Perfecto "Perf" de Castro is a multi-awarded Filipino

Filipino people

The Filipino people or Filipinos are an Austronesian ethnic group native to the islands of the Philippines. There are about 92 million Filipinos in the Philippines, and about 11 million living outside the Philippines ....

 musician, currently focusing on Classical

Classical music

Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...

 and Flamenco music played on the Ten-string guitar

Ten-string guitar

There are many varieties of ten-string guitar, including:* Both electric and acoustic guitars.* Instruments used principally for classical, folk and popular music.* Both coursed and uncoursed instruments.-Ten-stringed harp guitars:...

, but perhaps best known for having been a celebrated fixture in the Philippine alternative rock scene during the 1990s. During the course of that decade, he was part of the alternative rock band Rivermaya

Rivermaya

Rivermaya is one of the most influential, critically acclaimed and significant Filipino rock band formed in 1993. They are one of the several bands who spearheads the 90s Philippine alternative rock explosion...

, founded the band Triaxis, and also collaborated with the seminal Filipino rapper Francis Magalona

Francis Magalona

Francis Michael Durango Magalona , also known as FrancisM, Master Rapper, MC The Mouth and The Man From Manila, was a Filipino rapper, entrepreneur, songwriter, producer, actor, director, and photographer. He was the first Filipino rapper in the Philippines to cross over to the mainstream...

.

Life and career

His most notable awards as a musician include the 1998 Katha Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance and Composition and the 1998 NU Rock Award

NU Rock Awards

The NU Rock Awards was an annual recognition program sponsored from 1994 to 2010 by the defunct Metro Manila based radio station NU 107.1. 1994 saw the birth of what is to become the biggest annual gathering of the finest rock musicians in the country—the NU 107 Rock Awards! The very first NU 107...

 for Guitarist of the Year. He is also widely recognized as a talented album producer and sound engineer, with his work including the multi-platinum albums of Wolfgang (“Semenelin

Semenelin

- Personnel :*Sebastian "Basti" Artadi *Manuel Legarda *Ramon "Mon" Legaspi *Leslie "Wolf" Gemora - External links :**...

”) Francis M (Freeman and Freeman II) and Marc Velasco (eponymous). For this he received numerous accolades, including the Producer of the Year Award in the 1998 NU 107 Rock Awards and the 2001 Awit Award

Awit Awards

The Awit Awards is the longest-running award-giving body of the Philippines that gives recognition to Filipino musical talents, performing artists and producers it was Philippines equivalent to Grammy Awards, organized by the Philippine Association Of The Record Industry .-Objectives and Winner...

 for Best Rap Recording for a song done in collaboration with Magalona.

Perf started learning classical guitar at 13 but switched to electric guitar after less than a year, and spent the next decade learning, playing and teaching electric guitar. He was introduced to the ten-string classical guitar by Jose Valdez in 1998, and has since then concentrated on this instrument. He uses a unique tuning adapted from the Valdez tuning.

Awards

• 1998 NU 107 Rock Awards Guitarist of the Year
• 1998 Katha Award for Best Instrumental Performance and Arrangement for “Perf’s Boogie”, Triaxis
• January 1999 Artist of the Month, VirtualTunes.com
• 3rd place 1999 NAMCYA Classical Guitar Category C
• January 2000 Artist of the Month, Musiko.com
• 2001 Awit Award for Best Rap Recording, “Luv 4 Lyf”, Francis M artist and co-producer

Discography (Performer)

• 1994 Rivermaya, Rivermaya
  Rivermaya
  Rivermaya is one of the most influential, critically acclaimed and significant Filipino rock band formed in 1993. They are one of the several bands who spearheads the 90s Philippine alternative rock explosion...
  
  , BMG Pilipinas
• 1994 Freeman, Francis M, BMG Pilipinas (guest artist)
• 1995 Semenelin, Wolfgang
  Wolfgang
  Wolfgang is a German male given name traditionally popular in Germany and Austria. Its earliest known bearer was a tenth century saint. The name is a combination of the Old High German word wulf, meaning "wolf" and gang, meaning "path". Grimm interpreted the name as that of a hero in front of...
  
  , Epic/Sony Music (guest artist)
• 1996 Further Down the Bend, Triaxis, Epic/Sony Music
• 1997 The Shadowland Deep, Backdraft, NEO/Viva Records (guest artist)
• 1998 Who We Are, Triaxis, Epic/Sony Music
• 1999 Marc Velasco, Marc Velasco, Epic/Sony Music (guest artist)
• 2000 Nescafe Open Up Party, various artists/Mike Hanopol, Mike Hanopol, BMG Pilipinas (guest artist)
• 2000 Freeman II, Francis M, BMG Pilipinas (guest artist)
• 2001 Impressions, Nonoy Zuniga, Columbia/Sony Music (guest artist)
• 2006 A Journey Through Ten Strings, Perfecto de Castro, independent release

Discography (Producer)

• 1995 Semenelin, Wolfgang, Epic/Sony Music
• 1996 Further Down the Bend, Triaxis, Epic/Sony Music
• 1997 The Shadowland Deep, Backdraft, NEO/Viva Records
• 1998 Who We Are, Triaxis, Epic/Sony Music
• 1999 Marc Velasco, Marc Velasco, Epic/Sony Music
• 2000 Freeman II, Francis M, BMG Pilipinas

External links

• http://www.perfdecastro.com Perf's personal website
• http://www.youtube.com/user/perfektus Perf's Youtube Channel
• http://www.perfdecastro.com/faq.htm "Frequently Asked Questions" on De Castro's site