Ebe Dancel gives his songs an orchestral spin

FILIPINO singer-songwriter Ebe Dancel, celebrated among OPM fans young and old, will be back onstage with the 20-piece Manila String Machine at the New Frontier Theater, Quezon City, on Nov. 15.

Twenty-five years have passed since he started his music career, and Mr. Dancel now finds that there’s a stark difference in how he views the timeless hits from his pop-rock band Sugarfree days to his acclaimed solo tracks.

“Compared to my early days, I now make sure I get the sound I really want. The sound on stage is a lot more toned down, so you can hear every instrument. Whether it’s a small space or a big arena, I want it to feel intimate, regardless of the size of the venue,” Mr. Dancel told BusinessWorld in an interview on Oct. 7.

Aside from marking an important milestone in his career, collaborating with an orchestra has allowed him to lean into these differences with ease.

“I first fell in love with the idea of playing with an orchestra back in 2005. My former band did a concert with the Manila Symphony Orchestra and I remember rehearsing for the first time [with them] and being really blown away,” he said. “Since then, every chance I got, like when we celebrated 10 years at the Music Museum, we played with an orchestra.

“It’s really a huge part of the way I see myself performing. I think the orchestra elevates the songs further,” he added.

Ebe Dancel with The Manila String Machine: The Repeat Concert is also the second time they have done this collaboration. The first was in 2020, for his 20th year in music, held just weeks before the coronavirus pandemic restrictions kicked in.

With the same team, led by director Paolo Valenciano and musical director Chino David, Mr. Dancel promised “25 songs with awesome visuals to accompany the music,” but he refused to go into specifics.

“You’ll just have to see for yourself!” he said.

The concert will showcase the acclaimed OPM singer-songwriter’s legacy both with Sugarfree and as a solo artist.

MIXING OLD AND NEWThe setlist, a mix of old and new songs, also reflects Mr. Dancel’s perspective of OPM, especially now that Sugarfree’s hit song “Burnout” is making a resurgence among younger generations online.

“I want the kids to go back even further. Further back, not just to the Eraserheads, but to The Dawn, to Apo Hiking Society, to Ryan Cayabyab, so that they can deepen their appreciation of Filipino music,” he said.

For him, OPM now and in the 2000s reflects a “rich and thriving” culture, but one that owes those who came before. “It’s like wisdom that is imparted from one generation to another,” he said.

Mr. Dancel also noted that arrangements and performances of the same songs change over time. One example he gave was “Burnout,” which had a tame recording compared to the noisy live version they used to perform back in 2003.

“Hanggang sa nag-solo na ako, iniba-iba ko ’yong areglo (Up until my solo career, I kept changing the arrangement),” he said. “These days, for a change, what I perform is closest to the original version. It’s ever-evolving.”

He closed the interview by giving a practical view of his and other OPM legends’ legacies.

“It’s for people to decide. History will judge based on the songs — the hits, the misses, the good performances, the bad performances,” said Mr. Dancel. “I don’t really think about legacy. In fact, I look at my calendar and just think about the next show.” — Brontë H. Lacsamana