NATIONAL ARTIST FOR

MUSIC IN THE PHILIPPINES

Name: Antonio Jess Naguiat Molina
Description: Was a Filipino composer,
conductor, and music administrator who lived from
December 26, 1894, until January 29, 1980. For his
contributions to music, he was declared a National
Artist of the Philippines. Due to the impressionist
motifs he used in his music, he was also referred to
as the Claude Debussy of the Philippines.
Major works:
  Misa Antoniana Grand Festival
Mass (1964)
 Ang Batingaw (1972)
 Malikmata (1939)
 Name: Jovita Flores Fuentes (February 15,
1895 – August 7, 1978) 
Description: She started attending the
University of the Philippines Conservatory of
Music in 1917. She continued her studies
overseas, moving to Italy, in order to sharpen
her abilities even further. At the Teatro
Municipale di Piacenza, Fuentes made her
stage debut in 1925 as Cio-Cio-San in
Puccini's Madame Butterfly. She is also
remembered for her performances as Mimi in
La bohème, Iris by Pietro Mascagni, and
Salome by Richard Strauss. She gained the
nickname "The First Lady of Philippine Music" due to her accomplishments and
achievements in her area, and in 1976 she attained the distinction of being the first
female national artist in music.
Major works:
 Ay! Kalisud (1928)
 Pakiusap (1928)
 Nasaan ka irog? (Circa 1928)

Name: Col. Antonino Ramirez

Buenaventura
Description: Buenaventura was
influenced by a variety of Philippine
traditional tunes from various ethnic groups.
He collaborated with Francisca Reyes-
Aquino in 1935 as they studied folk music
and dances from the Philippines. He included
ethnic melodies and instruments into some of
his pieces, including the accompaniment to
the folk dance "Pandanggo sa Ilaw" in 1936.
Major works:
 Ode to the Republic (1949)
 Twilight by the Sea (1929)
 Philippine Army March (1947)
 Name: Lucrecia Roces Kasilag
Description: She was a previous
chairman of the Asian Composers
League, chair of the Philippine Society
for Music Education, and one of the
founders of the Bayanihan Dance
Company. She was also a past president
of the Cultural Center of the Philippines.
More than 350 musical compositions—
from folk songs to operas to orchestral
works—are credited to her, and she
continued to write until the year before
she passed away at age 89.

Major works:
Centennial Tribute to Filipino Womanhood, Symphonic cycle (1998)
Why Flowers Bloom in May, opera (2008)
Ode to the President (1995)
Name: Lucio Diestro San Pedro, Sr.
Description: San Pedro is renowned
for promoting "creative nationalism" in
his own musical compositions. He
claims that accurately portraying
Filipino identity requires more than just
incorporating lyrics from popular songs;
it also requires capturing the essence,
fashion, and common touch of being a
Filipino. His "Lahing Kayumanggi,"
which he dedicated to "the heroic
struggle of the Filipino people for
liberation from colonization," is a prime
example of his "creative nationalism."
Major works:
 Lahing Kayumanggi (1961)
 Dance of the Fairies (1937)
 Sa Ugoy ng Duyan (1943)
Name: Felipe Padilla de Leon
Description: An academic, conductor,
and composer of Filipino classical music. His
many sonatas, marches, and concertos often
reflected the culture of the Philippines. De
Leon was well known for his work as a
composer who lived through several distinct
regime shifts. His music evolved into a
symbol of Filipino values and aspirations
throughout the eras of Philippine history,
from the Commonwealth era through
Ferdinand Marcos' presidency.
Major works:
 Mariang Makiling Overture (1939)
 Manila Sketches for Orchestra (1949)
 Tatlong Tunog Larawan (Three Sound Portraits), for orchestra (1976)
Name: Levi Celerio
Description: A Filipino lyricist and
composer who is recognized for penning
more than 4,000 songs. In 1997, the
Philippines designated Celerio as a National
Artist for Music and Literature. Celerio
began taking violin lessons at age 11 from a
member of the Philippine Constabulary
Band at the invitation of his mother. Celerio
attended Torres High School and later
performed with the group as one of its
members.
Major works:
Kahit Konting Pagtingin (1968)
Bigay Hilig (1960)
The Son of Vera Cruz (1968)

Name: Jose Maceda

Description: Was a Filipino ethnomusicologist and
composer. He was named a National Artist of the
Philippines for Music in 1998. Maceda studied many
musical genres in Southeast Asia as an
ethnomusicologist, writing numerous papers and
even creating his own music using regional
instruments. Pagsamba (1968) for 116 instruments,
100 mixed voices, and 25 male voices; Cassette 100
(1971) for 100 cassette players; Ugnayan (1974) for
20 radio stations; Udlot-Udlot (1975) for a few
hundred to a few thousand people; and Suling-Suling
(1985) for 10 flutes, 10 bamboo buzzers, and 10 flat
 gongs are some of his well-known compositions. Maceda set out to research
Philippine folk music in 1977, noting that they place a greater emphasis on
rhythm than on time measures.
Major works:
 Distemperament for Orchestra (1992)
 Colors without Rhythm for Orchestra (1999)
 Suijeichon for 4 Pianos (2002)
Name: Andrea Veneracion
Description: Was a Filipino
choral conductor and a
recipient of 1999 National
Artists for Music award. She
founded the Philippine
Madrigal Singers in 1963. At
the University of the
Philippines Diliman, she graduated with honors after receiving her Bachelor of
Music degrees in voice and piano. She sang as a lyric soprano soloist in several
oratorio pieces as well as on the opera stage. She was also a highly skilled pianist
and accompanist and worked with Jovita Fuentes, a National Artist for Music, for a
period of years. She was not only a gifted pianist but also a competitive swimmer
who was a gifted athlete. She competed in Hong Kong's inaugural international
swimming competition for the Philippine swimming team
Major works:
 Philippine Madrigal Singers
Asian Institute for Liturgy and Music (AILM) Chorale

Name: Ernani Joson Cuenco

Description: He produced a remarkable and
enduring body of work that speaks to the
musical sensibility of the Filipino people and
embodies an original voice that elevates the
artistic standards of current Filipino music.
From 1960 to 1968, Cuenco performed with
the Manila Chamber Soloists from 1966 to
1970, as well as the Filipino Youth Symphony
Orchestra and the Manila Symphony Orchestra.
He earned music degrees in cello and piano
from the University of Santo Tomas, where he also worked as a professor for many
years before his away in 1988. He was named a National Artist for Music in 1999; in
the early 1960s, he collaborated with National Artist for Music Levi Celerio to
create award-winning cinema scores. He was an accomplished orchestra player as
well as a teacher.
Major works:
 Nahan
 Ganyan Pala ang Pag-ibig
 Pilipinas, Inang Bayan
Name: Francisco Feliciano
Description: Francisco Feliciano earned a
teacher's certification in music from the
University of the Philippines in 1967 and a
master's degree in music in composition from
the same institution in 1972. He traveled to
Berlin, Germany's Hochschule der Kuenste in
1977 to get a degree in music composition. He
earned with a Master of Musical Arts and a
Doctorate in Musical Arts, Composition from Yale University School of
Music in 1979. He directed the Yale Contemporary Ensemble while he was
a student at Yale University, which is regarded as one of the top
performance ensembles in America for modern and avant-garde music.
Major works:
Buksan mo ang aming mga labi (published 1982)
Mass of Saint Andrew (published 1981)
Pokpok alimpako (chorus.
Published 2002)
Name: Ramon Pagayon Santos
Description: A Filipino composer,
ethnomusicologist, and educator
well-known for his work on "the
aesthetic frameworks of Philippine
and Southeast Asian artistic
traditions," as well as for repurposing
indigenous Philippine instruments.
He is also regarded as the country's leading living contemporary Filipino classical
music exponent.
Major works:
 Rituwal ng Pasasalamat
 Kulintang
 Sandiwaan