4th Quarter Notes in Music 10

Lesson 1: Philippine Opera

Operas, ballets, musical plays, and all its form have long been part of the Filipino
tradition. These serve as a medium of social awareness and entertainment. These are
also a means of liberal and artful way of expressing opinions and talents.

Many festivals and occasions that are celebrated in the Philippines use the theater
arts as a medium of entertainment: the Senakulo, an on-stage performance that re-
enacts the passion of Christ; the Moro-Moro, which express the conflict between
Christians and Muslims in the country; the drama play Carillo, which is usually
shown after the harvest season; and the Zarzuela, which is a local version of Spanish
operetta. These varieties of traditional plays express the Filipino love for arts.

Philippine opera started during the middle part of the 19 th century when foreign
performers and opera singers came to the country to entertain Filipino audiences.

An opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform dramatic work
combining text (libretto) and musical score, in a theatrical setting. In an opera, lines
are sung instead of being spoken. Completing the elements of an opera are acting,
scenery,costumes, and sometimes dance. The performances are performed in an opera
house, cultural center, theaters, and auditoriums. It is usually accompanied by an
orchestra or smaller musical ensemble. Popular themes of opera include romance,
deceit, murder, vendetta, or other elements of human frailty.

The opera did not only serve as a form of entertainment for Filipinos, but also as
an avenue for the honing and developing of Filipino musical skills, through their
exposure and occasional participation as musicians in this opera productions.

By early 20th century, the Philippines was able to produce its first opera entitled,
Sangdugong Panaguinip. It was composed by Ladislao Bonus who is dubbed as the
“Father of Philippine Opera.” the one-act opera has five scenes base on the Spanish
libretto, La Alianza Soñada by Pedro Paterno. It was translated into Tagalog by
novelist and dramatist, Roman G. Reyes. One of the melodies of the opera was
Sampaguita (La Flor de Manila), a popular melody of the period, which was
composed by Paterno’s sister, Dolores. The libretto was also translated into English as
The Dream Alliance by Col. Walter H. Loving, founder of the Philippine
Constabulary Band.

The Philippines boasts of this world-clas art form which showcases Filipinos’
natural talent and creativity.
 FAMOUS PHILIPPINE OPERAS
A. La Loba Negra

La Loba Negra (The Black She-Wolf) is a three-act opera where the first two acts
ate about history. The third act was based on Father Jose Burgos of the three martyred
priest. La Loba Negra is also one of the novels that greatly influenced Dr. Jose Rizal’s
ideals. It is actually a “subversive” melodrama. The music was composed by
Francisco Feliciano and the libretto was made by Fides Cuyugan Asensio.

The story of La Loba Negra takes place during the 17 th century during the
Spanish rule in the Philippines. It revolves around the tragic assassination of Spanish
Governor-General Bustamante, whose administration was greatly admired for his
planned reforms. It also focuses on the bitter reaction and planned vendetta (revenge)
by his wife Doña Luisa on the religious perpetrators who were corrupt and abusive.

B. Noli Me Tangere

Noli Me Tangere (Touch Me Not) is a three-act opera and billed as the first
Filipino opera composed in the Western operatic tradition. The opera is based on the
novel of the same title by the Philippine nationalist and doctor, Jose Rizal. He was
inspired by Uncle Tom’s Cabin to write about the inequities in Filipino society. With
a Latin title, it explores the oppression of the local people by priests and the
government during the era of Spanish colonization.

The plot follows Juan Crisostomo Ibarra, a young Filipino who returned home
after studying in Europe. After his father dies, Juan dreams of setting up a local
school in his memory. The various plot twists include Crisostomo’s love affair with
the sweet Maria Clara; his rage at the unexpected exhumation of his father’s body
from its grave; an altercation with a cruel Spanish priest called Padre Damaso; and
Crisostomo’s eventual murder by the guardia civil.

The sprawling opera also involves the Filipino woman, Sisa and her two children,
Basilio and Crispin.

Noli Me Tangere was composed into operas by Felipe Padilla De Leon and was
re-staged with the music of Ryan Cayabyab.

C. El Filibusterismo

The opera, El Filibusterismo, was composed by the National Artist Felipe Padilla
De Leon in 1970, with libretto by Anthony Morli. It was in three acts and written in
Tagalog. Its alternate title is The Reign of Greed, which is about an unseen dark force,
a force that is so powerful that it controls even the characters’ trivial actions and
choices, often leading to nothing but tragic endings. This unseen and destructive force
is greed.

El Filibusterismo tells of the continuing struggle of the Filipino people to achieve

freedom and emancipation from colonial rule. It reflects the prevailing state of
Philippine government and society that has been become corrupt and immoral. For
which, a revolution was being seen as the only solution for change. It was also
perceived as a warning from Rizal, that although he favored a peaceful way of
instituting reforms, the seemingly hopeless situation to achieve this method points at
armed rebellion in order to gain independence.

In El Filibusterismo, Crisostomo Ibarra returns to San Diego, disguising himself

as the rich jeweler, Don Simoun. He seeks revenge againts the people responsible for
his misfortunes. He plants to start a revolution, convinces the youth and masses to
take arms, and ultimately, rescue his immortal beloved from the confines of the
convent.

It is the intention of this production to reconstruct the face of greed as painted by

the great Jose Rizal in this novel and to resonate Rizal’s definition of greed as the key
evil that chains and enslaves the mind, heart, and soul of a society away from the real
path towards genuine freedom.

- End of Notes -