Sabino 1

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The Rise of Modern Philippine Choral Music: Indigeneity in Modernity as a New Identity

Jason Sabino

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December 11, 2013

Final Research Paper

Graduate Research Methods

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The Philippines is a country of extraordinary origins and an unusual history of cultural

evolution. Geographically it is unique; the archipelago’s 7,107 islands - many of which have

been insulated from the sweeping cultural changes over the country’s history - have led to a large

spectrum of cultures and in turn, music. This paper seeks to explore the Filipino people’s

journey through cultural rebirth, indoctrination and exploration and discovery of choral culture

and identity. The study of indigenous Philippine music and fusion with its European choral

origins, a nationalist ideology and the advent of a high level competitive atmosphere and

international success all contributed to the advent of a modern, diverse Philippine choral culture.

The Philippines’ history of colonization and occupation serves to contextualize the

development of a modern Philippine choral repertoire. After discovery by Ferdinand Magellan

in 1521, the Philippines was colonized by Spain. The name of the country itself is in honor of

Philip II of Spain. After more than 300 years of colonization, the Philippines was ceded to the

United States for through the 1898 Treaty of Paris that ended the Spanish-American War. After a

period of American sovereignty until shortly after World War II, the 1946 Treaty of Manila

recognized the Philippines as an independent nation.

The other half of context exists in the ethnic musical tradition and cultural pluralism of

the Philippines during the pre-colonization era. Cultural pluralism was evident as far back as the

10th century, with trade between those in Mindoro and Chinese, Malay, Indonesian, and Arab

merchants. Islam also played a large role in pre-colonial Philippines; after its introduction in the

14th century in the southernmost island of Sulu, various communities adopted islamic art and

culture at different times in varying degrees.

 Sabino 3

Dr. Joel Navarro defines prehispanic vocal tradition as “usually monodic, if sung singly,

and call and response if sung in groups.”1 In addition, drone and melody were the underlying
 

principles in the organization of musical elements.2  

Vocal genres at the time were classified

according to their functions and social context; for example, the Kalinga oppiya was sung while

cradling a child.3 These functions ranged from lullabies to songs for birth, courtship, wedding
 

rites, and times of death.

Instrumental music was also just as diverse, mainly related or similar to those in

Southeast Asia and surrounding areas with colonization-era instruments adopted from Western

counterparts. Instruments ranged from gong chimes, bossed gongs, metal idiophones, and blown

instruments, in prehispanic genres such as Maguindanaoan Kulintang to harp, guitar, and bowed

and plucked string instruments from European traditions. In prehispanic cultures in particular,

there also was an element of improvisation. For example, Karen L. Posner writes on the role of

improvisation in Maguindanaoan Kulintang:

Music on each instrument is improvised within various named

compositional and style
categories. To hear a piece played alike two
times is boring to the Maguindanaoans. An accomplished musician on
kulintang, aging, or gandigan is expected to imitate other musicians and
preceding performances within his own unique playing style, all while
improvising new versions of the piece being played.4

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Spanish settlement and colonization gave way to an influx of European ideas and beliefs

in the Philippines, most notably Roman Catholicism and European music. Early missionaries

1 Joel Navarro, personal communication. December 11, 2013.

2Nicanor Tiongson, ed. Cultural Center of the Philippines Encyclopedia of Philippine Art. Manila:
Cultural Center of the Philippines, 1994. s.v. “Volume VI - Philippine Music.” 35.
3 Ibid, 31.
4Karen L. Posner, "A Preliminary Analysis of Style in Maguindanoan Kulintang Music," Asian
Music, 27, no. 2 (1996): 19
 Sabino 4

and traders and later, foreign music teachers and church musicians helped develop the classical

and art music tradition in the 16th century. While the Spanish initially acknowledged the

Filipino natives’ (or indio, as they were referred to) use of native music, such music would

eventually be suppressed in favor of Christian plainchant, plainsongs and western instruments.

This would be accomplished through the establishment of schools and monasteries. Missionary

musicians trained young boys in music and music theory, composing of music for the masses as

wells the manufacture of musical instruments as early as 1601, when the first orchestra was

organized by Agustinians in Guadalupe.5  

The Colegio de Niños Tiples de la Santa Iglesia

Catedral, a full-fledged conservatory, was established in Manila in 1742.6  

This particular

institution produced graduates that would help unify all Christian provinces in the country in

liturgical music methods.

Noted 19th-century Filipino composer and church musician Marcelo Adonay

(1848-1928) was a graduate of the Colegio. Adonay’s works serve as a prime example of

Filipino choral music staying within the boundaries of Classical and Romantic European in the

time of Spanish colonization. It is very easy to listen to a recording of his sacred works today

and can hear a beauty in its relative simplicity compared to the more avant-garde pieces of the

modern repertoire. Adonay’s motivic and harmonic language (in his Pequeña Misa Solemne)7  

are similar to that of European composers Anton Bruckner and Joseph Haydn.8
 

5Nicanor Tiongson, ed. Cultural Center of the Philippines Encyclopedia of Philippine Art. Manila:
Cultural Center of the Philippines, 1994. s.v. “Volume VI - Philippine Music.” 37.
6 Ibid.
7Chris Reyes. “Gloria from Pequenia Misa Solemne.” n.d., accessed December 06, 2013,
YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j8aTQhio9Pc
8 Joel Navarro, personal communication, December 11, 2013.
 Sabino 5

Despite initial suppression of native music during early colonization, both native music

and Western music soon mixed to create new, unique styles. In the sacred realm, extraliturgical

genres would form that integrated non-Western elements and forms. Initially, accompanied

songs sometimes included improvised lyrics by natives but in a Christian (and later, secular)

context. Native dances would reappear in extraliturgical rituals and events. Another instance is

that of the pasyon, a long verse narrative on the life and death of Jesus Christ. It would be

narrated through the pabasa, a public chanting of the pasyon.9

 

In the secular realm during the colonial era, indigenous music would also assimilate

European secular genres and instruments to create new forms of music that would serve as

foundations for future identity-setting music. The kundiman, for example, is one of the most

famous song genres that resulted from Philippine songs being modeled after adopted European

forms. The kundiman was a triple meter lyrical song with a moderate tempo. It also utilized a

clear harmonic progression in the Western sense. Even though the lyrics were generally

romantic or sorrowful (as a result of love lost) in nature, the kundiman would grow to be a source

of nationalism for the 19th century Tagalog person and help promote revolution in the struggle

for liberation from colonial rule.10

 

By the Philippines was ceded to Spain to the United States, centuries of Spanish rule had

irrevocably cemented European traditions into Filipino culture. The United States introduced

new forms of government, economy, popular culture and entertainment and, most notably in the

case of choral music, the establishment of a public education system. The triggering of a second

evolution in modern Philippine choral music in the past century is attributed to the following

9Nicanor Tiongson, ed. Cultural Center of the Philippines Encyclopedia of Philippine Art. Manila:
Cultural Center of the Philippines, 1994. s.v. “Volume VI - Philippine Music.” 40.
10 Ibid, 42.
 Sabino 6

developments, both from the influence American sovereignty as well as Philippine governmental

actions:

1. The establishment of professional music schools which trained and

produced musicians and artists of high caliber through formal
programs of instruction;

2. The introduction of formal music education in the public school
system, which heightened the awareness for music as both artistic and
social activity among the people;

3. The proliferation of musical organizations and cultural institutions
promoting musical activities and providing opportunities, incentives,
and support to Filipino musician in the fields of composition,
performance, teaching, and research;

4. The introduction of new musical idioms and the taste of musics related
to American popular entertainment and mass culture;

5. And the introduction of new perspectives and techniques in the study
of indigenous musics in the Philippines.11

 

By this point, music training was no longer exclusively done by the church as it was

during Spanish colonization. Instead, at schools such as the University of the Philippines (UP)

Conservatory of Music, training was handled by professional Filipino, European, and American

artists. This development would help pave the way for a number of Filipino composers to study

abroad and expand their creative skills.12  

Despite the new approach to professional music

training, most initial compositional output by Filipino still lacked new material from indigenous

or traditional sources with no major paradigm shift in style and thematic development. Andrea

Veneracion since aid in an interview in 1998 that “only a dozen or so original Filipino choral

pieces (other than functional church music) existed” when she founded the University of the

Philippines Madrigal Singers, now known unofficially as the Philippine Madrigal Singers.13
 

11
Nicanor Tiongson, ed. Cultural Center of the Philippines Encyclopedia of Philippine Art.
Manila: Cultural Center of the Philippines, 1994. s.v. “Volume VI - Philippine Music.” 45.
12 Ibid.
13Nick Strimple, Choral Music in the Twentieth Century, (New Jersey: Amadeus Press, 2005),
288.
 Sabino 7

Original music was indeed being written by Filipinos, but it was still largely in a more Western

idiom. After centuries of repression and cultural indoctrination under Spanish rule centuries and

in constant struggle to become independent during American territorial occupation, Filipinos

started to look for a new voice in the form of a new musically nationalistic identity.

The establishment of professional music schools helped pave the way for the proliferation

of musical organizations and institutions that promoted original compositional activity and

performances by Filipinos. Various music organizations such as the Philippine Choral Society

and the League of Filipino Composers (LFC) worked towards that goal. Filipino composers such

as Lucrecia R. Kasilag, Ramon P. Santos and José Maceda helped promote Filipino music on a

regional and international scale through the Asian Composers League.14 compositions. Perhaps
 

the biggest development along this vein was the initiative of First Lady Imelda Marcos during

the 1960s in growing the involvement of the national government in the promotion of the arts.15  

Her most notable move was the establishment of the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) in

1979. The CCP’s mission as a government institution is the promotion of Filipino cultural

identity through original Filipino works. Two of the CCP’s biggest initiatives in the realm of

choral music are:

1. The establishment of the National Music Competitions for Young

Artists (NAMCYA) in 1962 along with the Young Composers
Competitions in collaboration with the LFC, and;

2. Support for groups such as the University of the Philippines (UP)
Madrigal Singers.16

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14 Mark Anthony Carpio, personal communication, December 10, 2013.

15 Ibid.
16 Ibid.
 Sabino 8

This in turn helped create an atmosphere of encouragement towards greater excellence, helping

pave the way for international success of choral groups such as the UP Madrigal Singers and the

UP Concert Chorus. It is because of this culture and international success that choral groups and

choral music in the Philippines flourished. More and more groups were encouraged to

participate in both NAMCYA and the choral competition HIMIG.17

 

Another development in the creation of a unique Filipino choral culture was the initiative

in the study of indigenous Philippine music. This initiative can also be traced back to American

occupation. Increased scholarship in culture and the arts under educational and literacy

programs by the US government provided funds for unique cultural institutions to promote

indigenous study. Organizations such as the Philippine Society of Oriental Culture helped

facilitate efforts in anthropological study of non-Christian Filipinos.18 Significant research into

 

Philippine traditional musics in the 1930s, with writings, transcriptions and lectures being done

by Judge Norberto Romualdez, Antonio Molina, and Francisco Santiago, who was the first

Filipino director of the UP Conservatory of Music.19

 

Notable composer-turned-ethnomusicologists such as Francisco Feliciano, José Maceda

and Ramon P. Santos also started composing with the intent of incorporating their collected

findings into new, indigenously-inspired compositions. Santos himself called this convergence

of indigenous influences “indigeneity in modernity.”20 Mark Anthony Carpio, current director of

 

the Philippine Madrigal Singers, commented on this new ethnomusicological effort:

17
Nicanor Tiongson, ed. Cultural Center of the Philippines Encyclopedia of Philippine Art.
Manila: Cultural Center of the Philippines, 1994. s.v. “Volume VI - Philippine Music.” 49.
18 Ibid, 50.
19 Ibid, 50.
20 Joel Navarro, personal communication, December 11, 2013.
 Sabino 9

Because of our geographic layout, the whole country consists of different

islands with their own culture. They would have their own treasury of
songs and dances. There are a lot of folk songs that have not been set yet.
One could just look at a compilation of Filipino folk songs.21

"
 

An example of this new style is Francisco Feliciano’s “Pamugun”. The piece serves as a

standard example of the usage of rhythmic and tonal elements of Maguindanaoan Kulintang and

written out in Western notation. The beginning of the piece introduces the different layers of

rhythmic motives one part at a time on bright percussive syllables (ding-ning) recreating the

Kulintang gong timbre and sound; Muslim modality similar to Persian dastgah or Arabic maqam

traditions;22 and gamelan-like rhythmic groove in an a cappella setting:

 

Ex. 1, Men’s Kulintang accompaniment from “Pamugun”

Ex. 2, Muslim mode usage in “Pamugun”. Note the slur marks denoting a glide inflection to

recreate a sense of microtonal modality, distinct from a “cleaner” Western diatonic scale.

21 Mark Anthony Carpio, personal communication, December 10, 2013.

22
Nicanor Tiongson, ed. Cultural Center of the Philippines Encyclopedia of Philippine Art.
Manila: Cultural Center of the Philippines, 1994. s.v. “Volume VI - Philippine Music.” 71.
 Sabino 10

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The text itself, which tells of a conversation between a swallow and his hunter, is in the

Maguindanaoan language and is of folk origin. The swallow’s flight is portrayed throughout he

use of subtle extended vocal techniques and such as whistling to emulate birds chirping, as well

as eurythmics in the form of clapping one’s hands in a random length, gradually getting faster to

portray birds flapping their wings to take off:

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Ex. 2, The soprano and altos start a lengthy upward glissando with increasingly faster clapping

into “bird whistles” while still being accompanied by the Kulintang men. Omitted is a

composer’s text asking for a microtonal inflection to the upper voices’ glissando.

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 2
S2 & œ œœ œœ œ œ œœ œ œœ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ bœ œ œ œ «
tm ta ka ta ka tm tm ta ka tm ta ka tm ta ka ta ka tm ta ka tm tm ta ka

2
Sabino 11

& œ œœ œ œ œ bœ bœ œ œœ œ œ œ œ bœ bœ œ œ œ œ œ œ «
> > being >used but >with a more modern
> >
A1

Another example of Kulintang harmonic language is
dang ta-ka tang tang da - ka-tang tang da-ka tang da-ka - ta - ka tang da-ka-tang tang da-ka

2
œ œ Niyan,”
Nilo Alcala’s “Kaisa-isa œ œ
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? œtext œ œ on œ a play
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works. The piece’s
B1

chant that children di-gi-ding

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tang tang ta ka tang tang ta ka tang tang ta ka tang tang ta ka ta ka tang tang tang
ensemble) with the soprano singing the play chant above:

& œ œ œ œ œ œ œ ‰ œ œ #œ œ œ œ œJ ‰ œ œ œ œ œ œ œJ ‰ œ œ œ œ œ
21

S1 J "
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ka - te - lo - te - lo ni - yan, ka - pa - ting gi - na - pa - tan, Ka - li- ma ni Ta-ged-tal, Ka-nem i da-ge-

2
& œ œœ œœ œ œ œœ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ bœ œ œ œ «
S2

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" 2
& œ œœ œ œ œ bœ bœ œ œœ œ œ œ œ bœ bœ œ œ œ œ œ œ «
> > > > > >
A1

dang ta-ka tang tang da - ka-tang tang da-ka tang da-ka - ta - ka tang da-ka-tang tang da-ka
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œ œœ œœ œ œ œ œ œ œœ œ œœ œ œ œ œ œœœ œœ
T1 V «
tm ta ka ta ka tm ta ka tm tm ta ka tm ta ka ta ka tm tm ta ka tm ta ka "
> >œ œ œ >œ 2
? œœ œ œ œ œ >œ œ œ œœ œ œ œœ œ œ œ "
B1 «
di-gi-ding ding di-gi-di - gi - ding di-gi-ding ding - di - gi ding ding di - gi - ding ding ding
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2
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œ œ œ œ # >œ œ œ œ >œ œ œ œ #œ œ œ œ >œ œ œ œ œ " «
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tang tang ta ka tang tang ta ka tang tang ta ka tang tang ta ka ta ka tang tang tang
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Ex. 4, Kulintang accompaniment in “Kaisa-isa Niyan” with S1 play chant.

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 Sabino 12

Another defining feature - the usage of foot stomps, claps and shouts in a eurythmic sense -

underscores the piece’s playful character and gives it a visual and aural charm that can only

cause the listener to imagine how children played this game in Maguindanao.

Both “Pamugun” and “Kaisa-isa Niyan” were performed by the Madrigal Singers

towards their win at the European Grand Prix in 2007. Choirmaster Mark Anthony Carpio

recalls his choices: “I also asked Nilo [Alcala] that I wanted to end with a Filipino work as well.

I thought it was good that the piece would end on a grand or high note, so to speak. So he gave

that to me.”23 Carpio’s commentary also underscores yet again the role competition has played in
 

the creation of new original works and continues to do so to this day.

Kulintang is only one stream of influence in a now eclectic Filipino repertoire. The

Christian text is still very strong in a country that is 90% Christian. There is a large number of

sacred pieces being written, but no longer within the confines of traditional European ideals and

structure. John Pamintuan explores many different settings of sacred texts without staying

within a classical European sensibility. Rather, he and other composers today can be described

as eclectic in their stylistic breadth. Pamintuan’s “Pater Noster”24 sounds much less like
 

Kulintang and more like a Neo-Romantic setting when compared to his aggressive, rhythmic

“Crucifixus”25 setting. Many other Filipino composers fall into this pattern as well. Regardless
 

of influence, Filipino choral music is not 100% indigenous - it is impossible to call it just that

now. Its identity instead comes from the embracement of numerous influences, both Western and

23 Mark Anthony Carpio, personal communication, December 10, 2013.

24 “Madz Pater Noster at EGP MP4.” August 26, 2007, accessed December 01, 2013, YouTube,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkO887qpKvk
25“The Philippine Madrigal Singers — Crucifixus.” [n.d.], accessed December 10, 2013,
YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fb4nWSu2WIs"
 Sabino 13

non-Western. Ramon P. Santos gives what is perhaps the best description for a modern musical

identity, not just in Philippine choral music, but in all musics of Philippine culture:

The plethora of sources and influences, and the relation of Philippine

musics to other musics are only one aspect of Philippine music. Through
the centuries, Filipino artists have reshaped outside influences to fulfill
their aesthetic needs, making the music truly their own.26

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26
Nicanor Tiongson, ed. Cultural Center of the Philippines Encyclopedia of Philippine Art.
Manila: Cultural Center of the Philippines, 1994. s.v. “Volume VI - Philippine Music.” 76.
 Sabino 14

Bibliography

Alcala, Nilo B.. Kaisa-isa Niyan. Self-published. 2007

Asian Composers League, "Asian Composers League." Accessed December 10, 2013.


http://www.asiancomposersleague.com/.

Carpio, Mark Anthony. Personal communication. December 10, 2013.

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Feliciano, Francisco. Pamugun. Santa Barbara: Santa Barbara Music Publishing.

Maceda, José. "Means of Preservation and Diffusion of Traditional Music: The Philippine
Situation." Asian Music. no. 1 (1971): 14-17. http://www.jstor.org/stable/833808
(accessed December 08, 2013).
"
Navarro, Joel. Personal communication. December 11, 2013.
"
“Philippine Madrigal Singers - Pamugun, Francisco Feliciano.” [n.d.], accessed December 01,
2013, YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtCnq7yGDto
"
“The Philippine Madrigal Singers — Crucifixus.” [n.d.], accessed December 10, 2013, YouTube,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fb4nWSu2WIs
"
Posner, Karen L. "A Preliminary Analysis of Style in Maguindanoan Kulintang Music." Asian
Music. no. 2 (1996): 19-32. http://www.jstor.org/stable/834486 (accessed December
08, 2013).
"
Reyes, Chris. “Gloria from Pequenia Misa Solemne.” [n.d.], accessed December 06, 2013,
YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j8aTQhio9Pc
"
Strimple, Nick. “Pacific Rim - The Philippines.” Choral Music in the Twentieth Century. New
Jersey: Amadeus Press, 2005.
"
Tiongson, Nicanor, ed. Cultural Center of the Philippines Encyclopedia of Philippine Art.
Manila: Cultural Center of the Philippines, 1994. s.v. “Volume VI - Philippine Music.”
"
“Madz Pater Noster at EGP MP4.” August 26, 2007, accessed December 01, 2013, YouTube,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkO887qpKvk

"
“Madz sing Kaisa-isa Niyan @ EGP.” August 26, 2007, accessed December 01, 2013, YouTube,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ixrcc7DZtuE
"
Yanson, Jr., Eliezer. "The Philippine Choral Traditions." lecture., Pepperdine University, 2013.