album was a long time coming for Rica, who has spent most of her professional life studying, playing, teaching, and writing music. This is a good display of her talents, front and center.

Matins is a different brew altogether. It’s an album of "Jesuit meditations" –local chamber/ Christmas pieces performed impeccably by a group of classically-trained players. The chamber-music vibe is both relaxing – the kind of music played by quartets in malls during Christmastime – and full of excellent acoustic touches. Guitarist Jedidiah Roque threads gentle accompaniment on Pasko Na and other traditional Filipino Christmas songs. Lead violinist/viola player Ariel Arambulo spikes most cuts with a measured joyousness: the seesawing solos and pizzicato plucks on the opening track, Pamaskong Anyaya," are a favorite. I know Ariel personally; He is a graduate of UP College of Music and a confirmed Japan/David Sylvian fan, a tireless player who dreams of creating experimental music (when he’s not busy teaching kids the Suzuki Method). Barbie’s Cradle bassist Rommel Cruz also picks up the double bass for this CD, sounding for all the world like a choir boy.

Much of the album is, indeed, meditative, almost somber, blending viola, guitar, flute, cello, bass and violin in a chamber setting that still sounds distinctly Filipino. At times reminiscent of Kronos Quartet’s The Music of Bill Evans, the mood is sometimes spry and joyous, sometimes tinged with contemplative sadness. Does it make one long to join a monastery or take up the vows? Perhaps not, but it beats the heck out of those sell-out "Chant" versions of R.E.M.’s Losing My Religion. This is real Jesuit chamber music, and it sounds good, uplifting and soothing in this simple setting. You can contact the local Jesuit Music Ministry to obtain a copy.