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_______________________
The
traditional music of the Philippines
written by Ingo Stoevesandt
Today nearly over 80 % of the people on the Philippines are catholic. It was in 1521 when the first Spanish missionairs arrived.
Only few decades later, around 1600, churches and schools have been installed and the secular musical tradition of Spain was taught.
We can assume that mainly only such music was taught as it was used in the Christian liturgia, for example the Gregorian solo chant and the first roots of polyphony from the canto organo and gymel.
The instrumental praxis joined the indigenous one, so that there was no problem to establish for example an early form of the viola da gamba or the spanish guitar. The Spanish priests have mostly been satisfied by the fastly growing skills of the Philippino people. On the other side the indigenous sources were soon mixed with Christian habits and divine rituals nowadays know both saints, holy mother Maria as indigenous demons and angels, for example in the kagong ritual in Banaan.
The life and suffering of Jesus Christ is replayed in many songs and processions called senaculo. These processions are another location for the interaction between Spanish/Catholic and indigenous habits, even in music. As Professor Corazon Canave-Dioquino points out in her article: “The welding of folk traditions and practices into Catholic rituals and celebrations continued. This gave rise to many extra-liturgical music genres, many of which were connected to the church calendar year. Some of these include the Christmas carols and the more elaborate outdoor-re-enactment of the Holy Couple's search for lodging called the pananawagan, panunuluyan, or kagharong.”
During Spanish occupation most of the music was joined in the major cities of Luzon or Manila, but it spread out over the islands until today. Nowadays we find nearly every kind of medieval European folk or dance music and its ensembles, for example the rondalla with its plucked string instruments playing dance pieces like the Polish polka, which tries to imitate the murzas.
Starting after 1898, the Philippino music faced another impact by Western music, this time coming from the American neoclassicism.
First attempts to compose for the Western symphonic orchestra were made in the 1930ies or even more early. This was accompanied by a reinstallation of the village band in the semiclassical music which was succesful even in times of radio and television. Today, like everywhere in Asia, the young people like to join the American Pop music market and all the colours of Western music ranging from Rock to Jazz.
written by Ingo Stoevesandt
Today nearly over 80 % of the people on the Philippines are catholic. It was in 1521 when the first Spanish missionairs arrived.
Only few decades later, around 1600, churches and schools have been installed and the secular musical tradition of Spain was taught.
We can assume that mainly only such music was taught as it was used in the Christian liturgia, for example the Gregorian solo chant and the first roots of polyphony from the canto organo and gymel.
The instrumental praxis joined the indigenous one, so that there was no problem to establish for example an early form of the viola da gamba or the spanish guitar. The Spanish priests have mostly been satisfied by the fastly growing skills of the Philippino people. On the other side the indigenous sources were soon mixed with Christian habits and divine rituals nowadays know both saints, holy mother Maria as indigenous demons and angels, for example in the kagong ritual in Banaan.
The life and suffering of Jesus Christ is replayed in many songs and processions called senaculo. These processions are another location for the interaction between Spanish/Catholic and indigenous habits, even in music. As Professor Corazon Canave-Dioquino points out in her article: “The welding of folk traditions and practices into Catholic rituals and celebrations continued. This gave rise to many extra-liturgical music genres, many of which were connected to the church calendar year. Some of these include the Christmas carols and the more elaborate outdoor-re-enactment of the Holy Couple's search for lodging called the pananawagan, panunuluyan, or kagharong.”
During Spanish occupation most of the music was joined in the major cities of Luzon or Manila, but it spread out over the islands until today. Nowadays we find nearly every kind of medieval European folk or dance music and its ensembles, for example the rondalla with its plucked string instruments playing dance pieces like the Polish polka, which tries to imitate the murzas.
Starting after 1898, the Philippino music faced another impact by Western music, this time coming from the American neoclassicism.
First attempts to compose for the Western symphonic orchestra were made in the 1930ies or even more early. This was accompanied by a reinstallation of the village band in the semiclassical music which was succesful even in times of radio and television. Today, like everywhere in Asia, the young people like to join the American Pop music market and all the colours of Western music ranging from Rock to Jazz.
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