He truly believes that if he does good, goodwill also come back to him. He quotes “Huwag mong gawin sa ibang tao ang ayaw mong gawin ng iba sa’yo,” (Don’t do unto others what you don’t want others to do unto you.), when asked what important value he has learned growing up. He has kept this as a reminder, and it has carried him through the years as he forged his journey as a young leader.
Jose Marie Eserjose, or JM as he is usually known to his peers, grew up in a family of four. His mother is a Life Plan Agent, and his father is a tricycle driver. At age 20, he is a full-time student at University of Santo Tomas where he is taking up Bachelor of Music, Major in Violin Performance. JM is Orchestra of the Filipino Youth’s Concertmaster and a Violin Mentor to the Ang Misyon Children’s Orchestra.
Learning and paying it forward
JM realized that being in an orchestra is not just about playing music and being with friends. As an Ang Misyon Scholar, the program has taught him how to be disciplined, manage his time, keep good relations and stay open to his peers. He candidly mentions the latter as “learning how to leave the ego out of the rehearsal room.” Sounding wise beyond his years is a result of going through life as a young musician who was finding his footing and started as a beginner, just like any expert in their craft.
In his early days as OFY’s Concertmaster, he admits it was hard at first especially being surrounded by more advanced players in his section. But he shares that he received guidance from his kuya (big brother) and ate (big sister) in Ang Misyon. He mentions his gratitude specially to Lui Santos, a former Associate Concertmaster in the program and how he was a good influence on him. From there he was able to apply himself as an even more effective leader to his section and OFY. JM saw himself develop his leadership skills along with his musicality and has since shared these to his fellow scholars. He wishes to pay it forward by imparting his gained wisdom to his peers and creating a wave of good change as he encourages others to do the same.
“I think the main essence of being part of Ang Misyon is accepting the mission to become an agent of change,” JM says. He recalls how he answered one of the standard questions during the admissions process. The question was, “Why do you want to be part of Ang Misyon?” He said at the time, he was much younger, and his main focus was to avail of the free lessons.
After a few years, he wishes to refine his answer: “I realized that being a good musician is nothing if you do not have good values in you…Ang Misyon taught me that musicians are not just players, we serve as the catalyst for social transformation. Today, I am finding ways on how I can influence others to help and to find ways on how we can do something for the benefit of others.”
Adapting to new ways of life
Like most of Ang Misyon’s community of scholars, JM’s weekly routine involved school on the weekdays, lessons and rehearsals on Saturdays. He said it was hard to break this routine having done it for five years until the pandemic. This also meant loss of income from part-time gigs and teaching. And with the postponement of Asian Youth Orchestra (AYO) Program, a premier pre-professional orchestra that gives an opportunity for selected musicians to study and tour internationally, JM ended up working in a Call Center for three months during his summer break instead.
Though he keeps busy, he openly shares it is quite a challenge to be away from people especially his friends. He fondly misses teaching his students from Ang Misyon Children’s Orchestra as well. They did a few classes online but sadly could not sustain regular sessions because the majority of the kids were still adjusting to the new modular set-up for school. He felt it was demotivating to be cooped up in a room for long hours, a struggle he said was probably experienced by many nowadays. But he does his best to rise above this and points out that one must adapt despite the limitations. He also emphasizes the value of time, and how given the unpredictability of the situation, one must make use of it wisely and for more purposeful things. “Times are tough as a musician, but this time should be maximized to become better,” he says.
As a student, at first, he could not fully grasp how he could learn effectively using online platforms. He found ways to make it work for him and his professors, including investing in a USB microphone using the money he earned from his Call Center job. Since their classes depend a lot on sound quality and one-on-one feedback, he said it helps to keep asking questions until he understands the lessons better. Being a full-time student with this new set-up also means being in front of the computer for long hours and JM suggests that aside from time management, plotting out proper breaks is also important.
Though he keeps busy, he openly shares it is quite a challenge to be away from people especially his friends. He fondly misses teaching his students from Ang Misyon Children’s Orchestra as well. They did a few classes online but sadly could not sustain regular sessions because the majority of the kids were still adjusting to the new modular set-up for school. He felt it was demotivating to be cooped up in a room for long hours, a struggle he said was probably experienced by many nowadays. But he does his best to rise above this and points out that one must adapt despite the limitations. He also emphasizes the value of time, and how given the unpredictability of the situation, one must make use of it wisely and for more purposeful things. “Times are tough as a musician, but this time should be maximized to become better,” he says.
As a student, at first, he could not fully grasp how he could learn effectively using online platforms. He found ways to make it work for him and his professors, including investing in a USB microphone using the money he earned from his Call Center job. Since their classes depend a lot on sound quality and one-on-one feedback, he said it helps to keep asking questions until he understands the lessons better. Being a full-time student with this new set-up also means being in front of the computer for long hours and JM suggests that aside from time management, plotting out proper breaks is also important.