Choreographer says 'quick learners' Bini help with dance choreographies

MANILA, Philippines — P-pop broke more barriers thanks to the likes of SB19 making local and international waves, and now groups like Bini are continuing this growing phase of Filipino music.

Bini is the product of an ABS-CBN training camp that took a couple of years to formulate. The girl group came to public knowledge with its modern spin on Ryan Cayabyab and Smokey Mountain's 1991 popular song with the same title, "Da Coconut Nut," in 2020. 

Since then, the group made its official debut in 2021 with "Born To Win." With the release of the extended play "Talaarawan" this year, Bini immediately has hits like "Pantropiko," "Salamin, Salamin" and "Karera."

An early witness to Bini's growth and rise to stardom is one of their choreographers, Matthew Almodovar, who has been involved with the group as early as 2019 when it was still in its audition phase.

Dance became a part of Almodovar's life when he was six years old, ultimately leading him to professionally teach it 15 years later.

Apart from doing choreography for Bini, he coaches the University of Santo Tomas senior high dance troupe Galvanize and is a member of the dance group TPM that competes both locally and internationally.

In an exclusive interview with Philstar.com, Almodovar shared his observations on Bini's rise in popularity.

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Almodovar acknowledged that as idols, choreography would be integral to Aiah, Colet, Maloi, Gwen, Stacey, Mikha, Jhoanna and Sheena as members of Bini. As the group's choregrapher, Almodovar said he genuinely enjoys crafting the moves because he adores the group.

"Personally, I just enjoy working and making choreos for Bini [because] I love their music and also I love working with Bini. So, parang that pushes or inspires me to make choreos for them," he said.

The choreographer shared his process for teaching varies across songs. He is part of the three-man coaching team with Reden Blanquera and Mickey Perz.

For example, he compared the choreography for "Karera" took him three days to plan, while "Pantropiko" only took him an hour to come up with the dance steps. 

Almodovar said