Wilfredo C. Pasamba: World-class cellist

Not very many Filipinos hold their debut recital at the Weill Recital Hall in famed Carnegie Hall, and fewer still get noticed and receive plaudits from no less than the New York Times, who hailed Willie Pasamba, then only in his twenties for his “audacity and brilliance.”

It has been a challenging ride but a gratifying one for this artist whose mentors have come from three continents—Martiniano Esguerra from the Philippines, his first cello teacher, his professors at the Tchaikovsky Moscow State Conservatory in the former Soviet Union, and his professors at the Juilliard School of Music in New York. He has studied under master cellists Natalia Shakovskaya, Alexander Rudin, Maria Tchaikovskaya, Carter Enyeart, and Fred Sherry.

Coming from a family of musicians, Willie Pasamba, one could say, was born with music in his DNA. His mother, Angelita Cariaso Pasamba, is a music instructor, composer and conductor, while his grandfather, Segundo Cariaso, was a violinist. Eldest brother Eduardo, is a professor of Music at the University of the Philippines, and another brother, Bernie, is a violinist, and his sister, Mayette, is a musician in her own right. His father, Francisco (Kit) Pasamba plays the guitar and was a band member in his youth. As a young kid, his mother recollects, Willie would stay close by while she played the piano, and showed deep interest in music. He was well attuned to his do-re-mi before he was with his a-b-c.

With music all around him, it was inevitable that Willie would choose a career in music. The cello, fortuitously, became his instrument of choice and at age 16, just after two years of cello instruction from Professor Esguerra, Willie won the National Music Competition for Young Artists. After this and at the prodding of Lucrecia Kasilag, then president of the Cultural Center of the Philippines, he was soon on his way to the prestigious but highly competitive Moscow State Conservatory where he vied for full scholarship. It was quite a feat to learn a foreign language while keeping up with his studies. But it is said that music is a universal language and in music, he flourished. He kept his scholarship for six straight years during which he earned his undergraduate and master’s degrees in music. This was followed by more studies at Juilliard where he was also a soloist at the Juilliard Symphony.

While still a student, the young Filipino garnered top honors at the Jennings Butterfield Young Artist Competition, Reno Chamber Orchestra Competition, Juilliard Cello Concerto Competition; and was a semi-finalist in the International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow. His mother recalls how proud she was to see the Philippine flag flying side by side with those of other nations who were also represented in the competition.

Since his Carnegie debut, Willie has performed at the Merkin Concert Hall, Metropolitan Museum, Rachmaninoff Hall, Sviatoslav Richter Museum and the Omaha Chamber Music Society. Over the years, Pasamba has appeared as soloist with numerous international orchestras such as the Reno Chamber Orchestra, Wichita symphony, Syracuse Chamber Orchestra, Ithaca College Chamber Orchestra, Manila Symphony Orchestra, Cebu Philharmonic, and the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra.

Willie’s pursuit of the mastery of the cello has been insatiable, imbibing all his heady experiences and evolving his artistry thru music festivals in Tanglewod, Norfolk, Bowdoin, and at the Ithaca Violoncello Institute, and a conducting fellowship in South Carolina. He has performed in the cello-master classes of Janos Starker, Natalia Gutman, Colin Carr, Bonnie Hampton Aldo Parisot, Bion Tsang, Einar Holm, Lawrence Lesser, Michael Grebanier and Carter Brey. He has also collaborated with conductors such as Pierro Gamba, Basilio Manalo, Arturo Molina, Robert Olson, Michael Palmer, Ruggero Barbierri, and Vahe Kochayan among others. Pasamba recently finished his doctorate in cello performance at the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory.

Along with his long string of accomplishments, Willie has performed as an active chamber musician with Peter Wiley, Ani Kavafian, Benny Kim, Reynaldo Reyes, Albert Tiu, Raul Sunico, Brendan Kinsella and with artist members of the Beaux Arts, Argenta Trio, Alexander, Orion and Ying String Quartets. He has lately served as a faculty member at Pittsburg State University, and at the University of Missouri-Kansas City Music Academy and Dance.

With all this success, giving back and honing young Filipino talents has never been lost from his vision. After his studies in Moscow and the U.S., Pasamba went back to the Philippines for a couple of years and took up a teaching job as assistant professor of the String Department at St. Scholastica’s College, Manila. A professorial stint at the University of the Philippines College of Music followed. He then joined the program, Philippine Research for Developing Instrumental Soloists (PREDIS), which was founded in 1984 by Professor Basilio “Billy” Manalo, concertmaster of the original Manila Symphony Orchestra, and by Sister Mary Placid Abejo, OSB, Dean of the St. Scholastica’s School of Music. PREDIS was created to provide training and inspiration for young musicians (aged 4–25) “who have the capability and desire to embark on a professional career as instrumentalists.” As conductor of the Manila Youth Symphony Orchestra, he has brought their music on provincial concert tours to appreciative kababayans, reaching as far as south as Dumaguete, Cebu and Bicol. While in Manila he founded the Battig Piano Trio and embarked on a European concert tour in 2001.

With the breadth and scope of his repertoire, this Philippine-born cellist has regaled audiences around the world as a featured soloist, recitalist, and chamber musician. He recently performed as guest soloist at the Heidelberg Music Festival, where he played the music of George Crumb, and at the Olivier Messiaen Centennial in Missouri. He has also collaborated in the Arnold Schoenberg Retrospective at the University of Missouri-Kansas City.

Fresh from performances in Moscow and St. Petersburg, Willie will be back in Manila this summer for a solo recital. The first will be on May 21, 2011 at the Insular Life Auditorium in Alabang with the Manila Symphony Orchestra with Jeffrey Solares conducting Robert Schumann Cello Concerto. His second concert will be on June 4, 2011 at the Cultural Center of the Philippine Main Theatre during the Opening Season of the Manila Symphony Orchestra. Arturo Molina, conducting Joseph Haydn’s Concerto in D Major.