Makiling Ensemble was formed by five high school classmates and buddies in December of 1997. It was in the members' high school days where they got exposure to the diverse musical culture of the Philippines.


The Founders

Right after graduating at the Philippine High School for the Arts, batchmates Diwa de Leon (hegalong, vocals, violin and didjeridu), David Sicam (guitar), Otto Hernandez (percussion), Evan Britanico (vocals, percussion) and Wed Lodriga (percussion) got together and jammed with a composition by Diwa. They were praticing for their first public performance which was at the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) for an exhibit opening.

The ensemble was then invited to perform for other events. Later on Joshua Legaspi (violin), Cecile Coo (violin) and Floro Sernande (flute, percussion) joined the group.


Performances

The Makiling Ensemble has already performed at the CCP, PCIBank Francisco Santiago Hall, Glorietta Ayala, Casa San Miguel, UP Diliman, Philippine High School for the Arts and other functions.  Makiling Ensemble now performs regulary every Tuesday at Oracafe.

They were also invited to perform for the farewell party for the brilliant Asian Fantasy Orchestra. The ensemble also vividly remembers the wild crowd at an Asian conference sponsored by UNICEF-ECPAT dancing and chanting while they perform with the ensemble's music.


Features

Makiling Ensemble has also appeared in television shows. Citiline hosted by Cory Quirino, Public Lives with Randy David, Chikiting Patrol, Breakfast at SNN, XYZ and Tipong Pinoy are some of the television shows that featured the ensemble.

The ensemble was also featured in an article at Cool Magazine and at the online Filipino magazine, www.Legmanila.com.

Makiling Ensemble uses only acoustic instruments and refrain from using electronic distortions to retain the sacredness of the instrument.