A brother act returns to its roots

As a talent manager, I’ve always subscribed to the philosophy that "the more, the merrier." The addition of new talents to the industry can only be good for all of us.

Which is why I was quite excited to receive a call from my good friend Terri Aldeguer (of the famous Aldeguer Sisters) who was in town recently to introduce her new talents, the Bañares brothers EJ, 16 and Brendon, 13. Fil-Americans from California, EJ and Brendon are now in Manila to promote their debut CD, which was recorded in the US. They will also be guesting on a couple of TV shows before heading back to the US to resume their studies, after which they intend to come back again, in case there are offers. EJ is an incoming senior at the Upland High School, while Brendon, who just turned 13 last Aug. 3, is a seventh grader at the Pioneer Junior High School.

The two were born in the US to Filipino parents. According to their mother Nanette, the boys have always been interested in music. "They’ve always wanted to hold a microphone, even when they were children. They started out with toy plastic microphones, then they graduated to the more expensive ones when they got older."

When the boys were old enough, Nanette and her husband – who run a home health business that supplies medical health professionals like nurses and physical therapists to people needing home care – signed them up for special courses to develop their talents. They enrolled EJ and Brendon at the Margie Haber Studios in Hollywood for acting lessons, at the Narleen Kristels Voice Studio in Walnut, California for voice training, and now, at the Aldeguer Sisters Performing Arts Center in West Covina, California which Terri and Lally opened some three or four years ago. The boys take classes in acting, voice and dance everyday after school. The studio is only a 15-minute trip from where they study, so it’s no problem. Besides, they really love what they do.

Surprisingly, although they were born and raised in the US, EJ and Brendon are still familiar with the language. In fact, they can even sing in Tagalog, as they did during their recent concert with Nora Aunor at the Mt. SAC Performing Arts Center. They sang a medley of Ikaw and Ikaw Ang Lahat Sa Akin – among others – with her. The concert also served as the formal launch of the brothers’ CD, with the carrier single Aking Inay, composed specially for them by Jimmy Borja. The CD also includes When You Tell Me That You Love Me, Mack the Knife, Sana’y Magkatuluyan, Bridges, One Day In Your Life, When You Love Someone Who Loves You and Happily Ever After.

Terri says that the boys were among the first enrollees of their school. She saw that the boys where exceptionally gifted, so she pulled them aside and offered more specialized training. "We teach them stage movement, showmanship and of course, guidance, or what to expect (when they’re in showbiz)," she says.

She’s very proud of the boys and what they’ve been able to achieve so far. "Lately they’ve been doing their own concerts (in the US), and now, they also have their own CD. They want to start a career here in the Philippines, because while they were born and raised in the US, they are Filipino at heart."

Of the two, it was the younger one, Brendon, who was more interested in a career in performing. "He was doing his first concert with Jolina (Magdangal), and I was just sitting backstage," relates EJ, whose favorites include Josh Groban, Frank Sinatra, Under Oath, Strung Out, and My Chemical Romance. "I was listening to him, and I thought, ‘Maybe I’ll try it out.’ I wanted to do what he was doing."

Today, they have blossomed into a popular "brother act" in the US. They always get invited to perform in shows for the Filipino community in California, and now that they’re here to launch a career in the Philippines, we all wish them the best of luck.

(For bookings, call Gus Aldeguer at 0917-539-1355).