Why Kitchie Nadal dreams of teaching music to kids

June 4 ------ Raising a family is a handful as it is. But if time ever allows, Kitchie Nadal would love to try her hand at teaching children—a dream that has long taken a back seat to music. “I have always wanted to teach kids, perhaps music, because that was my background when I was in school,” Nadal, who holds a double degree in early childhood education and psychology from the De La Salle University, told Lifestyle.

But she never got around to practicing what she studied. In 1999, Nadal joined the alternative rock band Mojofly and began making a name for herself in the local music scene. By 2004, she had launched her solo career with the release of her chart-topping self-titled debut album, which spawned a slew of hits, including “Same Ground,” “Bulong,” and “Huwag na Huwag Mong Sasabihin.”

She never looked back. “I was making music in college and kept at it after graduation—dire-diretso na. I haven’t stopped writing and playing since,” she said. “But I do believe that teaching would be a great thing for me to do one day.”

The only kids Nadal has had experience teaching so far are her own—Keon, 7, and Iago, 1—with her husband, Spanish journalist Carlos Lopez. And they’re the reasons her creative juices continue to flow, even though she and her family have been living in Madrid for almost 10 years now, away from the bustle of the music industry. “I’m happy. I’ve always wanted to have a family. So even if I don’t get to perform as often as I used to, I’m grateful to my children for keeping that artistic side alive,” said the 44-year-old singer, who hopes to gently encourage and nurture her older son’s interest in music.

Keon has yet to take up a specific instrument, but it’s already clear that he’s fond of singing—and mostly in tune, too. Does he realize that his mother is a rock star? “One time he asked me, ‘If you’re famous, am I also famous?’ It was funny. I was like, ‘Why is that even important to you?’” Nadal said, laughing. While her sons keep her plenty busy, she still finds time to write songs and watch concerts with her husband. She plays for Filipino communities in Spain and occasionally gets invited to overseas events—from Sweden to Canada, and soon, back to the Philippines. “I’m very selective and intentional when it comes to gigging, only because I live so far away. So, if I travel all the way to the Philippines, it has to be worth it,” Nadal pointed out.

Her upcoming concert, “New Ground: Manila,” on June 21, will surely be worth the 17-hour flight. It might come as a surprise to many, but this will be her first solo concert at the Araneta Coliseum. And it definitely wasn’t for lack of demand. At the peak of her popularity, Nadal had no shortage of offers to do shows at the Big Dome—and she very well could have sold them out. But the timing didn’t feel right. “I would always get cold feet; I felt like I wasn’t ready for it. I had a lot of worries before. ‘What if no one goes?’ But I don’t think about those things anymore. I eventually realized that I shouldn’t let myself get consumed by those questions,” she said.

Source: inquirer.net