Of all arrangers, whether local or foreign, D'Amarillo stands out in my list. Napakagaling niya talaga mag-arrange... yung Strings section niya parang may sariling soul... at yung Brass and Woodwind sections niya, ang lalim ng harmonies... matatalim yung chords na ginagamit niya. Astig talaga siya, kahit mga fellow kong taga-Conservatory of Music, when they hear recordings na inarrange ni-D'Amarillo, they can't help but be amazed! Actually, he has a distinctive sound; the trained ear can distinguish D'Amarillo's arrangements from those of Doming Valdez, Amado Triviño, Pablo Vergara, Leopoldo Silos and Ryan Cayabyab.

Sayang talaga he is largely forgotten by the music people nowadays... as we know, most of his work can only be heard from LPs... tapos yung iba were only released in 45 (sobrang hirap hanapin!).

The only things I know about D'Amarillo.... he was born in 1933; he used to reside in Cubao (according to Eric Dimson, who is my Organ teacher) and was the in-house arranger of Jonal Records... until 1968, I think, when he went freelance. His full name was Doming Amarillo, but in 1967 he began to use the name D'Amarillo in order to be distinguished from Doming Valdez who was also an arranger.

He had full album-collaborations with Helen Gamboa, Vilma Valera, Pilita Corrales, Tilt-Down Men, The Ambivalent Crowd, trumpeter Peter Loro, Blackbuster, and many, many other artists. Most of the tracks in Didith Reyes' first two albums (Didith and Nananabik) were arranged by D'Amarillo. He was also responsible for the beautiful Orchestral backings in Basil Valdez' Ngayon At Kailan Man, Kung Ako'y Iiwan Mo, Hanggang Sa Dulo Ng Walang Hanggan; Jose Mari Chan's Mr. Songwriter, Big Beautiful Country, Can't We Just Stop And Talk Awhile, Refrain, Love To Last A Lifetime; The Boyfriends' Sumayaw, Sumunod, Becca Godinez' Bakit Ganyan Ang Pag-Ibig; as well as all singles released by Helen Gamboa and Vilma Valera from 1966 to 1969.

One of his earliest grand Orchestral arrangements was Helen Gamboa's debut single, Gone, recorded in 1966. Too bad that Cinema Audio only upgraded their microphones and other recording equipment 2 years later, in 1968... thus the recording was only available in mono, and the sound of the hi-hat is nearly undistinguishable from that of the snare drum.

After being one of the most in-demand Orchestral Arrangers for over 12 years, D'Amarillo's career noticeably declined starting in 1978, a time when new names like Amado Triviño, Lorrie Ilustre, Homer Flores and Ryan Cayabyab gradually took over the lead in the music arranging field. The decline of these great arrangers can also be blamed for the rising popularity of the synthesizer that time, which was the waaaay cheaper means to make music compared to paying several Orchestra members gathered in the Cinema Audio Recording Studios in Mandaluyong, Rizal. But the quality of music, eventually, became cheaper, too.

Currently, I am working on an album production with a friend of mine from UP who sings. Our goal here is to prove that there is still a group of today's musicians who perform the great music of yesterday, as good as they sounded before. Actually, it's my friend's album, where she will sing a dozen english hits from the mid-'60s (All I See Is You, Why Can't I Remember To Forget You, The Thirty-First Of June, Oh Oh What A Kiss, etc.), all of which I already made Orchestral arrangements... inspired by D'Amarillo. I'm the one responsible for the rehearsals and for conducting the Orchestra. We already had 3 rehearsals last February; however, due to our involvement in our Conservatory's annual major event, the Sampung Daliri Concert in CCP, the project had to be postponed.

As of now, we do not know yet when we are able to resume the album project due to schedule conflicts with the 25 Orchestra members that I borrowed from our UST Symphony Orchestra. March has always been a hectic month for us, and I will be busy this summer in preparation for my Graduation Recital. I am a Piano major, but after 5 years and the album project, I am now seeing myself of becoming more of an Orchestral arranger/conductor than a pianist... someday. Truth to be known, I often ask myself, Kailan kaya ako magiging sing-galing ni D'Amarillo?

I do hope that the time will come that there will be an article on the Internet in honor of D'Amarillo and his legacy... and hopefully a comprehensive list of songs that he made arrangements of. Anyone else who can share additional information about him?

(Source: WiredState Audio Community - D'AMARILLO - King of Filipino Pop Arrangers in the '60s/'70s)