Last week, you learned about the Philippine Contemporary Music.

For this week, you shall

be familiarizing yourself with the different Philippine Operas.

How familiar are you with your country’s opera? ___________________________

Can you name one opera you are familiar with? ____________________________
How familiar are you with the opera you have mentioned?
___________________________________________________________________
Name significant part/s of the opera, be it lines, scenes, or persons.
___________________________________________________________________

PHILIPPINE OPERA

As early as the 1860’s, operas were shown in the theatres of Manila. Most of these were
foreign productions and served as the major source of entertainment for Filipinos during that
time. Filipinos were exposed to these performances that eventually encouraged local musicians
to perform in operas and local composers to write and develop compositions for operas.

The earliest opera company in the Philippines

is the Filipino Opera Company, established in
1887 by Ladislao Bonus, who was also a
composer and conductor. The company was
made up of an all-Filipino soloist, chorus, and
orchestra. The opera company was based in
the Pandacan Theater in Manila.
https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/balitambayan/talakayan/62815
1/ang-guro-na-kinikilalang-father-of-the-philippine-opera/story/

The Philippine Revolution and the Philippine-American War forced theatre companies to
temporarily halt production of operas in the late 1800s. In 1902 productions reopened with
mostly Italian operas after the establishment of the American Civil Government. In the 1930s up
to 90s, foreign operas were performed in Filipino. Some were translated into Filipino and were
adapted to the Philippine setting by dramatist Rolando Tinio. Among them are Giuseppe Verdi’s
La Traviata and Giacomo Puccini’s La Boheme
 NOTABLE PHILIPPINE OPERAS

1. SANDUGONG PANAGINIP by LADISLAO BONUS

On August 2, 1902, the first Filipino opera in Tagalog language,

Sandugong Panaginip by Ladislao Bonus, was performed in Teatro
Zorilla. The Molina-Benito Company staged this opera in one act with
five scenes. The libretto was originally in Spanish, La Alianza Soñada by
Pedro Paterno and was translated into Tagalog by the novelist and
dramatist Roman Reyes.
The opera was about the invasion of Luzon by the Muslim
pirates and how the Tagalogs fought with their American allies.
Because of its message, it was deemed as a sort of a propaganda
material during the American period in the Philippines. The music of
the opera includes melodies from “Sampaguita,” written by Dolores
Paterno, a popular song of the period, and utilized the superimposition
of the Philippine and American anthems. This opera paved the way for
other Tagalog opera productions such as Magdapio, and Gayuma by
Alejo Carluen.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sangdugong_Panaguinip
2. NOLI ME TANGERE by FELIPE PADILLA DE LEON

Premiered in 1956 at the Far East University auditorium, this opera by National Artist
Felipe De Leon is considered as the first full-length opera by a Filipino composer. It is a three-act
opera but is sometimes condensed into two. The libretto was written by Guillermo Tolentino
based on Jose Rizal’s novel of the same name.

The storyline focuses on the love story of

Crisostomo Ibarra and Maria Clara, the two main
characters in the novel. It also depicts the struggle of the
Filipinos in social justice during the Spanish colonial
period. The music material has passages written in the
musical style of the 19th-century romantic music with very
lyrical melodies. These dramatic melodies are manifested
in the opera through the songs “Awit ni Sisa,” “Kay Tamis
ng Buhay,” and ‘Sa Lupang Pangako”.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noli_Me_Tangere_(opera)
 3. LA LOBA NEGRA by FRANCISCO FELICIANO

This opera by National Artist Francisco Feliciano was first staged in 1984 at the Cultural
Center of the Philippines. The Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by the composer
himself played the work during its premiere. It is an opera in three
acts based on the work of Fr. Jose Burgos. The libretto was written
by soprano Fides Cuyugan-Asensio, who also played an acting role
during the premiere of the opera.
The story is set during the Spanish colonial period about Doña
Luisa, the character known as the “black she-wolf” (Loba Negra),
who seeks revenge on the murder of her husband, Governor
General Bustamante. The music contains 20th century expressionist
elements such as atonality and strikingly diverse melodies and
orchestration. It embodies Philippine folk music with the use of the
pasyon and banda as a recurrent theme that connects this three-
act opera.
http://gwhs-stg02.i.gov.ph/~s2govnccaph/about-culture-and-arts/culture-profile/national-artists-of-the-
philippines/francisco-felciano/

OTHER NOTABLE PHILIPPINE OPERAS

Among other notable operas by Filipino composers are Binhi ng Kalayaan and Balagtas
at Selya by Eliseo M. Pajaro; Diego Silang, Maria Makiling, Alamt ng Pinya, and Prinsesa Urduja
By Alfredo Buenaventura; Florante at Laura and Pagmamahalan by Lucino Sacramento.

GENERALIZATION:
 Operas were shown in theatres of Manila as early as the 1860s which encouraged Filipino
musicians to perform and compose opera music.
 Foreign operas were translated into Filipino language.
 Among the notable Philippine operas are Sandugong Panaginip by Ladislao Bonus, Noli
Me Tangere by Felipe De Leon, and La Loba Negra by Francisco Feliciano.
 Most Filipino operas were written in Western musical style such as expressionism and
romanticism.

MUSIC TRIVIA....
Did you know that the story of Huling El Bimbo the Musical
tackles social issues, but is about friendship and loyalty at its
core. Writer Dingdong Novenario said the story of the musical
touches on issues like gender inequality and economic
hardships, but ultimately is about three friends from high school
who have drifted apart in adulthood.