Lucrecia Roces Kasilag (31 August 1918 – 16 August 2008) was a

Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines. ** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...

composer and pianist. She is particularly known for incorporating indigenous Filipino instruments into orchestral productions.

Biography

Lucrecia “King” Roces Kasilag was born in

San Fernando San Fernando may refer to: People *Ferdinand III of Castile (c. 1200–1252), called ''San Fernando'' (Spanish) or ''Saint Ferdinand'', King of Castile, León, and Galicia Places Argentina *San Fernando de la Buena Vista, city of Greater Buenos ...

La Union La Union (), officially the Province of La Union ( ilo, Probinsia ti La Union; Kankanaey'': Probinsyan di La Union;'' Ibaloi'': Probinsya ne La Union;'' pag, Luyag/Probinsia na La Union; Tagalog'': Lalawigan ng La Union),'' is a province in th ...

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, the third of the six children of Marcial Kasilag Sr., a civil engineer, and his wife Asuncion Roces Ganancial, a violinist and a violin teacher. She was Kasilag's first solfeggio teacher. The second was Doña Concha Cuervo, who was a strict Spanish woman. Kasilag later studied under Doña Pura Villanueva, during which time performed her first public piece,

Felix Mendelssohn Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), born and widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include sy ...

's '' May Breezes'', at a student recital when she was ten years old. Kasilag grew up in

Paco Paco is a Spanish nickname for Francisco. According to folk etymology, the nickname has its origins in Saint Francis of Assisi, who was the father of the Franciscan order; his name was written in Latin by the order as ''Pater Communitatis'' (fath ...

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

, where she was educated at Paco Elementary School and graduated valedictorian in 1930. She then transferred to

Philippine Women's University The Philippine Women's University (PWU) is a tertiary education school which has its main campus in Manila, Philippines. An institution exclusive for girls from its inception until the 1970s, the PWU admits both women and men as its students. ...

for high school, where in 1933 she also graduated as valedictorian. For college, she graduated ''cum laude'' in 1936 with a Bachelor of Arts, majoring in English, in the same university. She also studied music at St. Scholastica’s College in

Malate Malic acid is an organic compound with the molecular formula . It is a dicarboxylic acid that is made by all living organisms, contributes to the sour taste of fruits, and is used as a food additive. Malic acid has two stereoisomeric forms (L ...

, with

Sister Baptista Battig A sister is a woman or a girl who shares one or more parents with another individual; a female sibling. The male counterpart is a brother. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingly to refer to ...

, graduating with a Music Teacher's Diploma, major in piano, in 1939. During World War II, she took up composition, and on 1 December 1945, she performed her own compositions in a concert at

. From 1946 to 1947, Kasilag taught at the

University of the Philippines The University of the Philippines (UP; fil, Pamantasan ng Pilipinas Unibersidad ng Pilipinas) is a state university system in the Philippines. It is the country's national university, as mandated by Republic Act No. 9500 (UP Charter of 200 ...

’ Conservatory of Music and worked as secretary-registrar at Philippines Women's University. She completed a

Bachelor of Music Bachelor of Music (BM or BMus) is an academic degree awarded by a college, university, or conservatory upon completion of a program of study in music. In the United States, it is a professional degree, and the majority of work consists of prescr ...

in 1949, and then attended the

Eastman School of Music The Eastman School of Music is the music school of the University of Rochester, a private research university in Rochester, New York. It was established in 1921 by industrialist and philanthropist George Eastman. It offers Bachelor of Music (B.M ...

Rochester, New York Rochester () is a City (New York), city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, the county seat, seat of Monroe County, New York, Monroe County, and the fourth-most populous in the state after New York City, Buffalo, New York, Buffalo, ...

, studying theory with Allen I. McHose and composition with

Wayne Barlow Wayne Brewster Barlow (b. Elyria, Ohio, September 6, 1912; d. Rochester, NY, December 17, 1996) was an American composer of classical music. He was also a professor of music, organist, and choir director. Life and career Barlow received bachelo ...

. Kasilag returned to the Philippines, and in 1953 she was appointed Dean of the Philippines Women's University College of Music and Fine Arts. After completing her studies, Kasilag made an international tour as a concert pianist, but eventually had to give up a performing career due to a congenital weakness in one hand. Kasilag was instrumental in developing Philippine music and culture. She founded the Bayanihan Folks Arts Center for research and theatrical presentations, and was closely involved with the Bayanihan Philippine Dance Company. She was also a former president of the

Cultural Center of the Philippines The Cultural Center of the Philippines ( fil, Sentrong Pangkultura ng Pilipinas, or CCP) is a government-owned and controlled corporation established to preserve, develop and promote arts and culture in the Philippines.Presidential Decree No. ...

, head of the Asian Composers League, Chairperson of the

Philippine Society for Music Education The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, and was one of the pioneers of the

Bayanihan Dance Company The Bayanihan Philippine National Folk Dance Company is the oldest dance company in the Philippines.folksongs Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has be ...

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...

l works, and was composing up to the year before she died, at age 89. Lucrecia Roces Kasilag died due to pneumonia on August 16, 2008, in Manila, Philippines.

Selected works

Works for stage

* ''Dularawan: Salakot na Ginto'' (''Image Play: The Golden Salakot'') (1969) * ''Her Son, Jose'', operatorio (1977) * ''The Spiritual Canticle'', operatorio (1991) * ''Filiasiana'', choral dance kaleidoscope (1964) * ''Sisa'', ballet (1976) * ''Why Flowers Bloom in May'', opera (2008)

Concertos

* Violin Concerto no. 1 (1983) * Violin Concerto no. 2 (1994) *

Divertissement ''Divertissement'' (from the French 'diversion' or 'amusement') is used, in a similar sense to the Italian 'divertimento', for a light piece of music for a small group of players, however the French term has additional meanings. During the 17th and ...

for Piano and Orchestra (1960)

Choral music

* Misang Pilipino (''Filipino mass'') (1966) * De Profundis (1977) * Benedictus, cantata (1990) * Ode to the President (1995)

Orchestral works

* Ang Pamana (The Heritage) (1966) * The Legend of Sarimanok (1963) * In the Beginning (1988) * Centennial Tribute to Filipino Womanhood, Symphonic cycle (1998)

Chamber and solo music

* Derivations I-V, for piano (1961, 1963, 1966, 1969, 1982) * Toccata, for Percussion and Winds (1958) * Dialogue for Western Flutes and Pinoy Flutes (1996) * Prelude Etnika and Toccata, for guitar (1996) * Sonata Orientale, for piano (1961) * Scherzino, for piano (1980) * Rondeau, for piano (1981) * Elegy on Mt. Pinatubo, for piano (1992) * Serendipity, for piano (1994)

Music for Indigenous instruments

* Improvisations no. 2, for Muslim

gamelan Gamelan () ( jv, ꦒꦩꦼꦭꦤ꧀, su, ᮌᮙᮨᮜᮔ᮪, ban, ᬕᬫᭂᬮᬦ᭄) is the traditional ensemble music of the Javanese, Sundanese, and Balinese peoples of Indonesia, made up predominantly of percussive instruments. T ...

and tipangklong (1970) * ''Ang Apoy ng mga Hayop'' (''The Fire of Animals''), musical tale (1986)

Honors and awards

* Patnubay ng Sining at Kalinangan Award in Music, 1954 * Presidential Award of Merit as Woman Composer, 1956 * Presidential Award of Merit and Gold Medal for Leadership and Outstanding Contribution to Music and the Arts, 1960 * Republic Cultural Heritage Award in Music for the ''Toccata for Winds and Percussion (1960)'' and ''Misang Pilipino (1966)'' *Honorary Doctor of Music from

Centro Escolar University Centro Escolar University ( tl, Pamantasang Centro Escolar) also referred to by its acronym CEU is a private non-sectarian higher education institution in San Miguel Manila, Philippines Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of ...

, 1975 *Honorary Doctor of Laws from the Philippine Women’s University, 1980 *Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts from St. John’s University in New York, 1981 *

National Artist of the Philippines The Order of National Artists of the Philippines (Filipino: ''Orden ng mga Pambansang Alagad ng Sining ng Pilipinas'') is an order bestowed by the Philippines on Filipinos who have made significant contributions to the development of Philippin ...

, 1989 *Outstanding Filipino Award for the Arts from Jaycee Senate International, 1991

References

* ''National Artists of the Philippines''. Manila: National Commission for Culture and the Arts. * Hila, A., Tan, A. (2019). ''CCP Encyclopedia of Philippine Art'' (Vol. 7: Music). Manila: Cultural Center of the Philippines.