Transcript of interview with Cresencio Dacanay (conducted by Amanda Lee), 3 October 2016, 8 pm, Skype.
Cresencio is a 44-year old male Filipino Singaporean permanent resident and is an engineer. Cresencio listens to pop and rock music from the 80s, 90s and early 2000s. He prefers listening to folk rock, soft rock and country music. Some of his favorite artists include Bon Jovi, Michael Learns to Rock, and Wilson Philips. He dislikes hard rock and metal as they are too noisy and their songs may contain profanities. He thinks that English pop music expresses a cultural connection of Singaporeans with other English-speaking countries as they have similarities like speaking English and are modernized. Cresencio also thinks English pop music is the most important genre as English is an international language and the music is played all over the world. Cresencio does not listen to Western classical music but he thinks it is good music as it is relaxing and can help people become more patient. He has seen Miss Saigon live and enjoyed it. He also watches Glee with his children. Cresencio listens to Filipino pop music and likes it as there is no language barrier and he can understand what the artists are trying to say. However, he thinks that some of music is like Western pop music. Cresencio listens to traditional Filipino music and prefers it over pop as it is very closely linked with his roots and heritage. He also thinks that pop music is given precedence over traditional music as it is more widely available on mainstream media while traditional music is set aside. Cresencio sometimes hears Chinese pop songs in the supermarkets and hums along to the tune. He cannot distinguish the difference between traditional Chinese and Chinese pop music. However, he enjoyed the sample of traditional Chinese music. Cresencio also enjoyed the sample of Chinese crossover music and thinks that the music was clearer than the original song. He also thinks that this genre is representative of Singapore as it involved players of different races and instruments of different origins. Cresencio did not like the sample of Chinese experimental music. He thinks it could be a soundtrack for a movie and that he might like it if he watched the whole video. Cresencio does not listen to much Singaporean music except for music by Olivia Ong. He thinks that her music sounds very profession and Western-influenced. Cresencio also thinks that National Day songs are about uniting Singaporeans and thinks that the songs expresses a real feeling of group belonging.
“For [English] pop music – current pop music, no. But, er, last – when my age lah, maybe 1990s, I listen to those, er, pop music also. Ya, but currently – not now.”
“Western classical? Er, I thought they’re very good, ah. Er, in terms of skills and how they compose the songs. Very, very good. Ya. Very professional I think, I – I – I say like that, lah. Mm. Using the instruments is really their forte.”
“I have to listen to this kind of music to – ya, because very relaxing. Mm. Very relaxing, and something – it gives you more peace of mind. So it’s very important also. Ya. Ya. Teach you patience, lah.”
“Um, what’s the name – that one, ah. The Glee? I watch with my kids, then the classical movie with the – who’s the one, ah? The half-Filipina, er, singer [Lea Salonga, who is actually Filipina] ... Mm, ya. Correct. Er, the – what you call that ... Ya, Miss Saigon.”
“Filipino pop music, actually – of course, there’s no language barrier, you can understand what they’re saying, you can feel what they’re trying to portray. Er, but some of it just like Western music, country music, about feelings, about what you observe. And what you want to tell through music that they cannot – cannot just say.”
“Ya, because, er, actually I love to sing traditional because ... we Filipinos have our different dialects. And every – every dialects there’s a – there’s – what you call that national songs they compose. Ya. So it’s all for love, about family also, um, about the beginning of the tribes, something like that.”
“My family stay in Singapore. Then I go back to Philippines. My kids doesn’t know – they doesn’t know what – what traditional music in my country. So I have to – if – if the traditional music is not preserved, how they know? Ya. So it’s very, very important, so that they know where their roots – their roots came from.”
“But when we go back to our – our town, we go back – we still listen to our traditional music. But now ah, because of the, er, technology, I think – I think it’s – it’s more on pop music now to listen.”
“Actually [traditional Chinese music] good. Ya. Because it’s – it sounds familiar. Maybe because of, er, the instrument they use. I think this one is traditional song.”
“If you hear the sound, [Adele’s original songs and the medley-cover by the Chinese crossover TENG Ensemble are] almost the same. Only the – this, er, using, er, this Chinese instrument which is almost actually for me, it’s more clearer actually. Ya, because on, er, Adele song ah, there’s a lot of, er, technology.”
“Well, er, [experimental Chinese music is] very Chinese. Ya, because the instrument, er, I – just like I’m – I – what you call that? I’m – I’m hearing one of, I’m watching a movie, Red Cliff? Something like that. It’s very Chinese, er, instrument.”
“I think I like – I like the crossover one. Ya, because – of course, because I know the song Adele and almost the same, er, the same background, the same music. It’s synchronized with Adele’s song. So I like that one, the crossover one. But this, er, the later is I really ... I did not like it.”
“Olivia Ong, I have a CD actually. Ya. I – because my boss introduce to me the music, ya – it’s good. Ya. But other Singaporean music, no.”
“The voice – very soft. And in, but you see ah, [Olivia Ong]’s a Singaporean and – and you know the diction of how – how – how she sing the song? It’s sometimes very Western. It’s not Asian, actually. If you – if you – if I heard right, ah ... it’s very professional. Which is comparable to other – other, er, Western, er, singers.”
“I believe the – the – the – the objective of the song is about Singaporean to be united as one because there’s a inter-, er, because of the race. Mm, different race, and most – most of – most of the lyrics that I – when I saw ah, it’s about more on united Singaporeans.”
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