Nicanor Abelardo

Born: 1893-02-07
Birthplace: San Miguel, Bulacan
Died: 1934-03-21

Race: Asian
Field: Composer
Famous for: Kundiman songs

Nicanor Abelardo is a Filipino composer who composed over a hundred of Kundiman Songs
especially before and during the World War II.

Born in San Miguel de Mayumo (now is San Miguel, Bulacan in February 7, 1893, Nicanor Sta.
Ana Abelardo was introduced to music when he was five years old, when his father taught him
the solfeggio and the banduria. At the age of 8, he was able to compose his first work, a waltz
entitled "Ang Unang Buko," which was dedicated to his grandmother. At the age of 13, he was
already playing at saloons and cabarets in Manila. At age 15, he was already teaching in barrio
schools in San Ildefonso and San Miguel Bulacan. All of these happened even before young
Abelardo finally took up courses under Guy F. Harrison and Robert Schofield at the UP
Conservatory of Music in 1916. By 1924, following a teacher�s certificate in science and
composition received in 1921, he was appointed head of the composition department at the
Conservatory. Years later, he ran a boarding school for young musicians, and among his students
were National Artist Antonino Buenaventura, Alfredo Lozano and Lucino Sacramento. In the
field of composition he is known for his redefinition of the kundiman, bringing the genre to art-
song status. Among his works were "Nasaan Ka Irog," "Magbalik Ka Hirang," and "Himutok."
He died in 1934 at the age of 41, leaving a prolific collection of more than 140 works.

As a composition major at the University of the Philippines, he also composed the melody for
the university's official anthem, U.P. Naming Mahal.

The building housing the College of Music in UP Diliman (Abelardo Hall) is named in his
honor.
 Levi Celerio
Born:
April 30, 1910
Birthplace: Tondo, Manila
Died: April 2, 2002

Race: Asian
Field: Composer

Levi Celerio is a Filipino composer and lyricist, born on April 30, 1910 in Tondo, Manila,
Philippines. He received a free education to the Academy of Music in Manila and became the
youngest affiliate of the Manila Symphony Orchestra. He was a creative songwriter, with more
than 4,000 songs to his acclaim including Filipino folk, Christmas, and love songs that are
popular pieces, which many consider to be immortal.

Famous for being a lyricist, his songs treasure life; express nationalistic sentiments and complete
grand philosophies. At one instance or another, no Filipino can miss the song or lyrics of Levi's
Christmas songs namely Pasko na Naman, Ang Pasko ay Sumapit, and Misa de Gallo.

He is probably best recognized for being a leaf-player, an achievement where he was place into
the Guinness Book of World Records.

He wrote a huge number of songs for local movies, which gained him the Lifetime Achievement
Award of the Film Academy of the Philippines.

He was awarded as National Artist of the Philippines for Music in 1997. He died on April 2,
2002.
 Ryan Cayabyab

Born: May 4, 1954

Birthplace: Manila

Race: Asian
Field: Composer

Warmly known as Mr. C, born Raymundo Cipriano Pujante Cayabyab on May 4, 1954 in
Manila, Philippines. Ryan's mother was an opera singer; she died when he was only 6, while his
father fight to sustain him and his three siblings. His mother's wish was that no one of her
children would make music as a line of work; knowing how tough life is for a musician with
insufficient income.

Ryan Cayabyab firstly took up Bachelor of Science in Business Administration in the University
of the Philippines, Diliman. But at the same moment, he searched for an employment to sustain
his studies, and sooner join with then-Senator Salvador Laurel as accompanist for the
Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) Chorale Ensemble. Noting his incomparable ability
on the piano, the Senator presented him a scholarship that would allow Ryan to alter his course
and hold learning in music.

Cayabyab afterward graduated from the UP College of Music earning a Bachelor of Music,
Major in Composition degree. Following that, he became a complete professor for the
Department of Composition and Music Theory in the UP Diliman for about two decades.

At the twist of the century, he was about to take his family and transfer abroad, but when
presented by Danding Cojuangco, President of the San Miguel Corporation, a authority post that
would give him full way in producing and performing new music that would carry out a new
wave to the Philippine music scene, he acknowledged the proposal.

Ryan Cayabyab is a prominent Filipino musician and the existing Executive and Artistic Director
of the San Miguel Foundation for the Performing Arts. His works vary from specially made full-
length ballets, theater musicals, choral pieces, a crowd set to unaccompanied chorus, and
orchestral pieces, to salable recordings of popular composition, film scores and television
specials.

Now, he is presently in his 7th year as Executive and Artistic Director of the San Miguel
Foundation for the Performing Arts.
 Angel Matias Peña

Born: April 22, 1921

Birthplace: Malabon

Race: Asian
Field: Classical and Jazz Composer, Arranger, and Bass Player

Peña was born to a musical family on April 22, 1921. His mother, Rosario Velarde
Matias, a schoolteacher, studied voice at the University of the Philippines and it was
from her that he learned the solfeggio. His father, Gregorio Cid Peña, played the violin,
and his grandfather was handy with the guitar. He grew up in Malabon which at that
time was famous for its musicians and marching bands. His mother died when he was
11 years old. Although discouraged by his father, he studied musical theory and
composition.

Peña wrote his first original jazz composition just before the World War II erupted. When
life returned to normal after the war, Peña became one of the most sought-after
arrangers in Manila. He had also switched from guitar to bass, leading to writing
orchestral background music for many musical ensembles and musical scores for film
companies, most notably LVN Pictures. Peña's interest in classical composition grew
intense and so in 1956, he formed a big band for the Upsilon Sigma Phi’s traditional
concert at the University of the Philippines where he composed “Bagbagtulambing,” a
landmark in Filipino music.

In 1959, the University of Santo Tomas launched a national symphonic composition

contest open to all Filipino composers. Peña’s entry “Igorot Rhapsody” won the first
prize the following year. Since then, Peña moved effortlessly between the jazz and
classical worlds, sometimes, straddling them. In the mid-1960s, during his 3-year stint in
Hong Kong, he earned a Licentiate with the Royal School of Music in London, which is
equivalent to a music degree.

In 1969 Peña auditioned for the Honolulu Symphony Orchestra and was immediately
accepted as bassist and later as arranger. He would spend the next 28 years in Hawaii.
As farewell homage, the Manila Symphony Orchestra performed his “Concerto for
Double Bass and Orchestra.” In Honolulu, Peña continued to write his own music. In
1981, on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of Filipino presence in Hawaii, the
Honolulu Symphony premiered his “Concerto for Jazz Quartet and Orchestra” with an
all-star Filipino jazz quartet. In 1982 Cultural Center of the Philippines performed a
concert of his classical works in honor of the Philippine expatriate artist.

Julio Nakpil
Born: 22 May 1867
 Birthplace: Quiapo, Manila
Died: 2 November 1960

Race: Asian
Field: Composer

Julio Nakpil was born as one of twelve children from a well-off family in the
Quiapo district of Manila. His parents withdrew him from Escuela de
Instruccion Primaria after two years and had him take over the family stable,
making sure that their coachmen and stable boys were doing their work
smoothly. Julio educated himself at home and eventually learned how to play the piano, as was
proper for traditional families during that time. His passion for music was largely self-taught.
Although he took violin lessons from Ramon Valdes and piano lessons from Manuel Mata, he
spent more time practicing alone with these instruments, giving him the ability to interpret the
music of classic legends like Johann Strauss, Emile Waldteufel, Philipp Fahrbach, and Josef
Kaulich, among others.

In his desire to continue learning, he read Spanish books, novels, history books, the writings of
Jose Rizal, and music discourse. His skill in playing the piano earned him an audience among the
affluent, becoming a regular pianist Malacañang social functions. On April 27, 1888 he
composed his first short polka piece for the piano called "Cefiro," which was followed with other
pieces such as "Ilang-Ilang," "Recuerdos de Capiz," "Pahimakas," "Pasig Pantayanin," and
"Biyak-na-Bato," to name a few. Nakpil later became a piano teacher and composed regularly.

Many of his compositions during this time were directly inspired by the Revolution. His
composition "Marangal na Dalit ng Katagalugan" was a candidate to become the Philippine
National Anthem, and was personally preferred by Bonifacio, but was ultimately rejected by
General Emilio Aguinaldo in favor of Julian Felipe's "Lupang Hinirang". He later revised his
piece and entitled it "Salve Patria". After Aguinaldo allegedly ordered Bonifacio's execution,
Nakpil claimed to have received threats on his own life, as did General Antonio Luna, who
ended up being betrayed and executed by Aguinaldo's men.

Among his expository works were "Luz Poetica de la Aurora," "Recuerdos de Capiz" and
"Exposicion Regional Filipina," all of which were given a diploma of honor from the Exposicion
Regional Filipina in 1895. He was also awarded a diploma and bronze medal from the
Exposition of Hanoi in 1902, a diploma and silver medal from the St. Louis International
Exposition in the U.S. in 1904, and a medal and citation from the Civic Assembly of Women in
1954.

In 1963 he was given a posthumous award by the Bonifacio Centennial Commission in

recognition of his patriotism. In 1964, a memoir entitled Julio Nakpil and the Philippine
Revolution was published by his heirs.