Filipino

Music
FELIPE, BERNARD A.
FELIX, IAN HARVEY D.
Filipino Music
 Filipino Music
 Filipinos are widely known as music lovers. Our culture and tradition is very rich with
music which is for daily used, may it be for special occasions, for celebrations,
courtship and marriage, lullaby, for work, for religious practices and the like. Us
Filipinos always have something to sing or play in every situation we are in.
 Music has been a great part of our lives, especially in expressing how we felt, in
showing our love for our country, in showcasing our talents, for entertainment and in
making the world know who we are, for our music also serves as our identity as
Filipinos.
Filipino Music Eras/Traditions

1. Ethnic Tradition
2. Spanish Colonial
3. American Colonial
4. Contemporary Tradition
Ethnic Tradition
The diversity of ethnic musical traditions arises from
several significant historical events. The Philippines
had proto-Malays as the first inhabitants, followed by
settlers from mainland and insular Southeast Asia. In
essence, the separate regional settlements in the
country were a result of this wave of migration
(Anupol, 2007).
Ethnic Tradition
 The Chinese, Malay, Indonesian and Arab merchants
started dynamic trading with the people of Mai (now
Mindoro). With the trading, the merchants not only traded
goods but also religious and social ideas. Indian culture
was very much evident and had a strong imprint on the
14th century in the Island of Sulu.
 Variouscommunities adopted this new religion, which
very much influenced their culture and music (Anupol,
2007).
Ethnic Tradition – Musical
Characteristics
 Indigenous music can be instrumental or vocal, and the
early Filipinos used it to commemorate rites of passage
and life-cycle events.
a. Instrumental – uses a solo instrument and is common
played during courtship or self-entertainment.
b. Vocal – using voices of people to express and transmit
thoughts, beliefs, lifestyles, character and way of life.
Ethnic Tradition – Musical
Characteristics
Ethnic music in the Philippines was founded by several groups
and is based on a respect for native instruments that are
employed in various rituals and worldly activities. Native
instruments are classified into four groups, which are the wind
instruments, chordophones or stringed instruments, idiophones
or percussion instruments (struck with a hammer, against each
other, or against another object), and the membranophones or
percussion instruments (using animal skins or membranes).
Ethnic Tradition – Musical Characteristics
1. Wind instrument

BULUNGUDYONG PALENDAG
– vertical flute (Pinatubo Ayta). – lip-valley flute (Kalinga)

TONGALI TUMPONG
– nose flute (Kalinga)  – bamboo flute
 Ethnic Tradition – Musical Characteristics
2. Chordophones

A. BANDURIA – part of 

rondalya ensemble, it has a
shorter neck and 14-strings
compared to its Spanish
ancestor.
 Ethnic Tradition – Musical Characteristics
2. Chordophones

B. KUDYAPI
– a two-stringed boat
lute from Mindanao.
 Ethnic Tradition – Musical Characteristics
2. Chordophones

C. LAUD – similar to the

bandurria, it is ultimately of
Spanish
origin. Also part of a 
rondalya ensemble.
 Ethnic Tradition – Musical Characteristics
2. Chordophones

D. OCTAVINA
– part of a rondalya
ensemble, it is of
ultimatelySpanish origin.
Ethnic Tradition – Musical Characteristics
3. Idiophones

a. AGUNA – large gong

suspended from an
ornate frame
Ethnic Tradition – Musical Characteristics
3. Idiophones

-played by the striking

against the palm of one
hand
Ethnic Tradition – Musical Characteristics
3. Idiophones

c. GANDINGAN
– set of four large
hanging knobbed gongs
Ethnic Tradition – Musical Characteristics
3. Idiophones

d. KULINTANG
•– set of eight tuned gongs placed
horizontally in
an ornate frame, tuned pentatonic
scale/pentatonically
 Ethnic Tradition – Musical Characteristics

4. Membranophones

A. AGUNG A TAMLANG– bamboo (slit drum)

Ethnic Tradition – Musical Characteristics
4. Membranophones

B. DABAKAN 
– goblet drum (Maranao)
Ethnic Tradition – Musical Characteristics
4. Membranophones

C. GANDANG – double-headed barrel drum (Maranao)

 Main Characteristics of Traditional Ethnic
Music
1.Cantata Form
A cantata is a vocal composition with an instrumental
accompaniment and often contains more than one
movement. In singing, the groups sing in solo or by group
and some songs were sung by accompaniment.
Main Characteristics of Traditional Ethnic
Music
2. Acapella
An acapella song is a vocal composition without
instrumental accompaniment. The groups also did this
when they sang in solo or by group without using any
instruments in the background.
Main Characteristics of Traditional Ethnic
Music
3. Sonata
Sonata is a composition for one or more solo
instruments, one of which is usually a keyboard
instrument, and usually consisting of three or four
independent movements varying in key, mood, and
tempo (Anupol, 2007).
 Spanish Colonial Tradition
The major purpose of Spanish musical impact is to bring
the Christian religion closer to the inhabitants. In
particular, the Spanish government brought fresh life to
Philippine music. Christian chanting and the harmony of
new Western instruments – particularly the organ, harp,
and guitar — overwhelmed songs, epics, local drums, and
gongs (Anupol, 2007).
Spanish Colonial Tradition

Because Christianity was such a tremendous force

throughout the Colonial period, Church music had a
significant impact on everyday life (Anupol, 2007).
Spanish Colonial Tradition - Musical
Characteristics

The three main forms introduced to the Filipinos were

the harana, the kundiman, and the rondalla. Most of these
forms were developed as a result of the fusion between
tribal music styles and traditional Spanish and Mexican
music. 
Spanish Colonial Tradition - Musical
Characteristics

The harana is a traditional form of courtship music in

Spain in which a man woos a woman by serenading her
underneath her window at night. The main instrument
used for the harana is the guitar.
Spanish Colonial Tradition - Musical
Characteristics

 The kundiman is a lyrical song characterized by a

minor key at the beginning and shifts to a major key in
the second half. The lyrics depict all sorts of stories about
love from broken-heartedness to unrequited love. 
Spanish Colonial Tradition - Musical
Characteristics

The rondalla is an ensemble of instruments. Philippine

rondallas consist of the piccolo bandurria, bandurria, la-
ud, and the guitar-shaped octavina and mandola, guitarra,
and double bass (Anupol, 2007).
American Colonial Tradition
Following the Spaniards' 400-year reign, the
American colonists brought with them a new type
of music. Vaudeville (bodabil), cabaret (kabaret),
and kundiman became the most popular kinds of
music during this time (Anupol, 2007).
American Colonial Tradition - Musical
Characteristics

The blues, folk, R&B, and rock and roll were all
brought by the Americans. They also included
music into the educational system. This improved
the Filipinos' musical abilities, which they
exploited to imitate Western music and produce
localized versions of it.
American Colonial Tradition - Musical
Characteristics
At a later era, the Philippines promoted its own
artists, such as Lea Salonga. Jukeboxes, AM radio,
American dance halls, vaudeville, jazz, Broadway
musicals, and vinyl recordings where they listened
to American rock bands were all popular at this
period (Anupol, 2007).
American Colonial Tradition - Musical
Characteristics

Songs evolved from other popular forms of music

during the time, such as the kundiman.
Nonetheless, the American impact on Filipino
music has proven to be significant.
Contemporary Tradition

Bands like Parokya ni Edgar, Rivermaya, and

Sandwich have all established their mark in the
music business with their own sound and style in
the twenty-first century. More new genres of
Filipino music are surfacing, with the hope that
they would flourish in the future (Anupol, 2007).
Contemporary Tradition – Musical
Characteristics

The popular songs of the 1970s included aspects of the

American ballad, Broadway, and light kundiman into
their compositions. The Air Media Council boosted
demand for local popular music by passing Resolution
B76-31, which mandated that all radio stations broadcast
at least one Filipino piece per hour.
Contemporary Tradition – Musical Characteristics

Original Pilipino Music, or OPM, was very popular in the

1980s and early 1990s. Pinoy rock is a derivative of the
1960s rock explosion, when bands began to use electronic
instruments. Following the popularity of rock operas in the
music world, the local pop music landscape witnessed the
emergence of Pinoy analogues (Santos,1994).
Contemporary Tradition – Musical
Characteristics

Original Pilipino Music (OPM) is composed, sung, and

performed by Filipinos in Filipino, English, or Taglish.
OPM formerly referred primarily to Philippine pop music,
particularly ballads, such as those popular from the 1970s
until the mid-1990s. Different performers arose over time,
each establishing their own style of OPM music.
Contemporary Tradition – Musical
Characteristics
As a result, new OPM genres have emerged. OPM
rock is an example of the various genres that have
emerged throughout time. Philippine rock performers
used folk music and other elements, resulting in
Freddie Aguilar's breakout triumph in 1978. (Anupol,
2007).
Contemporary Tradition – Musical
Characteristics

Aguilar’s Anak (meaning “child” in English), his debut

recording, is the most commercially successful Philippine
recording, was popular throughout Asia and Europe, and
has been translated into numerous languages by singers
worldwide. Anak, the single, was an immediate smash
success, gaining double platinum certification in a matter of
weeks. 
 Contemporary Tradition – Musical
Characteristics

The 1990’s saw the emergence of a superstar pop-rock group, the

Eraserheads, which is considered by many Philippine nationals
as the number one group in the Philippine recording scene. OPM
rock today is the most dominant style of music inside the
Philippines. 
Ang Huling El Bimbo (The Last El Bimbo) is a rock ballad by
Pinoy rock group Eraserheads from their 1995 album
Cutterpillow as well as their international album Aloha
Milkyway. 
Filipino Musical Forms
 Mass - form of music is exemplified while praising the
Lord.
 Chorale - group of singers sing altogether. Different
variations of tones are being used while singing a piece
together.
 Sonata – present in instrumental music.
 Oratorio - a chorale and a soloist are joined together to
perform music.
“Music does a lot of things for a lot of people. It’s
transporting, for sure. It can take you right back,
years back, to the very moment certain things
happened in your life. It’s uplifting, it’s
encouraging, it’s strengthening.”
-The late, great singer Aretha Franklin
 References

 Anupol et al.(2007). Philippine Music. Retrieved from 

http://philippinesheritage.ph/filer/toledo- cebu/PHILIPPINE%20MUSIC.pdf
 Pantig,F.R.et al. (2007). Periods in History of Philippine Music. Retrieved
from 
http://philippineculture.ph/filer/toledo-cebu/philmusichistory2007version-091
205225533-phpapp02.pdf
 Santos, R. P.( 1994). Pinoy Pop Music. Musika – An Essay On The American
Colonial and Contemporary Traditions in Philippine Music. Cultural Center of
the Philippines Publishing, Manila.
 References

 Szczepanski,K. (2012) The Philippines: Facts and History. Retrieved from 

http://asianhistory.about.com/od/philippines/p/philippinesprof.htm
 The Freshmen Music Room (2011). Retrieved from 
http://sppcfreshmen20102011.wordpress.com/2011/03/06/philippine-music-du
ring-the-spanish-era/
 Yamio, J. (2011). A Brief History of Philippine Music. UP College of Music
Publishing, Diliman, Quezon City.