Constructing A National Identity Through Music
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1) In late 19th century Philippines, the arts including music helped express the Filipino identity and facilitated the construction of a national consciousness. 2) From 1870-1930s, Filipino musicians developed common musical styles and expressions of sentiment, which contributed to a shared Filipino musical repertoire and experiences. 3) During this time, music education became more formalized and nationalistic musical works emerged, reflecting the development of a Filipino identity and consciousness.
Constructing A National Identity Through Music
- 1. Constructing a National Identity Through MusicAuthor:Ramon P. Santos, Ph. D.Date Published: June 13, 2003 view / post comments for this article send to friend The late nineteenth century in the Philippines history marks the most dramatic, if not the most dynamic, phase in the long process of constructing a national consciousness. This perception is a result of a political and social events of the period, and it is equally reinforced by the expressive cultures of an emerging Filipino society. The arts -- literature, theater, music, dance, architecture, and painting -- provided effective channels for the expression of the Filipino psyche, taste and social behavior. They serve as concrete indicators of the transformation and evolution of the values and self-awareness, as well as tools to effect change for the construction of a national identity and a distinct cultural heritage.Today, a national Filipino identity embodies the concept of convergence and the intersection of diverse cultural elements and tradition from both Europe and the Philippine geographic borders. The music and musical life of the Filipinos from 1870 to 1930s was a period when Filipino musicians from different social and economic environments reached a common consciousness of a music as an artform and as a distinct form of human expression. Filipino musicians began to express individual as well as collective sentiments, using related, if not common forms. It was also a period when the acquisition of a specific musical skills in the practice of Westernized music -- singing instrumental performance, composition, conducting -- reached significant levels of competence and proficiency. Music emerged as a professional undertaking, for which training and education shifted from church convents and town bands to formal academies and musical associations: e.g. the Colegio Beaterio, The Colegio Español de Educacion de Señoritas (Maceda 1979) and the Sociedad Musical Filipino de Sta. Cecilia (Santiago 1957). Religion also played a role, as Christianity appeared to have catalyzed the disparate systems of indigenous worship and social values and activities into a cohesive expressive framework.It was also a period of intense national consciousness, realized in acts of sacrifice and patriotism against the Spanish colonial regime, and resulted in a significant body of nationalistic music, e.g. the revolutionary pieces of by Julio Nakpil and Juan Felipe. The seeds of appreciation for native and indigenous musical practices began to break ground, and unearthed a source of materials developing and creating a Filipino identity vis-a-vis the adoption of a foreign, if not colonial, culture. Different social sectors were able to relate to common musical experiences, as well as understand and relate to a common Filipino musical repertoire.The process of developing a national respective and constructing a national identity in the musical arts can thus be viewed from two levels: first, from the evolution and development of a common set of musical constructs: and second, from the artists' conscious attempts to express nationalist ideologies by using the existing media of musical communication.http://www.ncca.gov.ph/about-culture-and-arts/articles-on-c-n-a/article.php?i=60&subcat=13