Palau President Johnson Toribiong (this time without the eyeglass) is with me on August 09, 2009. He checked the photo and said, "It must look good because Roberto is my friend." The first photo is my profile picture on Facebook. (Photo by Roberto Hernandez)
MY MUSIC EXPERIENCE WITH PALAU PRESIDENT
JOHNSONG TORIBIONG
ON AUGUST 09, 2009, Palau
At 9:05, before playing keyboard at Breeze Bar of Palau Royal Resort, I asked pastry chef and my roommate Jaime Guevarra to take a picture of me with the president in the background. But it is a dark background and President Toribiong is hardly recognized.
I approached him and he introduced me to the Taiwanese family. Then I asked him, “Can we have a picture and I will send to my friends in Australia
After the first shot, he said to Jaime to have one more and he will remove his eyeglass. After the second shot, he asked Jaime, “Let me take a look. It must look good because Robert is my friend.”
Why did he say that? The following stories may answer this question:
On April 03, 2009, President Johnson Toribiong, his wife Valeria, Vice President Kerai Mariur and his wife, former Vice President and now Minister of State Sandra Pierentozi and her husband and other guests (mostly couples) are having a dinner party at Ming’s Court of Palau Royal Resort, about 15 meters from the piano that I’m playing everyday from 6:00 to 9:00 pm except on Wednesdays (my day off). (My day off now is Friday)
At 8:20 pm, Ann (waitress) said to me that the First Lady is requesting me to play for them for a few minutes. Edgar Cayanan, the Assistant Food and Beverage Manager, asked me if the keyboard that I’m using at Breeze Bar is there at the cashier’s place. I said yes, but the speaker is defective.
I suggested that we just push the piano. It has four wheels and we have to lift it upon reaching the wooden floor of Ming’s Court.
Romulo‘Jun’ Lanzuela, Cyrus Rosales, Edgar and me pushed it till the wooden floor and lifted it to avoid scratches on the wooden floor.
I played all Palauan songs until three Palauan ladies asked me to play American songs on their way to the rest room.
A guy approached me and he would like to sing “Let It Be Me” in key of C. It’s too low so he sang it in key of D. I sang with him doing the second voice for harmony.
Then another guy requested “Bridge Over Troubled Water”. I asked Edgar to get my song books so that the singer and I can look at the lyrics of that song. When he sang it, all the couples dance and dance floor is full!
The 3 Palauan ladies requested “Beyond the Reef” and they sang it. It’s my first time to hear that song. I used my “by ear” music instinct and they didn’t notice that I don’t know the song yet. I thought it’s “Beyond the Sea”.
When somebody requested Chamorro song, I played “Triste Yu” and in the middle of the song, the guy who sung “Bridge Over Troubled Water” asked for the lyrics of“Triste Yu”.
I gave him my song book and we sang it together with me not looking at the song book because I memorized it already 14 years ago. That song has a Palauan version entitled “Belau Ragid”.
After the song, he asked me, “How did you know this song?” I said, “My former employer of 13 years is half Chamorro.”
There’s a joke about this phrase: “My former employer of 13 years is half Chamorro, half Palauan and half Portuguese”. He said. ‘That’s already 3 halves’.
And I will reply, “Oh! she’s a BIG woman!”
Anyway, they enjoyed the night singing some more songs till 9:15 pm. Their last song is“Ob-la-di Ob-la-da”. The president said to me about the guy who sang “Bridge Over Troubled Water”… “He is the Archbishop of Guam.” I’m surprised and said,‘That’s why he knows Chamorro song.”
And the President pointed at the lyrics of the “Triste Yu” song and said, “That’s Margie’s song” (referring to my former employer of 13 years Margarita Borja Dalton.)
Then the president went to my back and put money in my polo shirt pocket. The 3 Palauan ladies (now only two of them) also put money in the same pocket (all in $1.00 bills).
The First Lady asked her husband if he gave me something already. He said yes and she still gets some small cash from her bag and put it in my pocket.
When we are pushing the piano back to its place, Jun and Cyrus complained and said, “This piano is very heavy, we need refreshment.” It’s just a joke but I said, “Okay, I’ll give you the beers given to me by a Japanese guest last February 25, 2009.”
While setting the keyboard at Breeze Bar, I counted my tips in the store room: it’s $5.00 from the First Lady, $10.00 from the 2 Palauan ladies and $50.00 from President Johnson Toribiong.
The last time that I’ve got $50.00 tip from him was in 1994 when he requested the song “Memory” at Image Restaurant.
He gave me $10.00 in August 07, 1999; $20.00 in November 05, 1999; 2 scotch and 2 beers in January 27, 2000; 2 glasses of red wine each in February 05, 08, 11, 2000; $4.50 in November 08, 2002 and $3.00 in December 10, 2002. There are some more that I can’t recall anymore.
After assuming the Palau
Before going home, he said to me, “I’d like you to teach my grandson piano. I will hire you. I’ll see what’s the good date and time.” He mentioned it again twice on two different occasions but still it didn’t happen yet.
(It finally happens in May 14, 2011(twice a week) and I'm still teaching him, the last time on August 18, 2012-6 days before my trip to Istanbul, Turkey to participate in the 2012 World Chess Olympiad).
Source: Music and Me by Roberto Hernandez
Tia Belau Newspaper
Pages 8-9
Volume 21
Issue 58
August 23, 2012
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