ROBERTO DEL ROSARIO’S name may not be familiar to you but his company, Trebel Music Corporation, and his invention, the Karaoke Sing Along System, would surely ring a bell.
He is one of the most prolific and recognized Filipino inventor with more than 20 inventions patented to his credit. But aside from his inventions, Bert is also a successful businessman and a talented musician.
Indeed, Bert del Rosario has come a long way. But the road to success was not easy. He learned to play musical instruments like the piano, drums and accordion without taking formal classes. He played by ear. And would you believe that he became an inventor even if he did not take engineering or science courses in college. He took up management from the Far Eastern University.
His inventions were product of his passion for what he does. Most of his inventions like the karaoke, the one-man piano, and the Voice Color Coded Sing Along CDs are all related to his passion for music. While the Golf car trailer and the No look-up Device reflect his love for the sport of golf. Bert del Rosario’s story proves that we don’t have to be a scientist or an engineer to be an inventor or an innovator. Whatever field we are in, whatever career we choose, we should put our heart, passion and dedication to our craft. If we do, we will not only succeed but make a difference for others. And as Bert would put it “Be observant. Be creative. Most of all, work hard”
Bert del Rosario, Renaissance Man
Tony Joaquin, Jun 21, 2006
KA-RA-OKE, loosely translated in Japanese means "without a singer". Not many know that this musical device was originally invented by a Filipino named Roberto del Rosario, a pianist-businessman who owned and managed a factory in Manila producing fine pianos that were exported all over the world under the label Trebel. The name Trebel is actually a combination of the names Bert and El (the name of his wife Eloisa Vistan), with Bert spelled backwards.
The original invention created in Bert's workshop was known as the OMB, or the One Man Band which in turn was the precursor of the "sing along system" that many Filipinos enjoyed in the fifties, which was long before the birth of the Karaoke in Japan.
There have been conflicting reports on who actually came out with the concept since Bert's invention was being exported to many countries as a "Minus One" unit that was composed of a cassette tape player equipped with a jack for the microphone input. A person can play the tape accompaniment like an instrumental music piece while the singer provided the voice. In other later models, another cassette tape player/recorder could record both music and song of the person singing. This unit was created in 1977. To enhance the sound the device had a control for "reverb" adding technical artistry to the resulting sound. In other units, another plug hole could be used for an electric guitar jack. Later developments by the Trebel company was the redesigned box with improved sound quality known as the Sing Along System which boasts of low "feedback" even if the microphone is placed close to the speaker.Among the principal makers of the unit were Phillips of Amsterdam and Yamaha of Japan.Bert, aware of the Filipinos’ "colonial mentality" patented his invention in Germany. Thus, the unit Trebel appeared and sounded like a German product but in reality it is a Filipino invention. Since most of the electronic parts were being ordered from Japan before too long, Bert began to discover units similar to his invention made in Japan, being sold in major cities in Asia, including the Philippines. Indeed, like any successful product, there were copycats that were making units in competition with Bert's sing along system. The early copycats emanated from Japan. And since Japan could produce in greater mass production, Bert knew that he was no match money-wise with the Japanese. Still he filed for copyright infringement and won his case.This was over 10 years ago. To date Bert and his heirs (Bert passed away two years ago) have not seen even a single centavo in retribution for the infringement violation. Marvy, the eldest of the four children of Bert, felt that the Philippine Government and the existing system and bureaucracy had not put in enough effort to fight for their legal rights in the copyright infringement case. In the early 90's Bert launched another invention -- the voice color tape which was the answer to the transposition of the key suitable to a particular singer, without affecting the tempo of the piece. In effect, one could choose any of the three main colors Blue, Orange and Green corresponding to a singer's specific music key. Sad to say, Bert, whose piano factory had burned down some years back, had an extremely hard time in seeking suitable capital to help him produce this new invention and therefore it never saw the light of mass production and sales.Aside from being an inventor, Bert was also an avid Jazz pianist during the forties and all the way to the nineties, playing with the Executives Band an orchestra which he helped form with Senator Raul Manglapus (another pianist) and well known members of Manila Society including sidemen like Chito Feliciano, (professional TV host and dancer) Bobby Manosa (architect), Lennie Hontiveros (ad executive), and other professionals who played Jazz as a hobby.The band flourished in the sixties and seventies. They even played abroad upon the invitation of foreign dignitaries like the King of Thailand, President Bill Clinton, and Pope Paul II. Bert, a business major from the Far Eastern University, was able to play the accordion, and drums without benefit of formal training. In one of the media interviews Bert shared his philosophy in life: "Be observant, be creative. Most of all work hard at what you believe in."
