Joaquin Maria Gutierrez

Joaquin Maria Gutierrez, born March 20, 1990, commonly known as "Chino" (full name: Joaquin Maria Fernando Sebastian Gutierrez), is a Filipino violinist. He is also a math and science prodigy currently studying at the "Hochschule für Musik und Theater" in Munich, Germany.

He is the great-grandnephew of the legendary Filipino violinist Ernesto Vallejo and grandson of the late Proceso Sebastian, one of the first senators in the Philippine government.

Biography

Chino is a two-time NAMCYA (National Music Competition for Young Artists) winner. He began playing the violin at 7 and 1/2 years old under the tutelage of violinist Alfonso "Coke" Bolipata. After only two years of instruction, Chino joined the 1999 NAMCYA and emerged as second prize winner in solo violin, category A (grade school division). At 12 years old, he won the first prize in Category B (high school division) of the 2002 NAMCYA, although he was the youngest competitor in his category.

Chino has performed in numerous concerts, recitals and television programs, and has worked with many of the country's finest conductors and musicians. He has participated in several productions at the Cultural Center of the Philippines such as Kulturang Handog Para sa Bayan, Bravo Brimo, and Dangal ng Lahi - an Opera on the Life of Jose Abad Santos.

At age 10, Chino made his orchestral debut at the Cultural Center of the Philippines, as the first featured soloist of the Metro Manila Community Orchestra, with Lalo's Symphonie Espagnole, under the baton of Prof. Josefino Toledo. In December of the same year, he participated in Samiweng 2000, the week-long festival of NAMCYA winners held in Ilocos Norte, and was chosen to perform as soloist of the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra, again under the baton of Prof. Toledo.

In May 2001, Chino was invited to play in Berlin where he regaled an enthusiastic and appreciative audience of Filipinos and Europeans with his music. In June 2002, he again performed in Berlin for the Philippine Independence Day celebrations, together with other outstanding Filipino artists namely soprano Andion Fernandez, tenor Abdul Candao and pianist Abel Galang.

Described by his former teacher, Alfonso Bolipata, as "unusually gifted, with a natural ability and sense of music-making that is uncanny for someone his age", Chino's remarkable progress is evident in the 4 major solo recitals and performances with orchestra that he has given, all within a span of three years. His first solo recital, given at age 10, saw him performing a challenging repertoire consisting of the Bach Sonata in G minor for unaccompanied violin, Mozart Sonata in G major, virtuoso pieces by Paganini, Sarasate, Wieniawski, Kreisler, and well-loved Filipino pieces. This was followed by three more major solo recitals, all of which were very well-attended and critically acclaimed.

As a student of the violin, Chino was awarded a merit-based full-tuition scholarship by Miriam College when he was only ten years old. He has given impressive performances in masterclasses conducted by the eminent Filipino conductor-violinist Oscar C. Yatco, and the Romanian violinist Alexandru Tomescu. He has been coached by distinguished violinist Gilopez Kabayao. Chino has also had lessons with the German pedagogue Jens Ellermann, former mentor of celebrated violin prodigies Midori and Gil Shaham, who particularly noted Chino’s "virtuoso style of performing, superb coordination and sense for musical ideas", thereby citing him as "an outstanding talent and a fine musician, indeed a major talent of the violin".

After completing his freshman year at the Philippine Science High School in Diliman, Quezon City, Chino left for Munich, Germany – with the cooperation of the German government and the Philippine government, through the Department of Foreign Affairs and the National Commission for Culture and the Arts - to pursue further violin studies. In June 2004, Chino auditioned at the prestigious Hochschule fur Musik und Theater Munchen (State Academy of Music and Theater in Munich). He enjoys the distinction of being only one of two, among a hundred or so applicants, to have passed the rigorous auditions and admitted into the pre-college division, and the only one admitted into the violin pre-college program. In October 2004, Chino was officially enrolled as a student of the Hochschule, under Prof. Jens Ellermann.

For his academics, Chino attends a German high school. In December 2004, he won first prize while representing his school in the Landeswettbewerb Mathematik Bayern, a math competition held among all the schools in the entire state of Bavaria. In April 2005, he was awarded the coveted title of Landessieger (State Champion) for being one of the top scorers in this state-wide math competition. Most recently, his school acknowledged his outstanding academic achievements by recommending that he be promoted by two grade levels, after having spent only 10 months within the German school system.

Chino is also a prolific writer of articles, newsletters, books, manuals, and novelettes on historical fiction. At present, he is collaborating with his Latin professor on the writing and publishing of a book on etymology in 5 languages.

Achievements

Music

*NAMCYA prize winner: 2nd prize, Grade School category (A) - November 1999
*Orchestral debut with Metro Manila Community Orchestra (MMCO) - 2000
*NAMCYA prize winner: 1st prize, High School category (B) - November 2002
*Passed auditions to Munich Hochschule - October 2004
*Upcoming homecoming concert in Manila - November 2005

Math

*International Math Olympiads - July - October 2002
*Landeswettbewerb Mathematik Bayern: 1st prize - December 2004
*Landeswettbewerb Mathematik Bayern: Landessieger - April 2005

cholastic

*Accepted into Philippine Science High School - Summer 2002