Chroniclers of Song

Music is such an integral part of the Filipino soul and psyche that our early history is sung and chanted and we live on 7,100 islands where birdsong and the music of wind and water tell us the time of day and the changes in season.

In these modern times, the Filipino is renowned the world over for his musicality. Our varied languages and dialects are often described by foreigners as tongues that sound like song. We are so musical, in fact, that a National Music made music using nothing but a leaf.

This year, the University of the Philippines College of Music is celebrating its 90th anniversary– with music, of course, from classical pieces by western composers like Mozart and Beethoven to much loved Filipino pieces by National Artists Nicanor Abelardo andLevi Celerio, among others.

Celebrations kicked off with a grand concert last February at the Cultural Center of the Philippines called "A College for the World: A Musical Presence in 50 Countries on 6 Continents."

Over a java jive at his office which he shares with the piano of the late National Artist Nicanor Abelardo, UP College of Music Dean Ramon "Montet" Acoymo tells the tale of a conservatory of music that has blazed new trails for 90 years.

"Music, to me is the soul of a people," Acoymo begins. "That is what we are here to do: to keep that soul going and growing by expressing the music, by researching its various possible expressions, sharing what we have found and by nurturing the musicality of our culture and our world."

The conventional wisdom regarding academic institutions of musical learning is that the institution is validated by the number and quality of its most immediate and visible output: The performance," Acoymo says. "But there is more to music than the end product of song and melody. Any school of music worth its salt must fulfill a triple mandate."

The first of these mandates, he explains, "is performance or the recreation of the musical symbol." The next is the creation of music, which involves "research to generate and uncover new musical knowledge, which includes composition". The final mandate is the "dissemination of these performance and research output."

"Music is for everyone, not just the elite or the audiophiles," he emphasizes. "This is why we are bringing our music to the shopping malls, because we want people to have easier access to our music." The UP College of Music has signed agreements with the SM Malls for performances by their students and artists at the various shopping havens all over the country.

In the area of performance, The UP College of Music "can rightfully be proud of its productions, as well as the artists which it has given to the world," including an unprecedented eight National Artists and other luminaries in the field "who have contributed immensely and forever to the richness of both the national and international music culture."

The National Artists are soprano Jovita Fuentes; composer and conductor Antonio Buenaventura; soprano and UP Madrigal Singers founder Andrea Veneracion; composer, conductor and author Lucrecia Kasilag; composer, conductor and author Felipe Padilla de Leon; composer and conductor Lucio San Pedro; and composer and violinist Antonio Molina.

Acoymo also cites the fact that the UP College of Music boasts of eight faculty members who have doctoral degrees, an elite set of which Acoymo is a member at age 46. With him on this short roster are: Professors Jonas Baes, Charisse Baldoria, Jose Buenconsejo, Raul Navarro, La Verne dela Peña, Felicidad Prudente and Ramon Santos.

Baldoria also won several prizes in the U.S. and Australia for her piano performances and she is working on a book about her travels that the University of Santo Tomas Publishing House has scheduled among its offerings in 2007.

"There is no other conversatory of music that can say it has eight faculty members with PhDs," Acoymo says. "And we are doing our best to encourage this scholarship."

The jewels in the college’s crown are the multi-awarded Philippine Madrigal Singers–the only Philippine choir to bring home top honors from the Grand Prix European, the highest honor given in the choral world–and the likewise multi-awarded UP Concert Chorus, currently on the last leg of its latest world tour.

The Madrigal Singers have also conquered international competitions in Arezzo and Gorizia in Italy; Varna, Bulgaria; Marktoberdorf, Germany; Spittal Austria; Tours, Fance; Debrecen, Hungary and; Cantonigros and Tolosa in Spain.

Alumni Andion Fernandez and Jonathan Saenz have forged successful opera careers in Europe, Acoymo shares with a huge smile. "We have a lot of alumni, faculty and students we can proudly call our own, that we can proudly call Filipino."

In the area of research and composition, the college has produced legendary figures such as Abelardo, Francis Santiago, Ryan Cayabyab and Ramon Santos, who, according to Acoymo, "have contributed immensely to the national and international literature of music." They have also given the Philippines and the world much in the way of scholarly work through books, journal articles and validations as officials of international creative associations like the Asian Composers League.

Acoymo himself has brought his share of acclaim to the college, having won first prize in the U.S. National Association of Teachers of Singing Voice competition. Like most Filipinos who dive into the deep waters of the arts, Acoymo did so without parental approval. "My parents wanted me to be something else, something practical, but I love music and it loves me and so here I am," he beams.

Count also baritone Aurelio Estanislao, who won the laureate of Singing Competitions in Europe and soprano Evelyn Mandac, whose recording of Orff’s Carmina Burana was hailed as the Best Classical Recording in Europe and who is the only Filipino singer to have performed at the Metropolitan Opera in New York.

Tenor Noel Velasco also brought honor to his alma mater with the laureate in the Luciano Pavarotti International Singing Competition in Italy, while Margarita Yulo Gomez won the Rosa Ponselle International Singing competition in the U.S.

Such laurels, yet the UP College of Music is not resting on them. Acoymo adds that they "continue to maintain a national and international presence in teaching and pedagogy," with UP professors participating in seminars and workshops in various countries.

It also has a mentorship program that trains music teachers in the public schools in the latest methods of teaching music. The program, called Music for Tomorrow, also aims to provide scholarships for music teachers.

But it isn’t just for professional and serious musicians. The college maintains a very active extension program teaches hobbyists and aficionados. Members of the faculty also coach pop performers and provides compositions and arrangements for the likes of Sharon Cuneta and Martin Nievera, as well as award-winning musical scores for movies.

The UP Musikahan newsletter is written in English and the main languages of the opera–Italian, German, French–in order to keep in touch with the rest of the world.

Acoymo’s job as dean is certainly demanding–his desk and every available surface in his office are piled high with documents, score sheets and communiques–but it is the demands of music and he is happy with that.

"I would never dream of being anywhere else but here," he says with a hearty and musical laugh, "with my music and with the job of keeping the music playing."