Fred Elizalde & His Music - Singapore Sorrows

Filipino-born Federico "Fred" Elizalde (1907-1979) was a pianist, composer, conductor and bandleader who studied in Madrid and London in tbe 20’s. His career as a jazz musican started in 1926 at the Los Angeles Biltmore Hotel; subsequently he studied law in London where he formed several bands over the years. In 1930 he became the conductor of the Manila Symphony Orchestra. Later in the 30s he conducted in Biarritz, Paris, and Madrid, where he studied with de Falla. During the Spanish Civil War he fell ill, returned to Manila, then moved to France, where he lived under confinement under the German occupation. During this time he composed a.o. an opera on Gauguin's life, a piano and a violin concerto and a string quartet. In 1948 he returned to Manila, conducting the Manila SO again; he founded the Manila Little Symphony Orchestra, and became president of the national broadcasting company. He rarely worked abroad through his 1974 retirement. This great record was made in 1929.