Bridging gaps in curricula and personnel. Among these innovations are reviews and updates of the college’s existing curricula, including classroom courses and syllabi as well as its textbooks on music theory, musicology and performance music literature classes.
Increasing the college’s research output is an important agenda for Buenconsejo, and he plans to do this by encouraging faculty members to earn doctoral degrees in music as well as equipping them with the competencies to do research.
At the same time he plans to increase academic activities by encouraging participation in local and international conferences, symposia and workshops as well as in local and international peer-reviewed journals and university presses. Buenconsejo also hopes the CM will be able to host some of these events.
“Our college is currently staffed mostly by young teachers and this would be a great challenge for me [on] how to actualize their potentials as thinkers and first-rate artists who will be comparable to those from the previous generation,” he says.
Improving the college’s facilities is also in Buenconsejo’s plans, which includes updating the books in the CM library and renovating existing physical structures to facilitate the increased research activity.
Reaching out. Buenconsejo sees the Abelardo Hall as an important part of the college and developing an audience for the concerts held here (especially for Quezon City residents) is one of his initiatives.
He says this can be done by organizing a marketing team led by faculty, students and alumni will hopefully engage the media to increase the college’s visibility. This could also create new opportunities for faculty performances and for showcasing new compositions.
Serving and strengthening ties with local communities is another priority, and Buenconsejo wants more collaboration with state agencies such as the National Center for Culture and the Arts, the Department of Tourism, the various embassies in the country and the National Museum for local and international concerts.
The CM also has a regular program at DZUP (1602 on the AM band) entitled “Tunog at Tinig” airing every Wednesday from 5-6 p.m.
Buenconsejo has been with the University since 2000. He chaired the Department of Music Research until 2003 and became coordinator for graduate programs in music from 2000-2003 and 2007 to the present.
He earned his degree in Musicology from the University in May 1988. In May 1993 he earned his masters’ degree in music from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, focusing on Manobo music for his thesis.
Buenconsejo continued his studies on Manobo music in his doctorate, which he obtained from the University of Pennsylvania in May of 1999. His dissertation, entitled “Songs and gifts at the colonial frontier: the aesthetics of Agusanen Manobo spirit possession ritual in Mindanao Island, Philippines” earned a nomination as an “Outstanding Dissertation in Music.”
He is the recipient of fellowships from international institutions, the most recent of which are the Prince Claus Foundation for Culture and Development in January 2008 and a postdoctoral fellowship from the University of Hong Kong from January 2004 to May 2007.
Buenconsejo will be serving as dean until 2013.
