Cecile Azarcon’s Music Heals the Soul
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Cecile Azarcon
The singers and performers who have interpreted her work are some of the Philippines’ greatest icons in the music industry. In fact, some of their names have become synonymous with the songs. Who doesn’t know Lift Up Your Hands originally sung by Basil Valdez, or Ikaw Ang Lahat sa Akin by Martin Nievera, One More Try by Kuh Ledesma, Reaching Out by Gary Valenciano, or Even If by Jam Morales? The list goes on. It almost begs the question: “Did the music come first or did the singer?”
For many who know Cecile Azarcon, the music, without a doubt, will always come first. Yet not very many are that familiar with the composer herself. For instance, at a private party in a California residence, Azarcon, being one of the guests, was delighting everyone by playing the piano and singing her very famous composition Lift Up Your Hands when a guest who was quite late for the event walked in. His first reaction was, “Oh, I didn’t know she wrote that song!” Quite so, like many great composers and songwriters, the work supersedes them. That, I would consider the mark of genius songwriting!
Good songwriting, like good art, takes a life of its own. Over the years, Cecile Azarcon’s music has taken root and has grown in the hearts and minds of many. From the time of their conception, they have been widely performed all over the world in various interpretations. The poignant yet sensual nature of her songs makes you ache and yearn for something that may not even be real in your life but somehow is very familiar to your soul. So, what quality must a songwriter possess or what process must she undergo to enable her to construct this direct path into everyone’s being?
In the case of Azarcon, she attributes it to moments of inspiration; flashes that come at the most unforeseen times. She believes one has to seize these fleeting moments and use them to the best of one’s abilities. She is one of those artists who understands fully the value of emotion, of imagination, surrendering herself to the unknown, making a leap beyond reason. Her work clearly exhibits this process, harnessing the power of these heartbeats, the power of faith, using all the musical tools available to her to capture the runaway forces of human emotion and organize them into one cohesive creation that will forever dwell in the hearts of the listener. The simplicity is beguiling, the message is direct, the notes arranged with such longing, such delight.
Cecile’s musical instrument of choice is the piano. Those black and white keys channel her innermost joys, frustrations, and sorrow; the means to a universal language completely and profoundly understood by humans in their innermost being. However, if one is familiar with her musical family background, it will not come as a surprise as to how the piano became her favorite instrument.
Behind every artist is an encouraging group of supporters who will influence and affect their artistic growth. They usually include family, friends, teachers, mentors, partners, always growing and changing shape over time. In Cecile’s case, it began primarily with her very own mother, the highly esteemed classical pianist, soprano, and a composer in her own right, Minda Dominguez Azarcon. It would be safe to say that Cecile’s exposure to piano and music may have even started at a prenatal stage.
Growing up, Cecile gazed into the window of her own mother’s musical journeys in the world of classical music. It was also her mother’s fondest wish that her daughter follow her in the same footsteps as a classical musician. Her father, Max Azarcon Jr., proved no less influential. He exposed her to the standards of his generation; the likes of Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Perry Como, and many more. He, in fact, may have factored quite relevantly into Cecile’s future chosen path into the world of popular music. Raising a strongly artistic daughter like Cecile Azarcon must have been quite a bumpy ride; bittersweet, worrying, wonderful, and joyful, all at the same time.
Cecile with her father, Max and her mother, Minda
One of Cecile’s memories growing up as a musically gifted individual was when, as a child, she would unknowingly place the music piece upside down and proceed to play the piece quite accurately on the piano. She was barely in pre-school then and could barely read, much less read music. She was born with a natural ability to learn music just by listening. We commonly call this “learning by ear” or in Spanish de oido. Learning music by ear is definitely amazing and can be such a huge advantage as a musician. But it could also be quite limiting, especially when one seeks a full music learning experience. Her strictly classically trained mother ensured that the discipline of sight reading was definitely ingrained into her as well.
Another skill she inherited from her mother, was the ability for extemporaneous music transposition, defined as “the process of moving a collection of notes or pitches up or down in pitch by a constant interval”, or perhaps put more simply, changing the key of the song at the spur of the moment. To be accompanied by a pianist with this remarkable skill is a godsend for singers, especially in spontaneous and unrehearsed performances. This is a gift not common to many musicians and accompanists.
“She is one of those artists who understands fully the value of emotion, of imagination, surrendering herself to the unknown, making a leap beyond reason.”
Azarcon, undoubtedly, came from a musically privileged background that goes as far back as her grandparents and perhaps further back. Her very first piano teacher was her grandmother. She lovingly composed a fun, heartfelt little song in memory of her.
Eventually, she discovered music on her own terms, in her own time. Today, she continues the tradition of being an emissary of the power of music as an instrument of self-discovery and pure expression.
This upcoming concert will be a testament to the body of work that Cecile Azarcon has built for most of her life. It will be a joy to once again allow her songs to pierce our hearts directly and transform our lives.
Janine B. Castillo, a Fine Art graduate of University of the Philippines (BFA), and the Academy of Art in San Francisco (MFA), is an exhibiting visual artist based in the SF Bay Area. She also dabbles in free lance writing as well as classical singing.
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