Fashion designer Kate Torralba enters music scene

[EMBED VIDEO HERE] MANILA – Local designer Kate Torralba has temporarily left the world of fashion to pursue her first love – creating beautiful music. Most Filipinos know Torralba for her style, but the designer shared that she has always been a musician ever since she was little. “I learned to sing when I was two years old, and I learned to play the piano at four. I was classically trained in piano when I was a little girl,” she said in an interview on “Mornings@ANC” on Thursday. “When I was nine, I was sent to the US to perform for a concert for Filipino prodigies, so it was like I was always the little freak who was, like, into music and piano.” Her career in fashion, she said, is what happened “by accident.” “I guess I just went to the right people, had the right breaks in the fashion industry,” she explained. “I didn’t set out to be a fashion designer but it happened. And so even if I’ve been a musician all her life, I’ve never really had the chance to pursue it full-time, until hopefully now.” Torralba recently launched her first album under MCA Music aptly titled “Long Overdue,” which she describes as having “designer pop” songs. “I like to joke that it’s ‘designer pop’ because… It’s indie pop but then, it has a quirky little touch that’s me,” she said. “It’s just me telling my story, whether it’s about my friendships or my dating life. It’s really a set of stories.” Touring musician Torralba said it took her five years to complete her debut album, calling the process “a very interesting creative journey.” “It has taken me from Manila to Los Angeles to Paris, and back to Los Angeles,” she said. The designer said that prior to launching “Long Overdue,” she has been performing in small gigs and music festivals abroad. “Not many people know that I am actually a touring musician. So in the Philippines, I’m a designer. But abroad, people know me more as a musician,” she said. “It’s a different transmission of my art. It’s a very simple and a very heartfelt expression,” she added. During one of her travels, Torralba was able to work with the band of Dionne Warwick and eventually meet the singer herself. “By accident, I met Dionne Warwick’s band a few years ago at the airport,” she said, adding, “I didn’t meet her then but I met her band and the keyboardist, Todd Hunter, eventually became a friend of mine. And when he heard me play the piano for the first time in LA, he said, ‘we really should record some songs together.’ And then that took me to… I recorded some stuff in LA.” “So when the band and Dionne Warwick herself went here, the band performed with me and I was surprised because Ms. Dionne came. And she was supposed to just watch one song number, but she stayed all night and hung out with us,” she added. Positive reviews Now that she has launched her first album, Torralba is gearing up for her Southeast Asian tour, which will kick off in Singapore this November. When asked if she initially felt scared to take the risk of leaving her fashion career for music, she said: “It’s scary. I remember being anxious over it. What if it doesn’t work? What if people don’t like it? But so far, it’s been a month and it’s been very positive.” “I’d have like titos and titas saying, ‘you know, your fashion career is pretty good. You don’t treat that as a hobby.’ But my heart kept telling me to pursue it,” she added. “The response has been very good, like my musician friends have been very supportive. Fashion friends, even. I’m very lucky.” Torralba’s “Long Overdue” album is available at Astro Vision and Astro Plus stores nationwide, and online via iTunes and Smart Music.