José Ramón Faustmann

José Ramón Faustmann y Lago — architect, musician, composer, storyteller, and beloved father and husband — passed from this life on March 22, 2026, at the age of 80. Born in Bilbao, Spain, on August 5, 1945, he was eight years old when his family moved across the world to Manila, Philippines. That journey would define him: he fell in love with the Philippines, gave it decades of his talent, and carried both cultures - Basque and Filipino - in his heart proudly throughout his life.

He completed his primary and secondary education at De La Salle College in Manila, earned his Bachelor of Science Degree in Architecture at the University of Santo Tomas, and a Master’s Degree in Urban Planning at the University of the Philippines. He also founded the band “The Kingsmen” along with his brother, Carlos and dear friends, which would quickly become a popular school and party must-have throughout Manila and beyond. His most sweeping musical achievement was composing the music for Mahal — meaning "Beloved" — the first rock opera ever staged in the Philippines. It was created as a tribute to the rich history and tapestry of cultures in the Filipino nation.

As an architect and urban planner, Ramón became a central figure in the restoration of Intramuros, Manila's ancient walled city, during the 1980s. Perhaps his greatest legacy, Casa Manila — a meticulous reconstruction of a 19th-century colonial mansion — stands today as one of the most visited cultural landmarks in the Philippines.

At 45, he left his renowned career in the Philippines to rejoin his wife and children, in the USA — who had left earlier for a more stable political environment for the family. He reinvented himself without complaint, eventually building a new career in real estate — always incorporating his love for architecture in every encounter.

He and Diana shared 47 years of devoted partnership. His love for her was the constant thread woven through every season of his life — steady, certain, and only deepening with time. In his final years, as his health declined, Diana became his full-time caretaker and his fiercest advocate.

He is survived by his wife, Diana Valenciano Faustmann; his children Maruxa Murphy, Anton Faustmann (and wife Noelle), Beatriz Sebastian (and husband Pat), and Cristian Faustmann (and wife Jeni); his seven grandchildren Maya, Isabella, Selah, Evelyn, Sevina, Dexter, and Lily — each of whom knew him as “Opa”; and his siblings Tato, María Belén, and Carlos. He was preceded in death by his parents Eladia and Ramón, and his brothers Jorge and Miguel.

For every person whose life he touched — as architect, musician, father, husband, and friend — Ramón's greatest legacy was never a building or a song. It was the way he loved. His unshakeable faith, his belief in the beauty of this world, and his insistence on living life as the adventure it was meant to be, will live on in his children, his grandchildren, and every soul he welcomed to his table.

Que descanse en paz, Ramón.