Music of The Philippines During Pre-Spanish Era

MUSIC OF THE PHILIPPINES
DURING
PRE-SPANISH ERA
INTRODUCTION
 Long before the arrival of the Spaniards, ancient
Filipinos were living in scattered barangays and
ruled by different chieftains.
 Although, they were living separately, they were
similar in many ways, their religion, mode of
dressing, houses, system of government and
marriage practices and economic activities, in
short, they were refined and civilized; they
possessed a distinct culture that distinguish them
from other race.
MUSIC OF THE PHILIPPINES (PRE-SPANISH ERA)
 Natives were without a doubt, music lovers.

 Each community had their own sets of musical
instrument. In the account of Pigafetta, the
official historian of Magellan expedition, women
from Cebu were harmoniously playing- cymbals
(plan tiles)- nose flutes, bamboo mouth organs
(aphiw)- brass gong (gansa)- flute (bansic)- long
drum (colibao)- bamboo harp (subing)- water
whistle (paiyak)- guitar (bugtot)- xylophone
(agong)- drum (tugo).
PASYON
 The Pasyón (Spanish: Pasión) is
a Philippine epic narrative of the Passion, Death,
and Resurrection of Jesus Christ. The standard
elements of epic poetry are interwoven with a
colorful, dramatic theme. The entirety of the text is
chanted during the Lenten season and
particularly Holy Week, and is a popular Filipino
Catholic devotion.
 The text is an adaptation of the pre-Hispanic art of
chanting epic poems as a form of oral tradition.
After Christianity was introduced by the Spanish, the
Passion cycle was adapted into the native art.
 The indigenous form of
the Pasyón was first
written down by Gaspar
Aquino de Belén in "Ang
Mahal na Pasión ni Jesu
Christong Panginoon
Natin na Tola" ("The
Sacred Passion of Jesus
Christ Our Lord that is a
Poem"), written in 1703
and approved in 1704.
TAGULAYLAY (BICOLANO FOLK SONG)
 Tagulaylay is originated from the words

“taghoy” which means lament and “alalay”
which means sustained. It’s grieving over such
a tragic event.
 Panambitan or Tagulaylay is a funeral song or
eulogies, it is for mourning or a mournful song.
KUMINTANG
 The kumintang is the name given to several distinct styles,
techniques and forms in music and dance probably
originating in the areas used by early Spanish cartographers
and chronicles to denote a large province centering around
what is known as Batangas.
 Early 19th-century travelers' accounts often mention
the kumintang as a Tagalog "chant national", describing
them as dance-songs performed by pairs of men and
women, with texts concerning love and courtship. All
accounts mention a glass of coconut wine passed from hand
to hand by the dancers as they sing.
In the 20th century, Francisca Reyes-Aquino
dubbed as kumintang the circular hand and wrist
movement also known as the kunday.
 Among present-day afficinados of musical and
dance events called
awitan and pandangguhan in and around the city
of Batangas, kumintang also refers to a guitar-
plucking style, considered the most melodious
and beautiful of all guitar styles accompanying
the old kinanluran style of pandangguhan dance
songs.
DANSA
 A dansa (Old Occitan [ˈdansa, ˈdaⁿsa]), also
spelt dança, was an Old Occitan form of lyric
poetry developed in the late thirteenth century
among the troubadours.
 It is related to the English term "dance" and was
often accompanied by dancing. A closely related
form, the balada or balaresc, had a more complex
structure, and is related to the ballade but unrelated
to the ballad. Both terms derive from Occitan words
for "to dance": dansar and balar/ballar.
 The verses of the dansa were sung by
a soloist while the refrain was sung by a choir.
Adansa lacking a vuelta is called a danseta.
 Dansa had joyful lyrics and lively music.
BALITAW (THE VISAYAN FOLK SONG)
 The balitaw is the song traditionally associated with the
Visayas region in the same way
the kundiman and kumintang are associated with ancient
Tagalog music.
 The music of the balitaw is usually written in 3/4 time. It is
also danced to, although it originally was something that was
merely sung. This folk air has a more developed form
called balitao romansada. The traditional instrument used to
accompany the balitaw was a three-string coconut-shell
guitar; later, a harp was adopted as the instrument of choice
because more chords could be played on it. When performed
today in modern rendition, a five-string guitar is used.
 The balitaw is an extemporaneous exchange of love verses
between a man and a woman. Danced and mimed, it is
accompanied by a song, or the dancers themselves sing,
improvising the steps and verses. It may last for hours,
ending with the woman accepting or rejecting the man's
suit. The balitaw is found mainly in the Tagalog and Visayan
regions.
 The dancers may be costumed
in balintawak or patadyong or in contemporary everyday
clothes. Its accompaniments could be provided by
the subing(bamboo flute), castanets, coconut guitar, harp,
the five-stringed guitar, or a combination of the three. The
Visayan balitaw is usually in the minor key, while the Tagalog
is in the major. Both are related to the kumintang and
kundiman in their styles of accenting.
CHARACTERISTICS OF PRE-SPANISH ERA MUSIC
 More conservative style of sacred music.

 They play music by using indigenous musical
instruments. (bamboo canes, palm leaves, and
bark of trees)
 Religious and musicality-salvation of self
expression
 Recitative
 Mostly simple two note music, music was
composed of few notes.

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Music of The Philippines During Pre-Spanish Era

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MUSIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

 Natives were without a doubt, music lovers.

 Tagulaylay is originated from the words

 More conservative style of sacred music.

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