By WINNIE VELASQUEZ
AMID the aggravations that make living in Manila a daily test of human endurance, there is a group of kindred spirits on Facebook crusading to bring back memories of happier times and provide netizens a welcome respite from all the bad news.
Called the Music Reminiscence Soapbox (MRS), it was established last September 7 by four music-loving women who saw Facebook as the perfect platform to reconnect with friends, bring back memories of the good old days and introduce the younger generation to their kind of music – the songs of the ‘60s, ‘70s, ‘80s, and ‘90s.
Radio was a pervasive presence for MRS members, a majority of whom are baby boomers. This was the generation that collected vinyl records – LPs or long playing records with 10 to 12 songs, 45 rpms with two songs back to back, turntables with needles that skittered and made the voice of the singer skip or screech if you didn’t watch it. The jukebox was a huge, blinking presence in the corner of restaurants or soda fountains. With a ten centavo coin inserted into a slot, the listener pressed a button for the song of choice and a mechanical arm moved the vinyl from the stacks and gently set it on the turntable.
Disc jockeys then manned radio booths and played selections from the hit makers of the time. A popular radio station featured an artist of the week whose song was played every hour. Another station had a program with a Most Requested Song portion for listeners to phone in their requests.
When the founders, Yoly Balboa Franco, Emy Balboa, Aurora Pagayon Rosacia and Mamanette Velasquez were brainstorming on what to call the group, they zeroed in on MRS because it conveyed exactly what they wanted to do. “Our reunions with classmates and friends were nostalgic trips down memory lane peppered with the songs and stories associated with them. These most loved tunes were the soundtracks of our youth. MRS also easily called to mind the highly popular Most Requested Songs on radio during the period,” says Mamanette.
Open 24/7, MRS functions much like a radio station cum dedication booth and juke box. A theme is posted on the MRS wall at noon every day that governs what songs are to be uploaded. Members are free to post as many songs as they want provided these songs belong to the decades mentioned above. There is also a Trivia game for which the music genius of the day – the first to submit correct answers to the questions – gets a trophy, and a Band Ethymology section featuring one band a day.
The four women take turns managing the site: Manila-based Yoly and Emy with Aurora, along with Mamanette who calls Los Angeles, California home. They make sure there is someone on board to answer members’ queries, traffic the posts which come fast and furious, averaging from 20 to 30 songs the whole day, to keep the conversations going – the “threads” are lively and the exchange between members range from sentimental to downright hilarious.
“The camaraderie at MRS is something we relish. The bantering and the conversations are really hilarious. If you go through the “threads” you would think that we’ve all known one another for a long time but there are members who are meeting here for the first time. Music is really great for bonding moments,” Yoly says.
“MRS is also a good way to keep the blues away especially for those who have insomnia. There are regular night-owls among us and it helps that Mamanette is in a time zone opposite to ours in Manila. When I knock-off in the wee hours of the morning, she is there to keep the site humming along,” says Aurora.
Yoly, a full time housewife goes on board in between her household chores. She is also in charge of the Trivia section that tests members’ knowledge of the songs, individual hit makers and bands popular during the periods covered. Posted at 12 noon every day, this MRS feature is much awaited by members who make a mad rush for the title of Music Genius of the Day.
Emy, who has a day job at the House of Representatives, is in charge of the Band Etymology section and all the banners, trophies and other graphic requirements of the site.
Aurora works with Sunlife Philippines and when not making client calls, she and Mamanette manage the heavy traffic of members uploading songs on MRS and update the roster of members daily. Mamanette is a private nurse. In between attending to the needs of her patient and to stave off boredom, she logs on to MRS.
Barely two months from its inception, MRS already has close to a thousand members from the Philippines, the U.S., the U.K., Germany, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar and New Zealand uploading an extensive playlist from a wide range artists in every imaginable music genre. The songs cover the gamut, from immortal tunes to obscure but wonderful melodies that would otherwise be lost to present-day listeners.
“I myself marvel at the songs that are uploaded every day. Some of them I am hearing for the first time others I haven’t heard in a long long time” says Yoly. “It also helps that there are several professional musicians among MRS members,” adds Aurora.
For the founders and members of MRS, Facebook is the perfect venue for sharing their love for music, keeping in touch with old friends and fostering camaraderie among a growing circle of like-minded people. “We are lucky to have new technology at our fingertips. The Internet, Google, YouTube all these make music readily available to us anytime and anywhere,” says Aurora. “So instead of dwelling on unpleasant news and getting mired in negative thoughts, we encourage everyone to visit the MRS site on FB and groove to the music and memories of those gentler, happier times,” says Mamanette.