(457) MUSIC AND ME (May 02, 2013) MORE TIME FOR CHESS

REGULAR GUESTS - JAPANESE-FILIPINO FAMILY
Aya and her sister are regular guests of PRR. Their mom is a Filipina and their dad is a Japanese that works at Palasia Hotel. Everytime there is a birthday among their family, they will dinner there. Also on holidays --Mother's Day, Valentine's Day, Labor Day, Senior Citizens Day, Thanksgiving Day, etc.
(Photo by Roberto Hernandez)



MORE TIME FOR CHESS

WHEN the new General Manager of Palau Royal Resort offered me to renew my contract for another 2 years, I'm excited about it.

But when he said that they will cut my hours, service charge and salary into half, I feel like my efforts is not being recognized or appreciated.

I think some employees are envious or jealous of seeing me working without much pressure.

I asked GM to give me 2 days to think about it and asked for my wife's decision regarding this.

THIS MIGHT BE A BLESSING IN DISGUISE AS I WILL BE HAVING MORE TIME FOR CHESS AND MIGHT GET A FIDE MASTER TITLE OR A CANDIDATE MASTER AT LEAST.

The following is my letter to GM expressing my disappointment about the offer:

April 15, 2013

Dear GM Masayuki Kawaguchi,

After some talks with my wife, she finally agreed to accept your offer. She is very disappointed with this offer of cutting my salary and hours into half. She knew that former GM Isao Takahashi offered me to renew for another 2 years in January 2010 with still one and a half years left before the end of my 2^ndcontract!

Later after that, I have an increase of $50.00. I email him regularly to share my music experiences at PRR and he praised “The Crying Japanese Guy” as “a very good story”. He also translated to me many letters of guests written in Japanese. Oh, how I missed GM Isao Takahashi!

In my opinion, the biggest reason about this offer is ENVY and JEALOUSY! Some envious and jealous employees (mostly in high position) are jealous that I’m making that much without much effort.

As I have written to you before, musicians don’t need to work 8 hours a day to get their due pay. Almost all of those jealous employees don’t understand it.

Whenever I’m playing music, I always give all my best. I’m playing continuously without rest after each song. Palauan musicians/singers are resting for 5 minutes after singing/playing for 5 minutes.

During the New Years Eve countdown in 2011 where PRR hired Palauan singer Lisa Sandei to perform for 2 hours (11pm-1am), she sings for 5 minutes and rest for 5 minutes. If you hire a Palauan musicians/singers for 2 hours, you only get them to play or perform for 1 hour.

That’s why Mr. Yamane asked me to play keyboard while they are resting because the gap or silence is really terrible. Imagine, New Year’s Eve countdown and there’s silence every 5 minutes! Of course I didn’t do what Mr. Yamane told me because it’s an insult to the Palauan performers.

Palauan dancers every Friday evening are being paid $600.00 a month for performing 30 minutes (once a week) while me will be getting less than $400.00 for performing for 96 hours?

I can do what Palauan musicians are doing to show my protest about this offer –Play piano for 5 minutes and rest for 5 minutes before playing the next song. BUT IT’S NOT MY STYLE. And although I’m 21 years now in Palau playing music, I still play and ‘communicate’ with guests through music.

I’ll look around while playing and if I see somebody who is nodding or singing softly (lipsing) with the music I’m playing then I already get their attention and ready to ‘communicate’ with them.

Most of them will give tips and I will say to them, “Please come back to Palau again.” Do you think I will still do that now? Of course, I will, but not with much enthusiasm anymore. I will become a ‘robot’ now. I don’t think that I can play with expression now like before.

Since July 2007, I promoted Palau Royal Resort through my chess column in Tia Belau newspaper and since March 15, 2012, through “Music and Me” column also. I have been given half page twice a week for free to promote chess, music and PRR. If you will pay for that space, it will cost you $244.00/week.

Do you know that I’m not being paid to write there? I’m writing about chess for 10 years and 4 months and I’m not being paid even a single penny. But I have promoted chess through that period.

The PRR management is maybe not aware of this so they decided to cut my salary and service charge into half as a show of “appreciation” so I will “appreciate”also by not mentioning PRR in all my next articles.

If you’re familiar with the word ‘catalyst’, then maybe I can say that I’m the catalyst at PRR. If many employees of PRR don’t care about cleanliness, power and water saving, environment and others, then it can be offset by a single catalyst. WILL THE CATALYST CONTINUE TO BE AS HE IS OR WILL HE BE LIKE THE REST?

Finally, I want to make sure that NOBODY WILL CONTROL MY MUSIC.

MY FUTURE HAS BEEN CONTROLLED. The 7 mouths that I’m feeding will greatly be affected.

I don’t want my music to be controlled also.

Even with this salary, I will still continue to do my job to the best of my ability.

WHAT WILL YOU DO, SIR, IF THESE THINGS HAPPEN TO YOU?

Roberto A. Hernandez

Source:

Chess and Music -- Perfect Combination

The Beginning of Chess In Palau

(To be made as a book in the future)

(375) MUSIC AND ME (Jan. 24) Elilai, PRR, Chris & Music Lessons

FIRST TIME AT ELILAI
Roberto Hernandez, 3rd from right, has been to many European countries but first time to go at Elilai in their department's late Christmas party on Friday, January 11, 2013. From left, Midori -- the wife of PRR GM Mike Kawaguchi, 4th from right, Rea Arceo, Ella Asuncion, Lorna Castaneto, Katsuhito Yamane and Amos Mesubed.
(Photo by Roberto Hernandez)



        ELILAI, PRR, CHRIS AND
             MUSIC LESSONS

THE EXECUTIVE, Sales and Marketing Department of Palau Royal Resort held their department’s late Christmas party at Elilai on January 11, 2013 at 7:00 pm.

Together with General Manager Masayuki ‘Mike’ Kawaguchi’s car were Katsuhito Yamane (driving), Roberto Hernandez, GM, his wife Midori, Ella Asuncion, Lorna Castaneto and Rea Arceo.

Amos Mesubed joined the group an hour later using his car.

There is live entertainment by a Brazilian lady singing with a preset accompaniment of mostly jazzy music. While sitting and about to order their food, Roberto mentioned to everybody that he will be 21 years staying in Palau on Feb. 04 but it’s his first time to be at Elilai.

Like the previous late Christmas party of Executive, Sales and Marketing department especially at Dragon Tei in 2010, Amos is again telling stories about what they call in Philippines“green jokes” that mostly involve funny jokes about sex.

This time, GM, Roberto and Amos are the ones doing the talking. GM’s story about his experience in Franceis very funny and educational. The group had some photos taken and nobody ordered dessert because they all had enough.

Before they leave, the 2 foreign chefs introduced themselves to GM and they have about 15-minute conversation. That’s enough time for Lorna, Rea and Ella to prepare a photo session with the chefs.

It didn’t happen but on their way to leave, Roberto made a sign of picture taking to Chris Johnson, the Swedish chef. After some photos were taken, Roberto gave 2 of his business cards to Chris and asked him to give the other business card to his colleague.

Ella was dropped at her residence about a kilometer away from Elilai. Roberto called the Pentecostal Missionary Church of Christ (4^th Watch) if he can still attend the prayer meeting but it’s finished already.

The next day, Roberto got a text message from Chris. He said that he read from Roberto’s card that he offers music lessons and that he’s looking for a long time of a music tutor. He inquired about the fee, available time, requirements and other information on how to get music lessons.

When Roberto responded that Chris must have his own keyboard, it somehow lost his interest because he doesn’t have a keyboard to start with. But when Roberto offered to lend his spare keyboard, they agreed that he will have twice a week lesson. Chris is off on Mondays, works from 10am-2pm and 6pm-10pm Tuesday-Sunday.

Roberto suggested an hour each on Tuesday and Wednesday (8-9am) or 2 hours straight on Monday which sounds perfect for him. They agreed to start on Monday at 10am-12:00 noon and will meet at PIDC store which is about 200 meters from his rented apartment.

With his spare keyboard, adaptor, music stand, sustain pedal and music scores, Roberto met Chris again in front of PIDC store. The 2-hour lessons seemed like 20 minutes only because Chris is a very fast learner. He learned in that short period of time the songs “Jambalaya”, “Achy Breaky Heart”, “Beautiful Sunday”,“Leaving on a Jet Plane” and “Merrily We Roll Along” using the combination of reading notes and “by ear”.

He can play now all the chords in piano by using Roberto’s formula like the Major, Minor, 7^th, Major 7^th, Minor 7^th, 6^th, Minor 6^th, Diminish, Augmented and Sustain.

When Roberto learned that he is from Sweden, he mentioned to him that Palau’s Delegate to the 2008, 2010 and 2012 World Chess Olympiad is Jan Berglund, a Swedish, who is married to a Filipina – Bessie.

After a very fruitful first lesson, Roberto offered to lend Chris his keyboard but he needs to buy an adaptor. He went with Chris at Surangel to buy the adaptor. Roberto offered to drop him again to his apartment but Chris said he’ll have lunch at nearby restaurant and will enjoy the sun (at 12:00 noon!) in walking back to his apartment which he is sharing with the other chef.


Source: Music and Me by Roberto Hernandez
              Tia Belau Newspaper
              Pages 8-9
             Volume 22
             Issue 07
             January 24, 2013