In observance of the Holy Week, the Philippine News Agency’s online news service will be off on March 29, Good Friday, and March 30, Black Saturday. Normal operations will resume on March 31, Easter Sunday.

— The Editors

Ifugao chant-inspired piece bags 2018 Composers’ Prize Awards

December 11, 2018, 9:06 pm

MANILA -- The National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) conferred on Monday the 2018 Composers' Prize Awards on Jem Robert Talaroc for his composition for orchestra, titled “Anima.”

The piece refers to the belief that all things in nature are sacred and to be taken spiritually, something the NCCA deems relevant today, amid the unrelenting material developments in society.

"The melody was borrowed from an Ifugao chant, recurs throughout the piece, and changes texture constantly, signifying the ever-present vitality of Mother Nature in the fast-changing world," the NCCA said in a statement on Tuesday.

With its mission to “encourage the continuing development of a pluralistic culture by the people themselves,” the NCCA created the Composers' Prize Awards "to have a direct hand in the development and enrichment of the genres in Philippine music literature."

The NCCA Composers’ Prize Awards is a biennial award given to deserving composers for each category.

Initiated in 2016, it is a competition on concert hall, which calls for extended works that go beyond popular or traditional music-writing or improvisation, and thus can be better judged and evaluated if codified with an acceptable standard notation that may be published and recreated later through a performance.

There were four (4) categories for this year’s awards: Solo Piano, Standard Chamber Orchestra, Standard Full Orchestra, and Symphonic Band.

Compositions deal with any topic, including those related to environment and climate change or other relevant matters.

Held at the NCCA Auditorium, the event also featured the World Premiere of the 2016 Composers’ Prize Winner, Timothy Pacpaco, with his composition for guitar titled "Pagtangis ng Kahapon,” which pays homage to Philippine history. (NCCA PR)

Comments