December 6, 2007 | 12:00am
Filipino Roman Catholics hear Mass in the national language, other Philippine languages, and English. That only started in 1965 when the Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican made it policy for the Mass to be available in the many idioms of the Church’s international congregation. Earlier the Mass could only be said in Latin, a tradition that hampered building strong bonds between the institutional Church and its parishioners. The pastoral benefits of popularization are lauded, but its force as a catalyst of the arts is often undervalued.
This afternoon, a new composition entitled Misa Filipina by Kristina Benitez, Philippine Women’s University Director of Ethnomusicology, will have its world premiere at the Fleur de Lis Theater of St. Paul University in Manila. It marks the 40th year since her Sundry Mass was approved and used by the local Catholic Church. It was known in the 1960s as “Guitar Mass,” “Jazz Mass,” and “Tina’s Mass.” Benitez became a pioneer in popularizing liturgical music when she composed Mass songs with guitar accompaniment as a project for her Theology class at Maryknoll College (now Miriam College). She eventually pursued formal studies in composition at University of the Philippines. Her immersion in Philippine folk music led her to the field of ethnomusicology. She is a recipient of fellowships like the Fulbright-Hayes, Asian Cultural Council-Ford Foundation, SSRC International Doctoral Research Fellow, and the University of Michigan Graduate Studies Doctoral Fellowship.
Misa Filipina expands the genre started in 1965 by Missa Luba that beautifully set the Latin Mass to African rhythms and harmony, and Missa Criolla composed by Ariel Ramirez that combined the Mass sung in Spanish with instruments like the siku (an Andean Pan-pipe) and quena (an Incan flute). Famous tenor Jose Carreras performed a version of the latter in 1988. In 1997, the equally renown Placido Domingo sang the tenor’s role at the premiere of Misa Tango composed by Luis Bacalov who had won an Academy Award in 1994 for his soundtrack of the movie, Il Postino. Misa Tango was performed at San Agustin Church in Intramuros, Manila just a few years ago in partnership with the Embassy of Argentina that flew in Gabriel Rivano, a noted specialist of the Argentinian accordion called bandoneon.
The St. Paul University Manila Chorale and a gong orchestra consisting of the St. Paul University Manila Kulintang Ensemble, the Gongs of PWU, Tingog Kulintang of Sta. Isabel College, and Ethnic Ensemble of Assumption Antipolo will interpret Misa Filipina. Sr. Maria Anunciata Sta. Ana, SPC will conduct. The 21st century is all the richer as talented artists add new ecclesiastic roles for native Philippine musical traditions.
