Instrumentation: large chamber ensemble (flute/piccolo, oboe, bass clarinet, french horn, trumpet, trombone, percussion 1, percussion 2, percussion 3, piano, violin I, violin II, viola, cello, double bass)

Duration: 6’

The Philippines experiences massive flooding each year, with preventative flood projects created by the Philippine government in the effort to reduce the destructiveness of the floods.

In the recent years, flooding became exceptionally worse in the Philippines, especially in rural regions, with hundreds killed and the livelihoods of thousands upended. In 2025, it was then later discovered that Philippine government officials had been siphoning taxpayer funds from these preventative flood projects and using the funds for their own personal use. It has been estimated that, since 2010, 1.9 trillion Philippine pesos— equivalent to 33 billion USD—were dedicated to funding preventative flood projects, but more than half of these funds were stolen throughout the years. In response, the people of the Philippines marched and protested against the government’s actions and together called to end corruption in the Philippines—this protest is known as the Trillion Peso March.

One Trillion sonically represents the destructive power of the floods and the Philippine people’s generational battle against political corruption. The piece utilizes the rhythm of a protest chant used during the Trillion Peso March:

“Ikulong na yang mga kurakot!”
Lock up those corrupt people!