Philippine Classical Music (3 of 6)

Literary-musical organizations appeared in Manila and nearby provinces. Foreign artists and musical groups came to the Philippines in the 19th century in the course of their Asian torus and presented a wide range of concerts, operas, literary and brass band concerts.

American Period (1898-1946)

A co-educational system of public education was introduced by the American colonizers. Filipino and foreign folksongs were taught by rote throughout the country. American jazz and film music gained a foothold among the younger generation. European classical music and a new method of piano pedagogy was introduced by Sister Baptista Battig, a German Benedictine missionary who studied with Ludwig Deppe in Germany. In 1908, she founded the music school of the St. Scholastica’s College where there influence was lasting.

The Conservatory of Music of the University of the Philippines was established in 1916 to counteract the onslaught of American jazz and to raise the standards of performance and public appreciation for fine classical music. The first two directors were Wallace George and Robert L. Schofield, succeeded in 1926 by Alexander Pippay, a Viennse conductor/composer who introduced changes in the curriculum and appointed European artists in the teaching staff. He resigned in 1931 and founded the Manila Academy of Music.

Francisco Santiago (1881-1983), Santiago formed a triumvirate of composers known for their sense of nationalism, teachings and compositions. They wrote works n the larger forms: sonata, concerto, symphony, symphonic poems, mostly based on folk themes.

Founded in 1903 under the direction of Walter H. Loving, the Philippine Constabulary Band carried a long tradition of brass bands dating back to the 19th century. The PC Band gained international recognition when it won the first prize at the St. Louis Exposition in Missouri in 1904.