A page from the Boxer Codex. Left, is a general from the
Rajahnate of Butuan and to the right is a princess of Tondo.
The arts of the Philippines reflect a society with
diverse cultural influences and traditions. The
Malayan peoples had early contact with traders who
introduced Chinese and Indian influences. Islamic
traditions were first introduced to the Malays of the
southern Philippine Islands in the 14th century. Most
modern aspects of Philippine cultural life evolved
under the foreign rule of Spain and, later, the United
States.
In the 16th century the Spanish imposed a foreign
culture based in Catholicism. While the lowland
peoples were acculturated through religious
conversion, the Muslims and some upland tribal
groups maintained cultural independence. Among
those who were assimilated arose an educated elite
who began to establish a modern Filipino literary
tradition.
During the first half of the 20th century, American
influence made the Philippines one of the most
Westernized nations in Southeast Asia. The cultural
movements of Europe and the United States
profoundly influenced Filipino artists, even after
independence in 1946. While drawing on Western
forms, however, the works of Filipino painters,
writers, and musicians are imbued with distinctly
Philippine themes. By expressing the cultural
richness of the archipelago in all its diversity, Filipino
artists have helped to shape a sense of national
Example of Indigenous Folk
Motifs
identity.
Many Malay cultural traditions have survived
despite centuries of foreign rule. Muslims and
upland tribal groups maintain distinct
traditions in music, dance, and sculpture. In
addition, many Filipino artists incorporate
indigenous folk motifs into modern forms.
The indigenous literature of the Philippines
developed primarily in the oral tradition in
poetic and narrative forms. Epic poems,
legends, proverbs, songs, and riddles were
passed from generation to generation through
oral recitation and incantation in the various
languages and dialects of the islands. The epics
were the most complex of these early literary
forms. Most of the major tribal groups
developed an original epic that was chanted in
episodic segments during a variety of social
rituals.
Miagao Church in the Town of Miagao in Panay City
Philippines
Barasoain Church in Malolos, Bulacan
I. Spanish Period
During most of the Spanish colonial period, the
art and architecture of the Philippines were
strongly influenced by the patronage of the
Roman Catholic Church. Most art emphasized
religious iconography. The church
commissioned local craftspeople, often skilled
Chinese artisans, to construct provincial stone
churches with bas-relief sculpture and to carve
santos, or statues of saints, and other
devotional icons in wood and ivory. The
edifices, statues, and paintings of the period
show Chinese and Malay modifications of
Spanish baroque, an elaborate and detailed
style.
II. Chinese Period
During the Chinese Emperiorism architectural
infrastructure where changed and influence
by the Chinese form of architecture. One of it
is the most famous Daoist (Taoist) Temple in
Cebu City. It’s roofs are like the modern
Chinese houses and it’s stairs were designed
like the great wall of china.
This Daoist (Taoist) temple is on Cebu Island, in the
Philippines. The Chinese inhabitants have influenced many
economic and social elements of the Philippine culture.
Daoism, a philosophical and religious system, was
introduced to the country by the Chinese.
Filipino classical musical compositions in many
ways epitomize the blending of multicultural
influences. The compositions often embody
indigenous themes and rhythms in Western
forms, such as symphonies, sonatas, and
concertos. Several composers and conductors
in classical music have achieved international
recognition, including Antonio Molina, Felipe
Padilla de Leon, and Eliseo Pájaro. José
Maceda is considered the first Filipino avantgarde composer, liberating Philippine classical
Percussion instruments that make up the music from the traditional constructs of
Philippine kulintang ensemble, an example of Western
pre-Hispanic musical tradition
Traditional types of music are played on wind,
string, and percussion instruments made from
local materials. These include the kulibit, a
zither with bamboo strings and tubular
bamboo resonators; wooden lutes and guitars;
and the git-git, a wooden three-string bowed
instrument. The Muslim peoples use these and
other instruments to play complex musical
compositions that have been passed by
memory from generation to generation.
One of the series of kulintang
ensemble
I. Music
Most Filipino communities remember the tunes and
lyrics of traditional folk songs. Tagalogs, for example,
have more than a dozen folk songs for various
occasions, including the uyayi or hele, a lullaby; the
talindaw, a seafaring song; the kumintang, a warrior
song; the kundiman, a love song; and the
panambitan, a courtship song. Some songs are
accompanied by a specific folk dance.
Formal training in classical dance has been available
in the Philippines since the 1930s. The first noted
Filipino choreographers in classical ballet were
Leonor Orosa-Goquingco, Remedios “Totoy” de
Oteyza, and Rosalia Merino-Santos. OrosaGoquingco is most noted for her staging of
Filipinescas: Philippine Life, Legend and Lore in
Dance, which toured the world in the 1960s. MerinoSantos later turned to modern dance and founded
the Far Eastern University Modern Experimental
Dance Troupe. Other dance companies include Ballet
Philippines (formerly the Modern Dance Company),
Hariraya Ballet Company, Dance Theater Philippines,
and Pamana Ballet (formerly the Anita Kane Ballet
Company). Several Filipino ballet dancers have
achieved international fame, including Maribel
Aboitiz, Eddie Elejar, Lisa Macuja, and Anna
Villadolid.
Choreographer Francisca Reyes-Aquino is
recognized for pioneering research in the
documentation of Philippine folk dances and
founding the Philippine Folk Dance Society.
She codified the folk dances into steps,
directions, and musical arrangements that
are taught in physical education classes in
most schools. Among other folk dance
troupes, the Bayanihan Philippine Dance
Company (formerly the Bayanihan Folk Arts
Center) and the Far Eastern University Folk
Dance Group perform stylized adaptations of
folk dances in local and international tours.
Informal folk dancing is performed for a
variety of occasions, such as harvests,
weddings, and religious celebrations.
The Manila Symphony Orchestra
accompanies many dance performances. The
Philippine Cultural Center in Manila provides
an important venue for the performing and
applied arts.
Formal training in classical dance has been
available in the Philippines since the 1930s.
The first noted Filipino choreographers in
classical ballet were Leonor Orosa-Goquingco,
Remedios “Totoy” de Oteyza, and Rosalia
Merino-Santos. Orosa-Goquingco is most
noted for her staging of Filipinescas: Philippine
Life, Legend and Lore in Dance, which toured
the world in the 1960s. Merino-Santos later
turned to modern dance and founded the Far
Eastern University Modern Experimental
Dance Troupe. Other dance companies include
Ballet Philippines (formerly the Modern Dance
Company), Hariraya Ballet Company, Dance
Theater Philippines, and Pamana Ballet
(formerly the Anita Kane Ballet Company).
Several Filipino ballet dancers have achieved
international fame, including Maribel Aboitiz,
Eddie Elejar, Lisa Macuja, and Anna Villadolid.
The halo-halo is a dessert made of ice,
milk, various fruits, and ice cream.
Philippine cuisine has evolved over several
centuries from its Malayo-Polynesian origins to
become a mixed cuisine with
many Hispanic, Chinese, American, and other
Asian influences that have been adapted to
local ingredients and the Filipino palate to
create distinctively Filipino dishes. Dishes
range from the very simple, like a meal of fried
salted fish and rice, to the elaborate, such as
the paellas and cocidos created for fiestas.
Popular dishes
include lechón, adobo, sinigang, karekare, tapa, crispypata, pancit, lumpia,
and halo-halo. Some common local ingredients
used in cooking are calamondins,
coconuts, saba (a kind of short
wide plantain, mangoes, milkfish, and fish
sauce. Filipino taste buds tend to favor robust
flavors but the cuisine is not as spicy as those
of its neighbors
Modern Anime
Philippine media uses mainly Filipino and English.
Other Philippine languages, including various Visayan
languages are also used, especially in radio due to its
ability to reach remote rural locations that might
otherwise not be serviced by other kinds of media.
The dominant television networks ABSCBN, GMA and TV5 also have extensive radio
presence.
The entertainment industry is vibrant and
feeds broadsheets and tabloids with an unending
supply of details about celebrities and sensationalist
scandals du jour. Drama and fantasy shows are
anticipated as are Latin telenovelas, Asianovelas,
and anime. Daytime television is dominated by game
shows, variety shows, and talk shows such as Eat
Bulaga, Showtime, and Happy, Yipee,
Yehey. Philippine cinema has a long history and is
popular domestically, but has faced increasing
competition from American, Asian and Europea
films. Critically acclaimed directors and actors
include Lino Brocka and Nora Aunor for films like
Maynila: Sa mga Kuko ng Liwanag (Manila: In the
Claws of Light) and Himala (Miracle). In recent years
it has become common to see celebrities flitting
between television and movies and then moving into
politics provoking concerns.
Jhemx23