Rosas Pandan
| "Rosas Pandan" | |
|---|---|
| Song by Domingo "Minggoy" Lopez | |
| Language | Cebuano |
| Released | 1938 |
| Genre | Balitaw |
| Songwriter | Domingo Lopez |
| Composer | Domingo Lopez |
"Rosas Pandan" is a song written and composed by the Filipino musician Domingo "Minggoy" Lopez. The lyrics, which were originally in Cebuano, are about a provincial girl named Rosas Pandan going to the fiesta. Lopez originally made the song for a zarzuela of the same name released in 1938. Popularized by the singer Pilita Corrales in the 1970s, "Rosas Pandan" is now regarded as a folk song among Cebuano people and other Visayans. An arrangement by George Hernandez has been performed by choirs internationally into the 21st century.
Lyrics and composition
[edit]"Rosas Pandan" was written and composed by the Filipino musician Domingo "Minggoy" Lopez (1912–1981), whose main instrument was the guitar.[1][2][a] Lopez, who was from Cebu City, was an actor in a theatrical troupe led by Pio Kabahar.[4] "Rosas Pandan" was the titular song in a zarzuela released in 1938 with a libretto by Kabahar.[2][4] Kabahar also wrote the script for a film adaptation directed by Toting Villarino.[4]
"Rosas Pandan" is a song in the style of the balitaw. It is in binary form, with the second section repeated twice to the same lyrics: ABB. It has a syncopated, repeated rhythm.[1] The lyrics, originally written in Cebuano, are about a pretty girl named Rosas Pandan who comes down from the mountains to go to the fiesta and draws everyone's attention.[2][b] One of the song's distinctive features are the non-lexical vocables—e.g., tig-a-ding-tig-a-ding-tig-a-ding—which are meant to sound like the accompanying guitar strumming. In George Hernandez's arrangement of "Rosas Pandan", made for an a cappella choir, the lower voices are used to imitate a guitar.[1]
Legacy
[edit]Recordings
[edit]In 1973, the Filipino singer Pilita Corrales recorded a Tagalog version translated by Levi Celerio, popularizing the song.[2] The nonsense syllables were excised, leading a journalist from The Freeman to opine that the song's "oomph" and "cadence" had been lost in translation.[5] Corrales later re-released it, performing the original lyrics in honor of her Cebuano heritage.[2] Another singer, Susan Fuentes, also recorded her own rendition of the song.[6] "Rosas Pandan" is now widely known as a Cebuano or Visayan song rather than a Tagalog one. It is considered a Cebuano folk song, Lopez's best-known composition,[2] and one of Fuentes' and Corrales' most famous songs.[6][7]
Choirs
[edit]In 1995, George Gemora Hernandez, a music director based in San Francisco, was at the Festival Internacional de Cant Coral Catalunya Center, an international choral festival in Puig-reig, Spain, when he was asked for an easy song that could be performed at the close by all the 1,000 singers present.[2] Hernandez proposed "Rosas Pandan".[1][2] Since then, Hernandez's arrangement has been performed by choirs internationally into the 21st century, even though it is a lesser-known Filipino song internationally. From a cursory search on YouTube, Positively Filipino's Myles A. Garcia counted 19 performances of "Rosas Pandan" by choirs from US, Canada, Colombia, Brazil, Russia, South Korea, and New Zealand.[2]
Geography
[edit]A purok of Banago, a barangay in Bacolod, is named Rosas Pandan.[8]
Notes
[edit]- ↑ The Lopez family has in its possession four documents proving that Lopez authored "Rosas Pandan": Annex "A", a photocopy of the lyrics of "Rosas Pandan" written in Lopez's notebook, which also contains his other original compositions; Annex "B", the copyright registration of "Rosas Pandan"; Annex "C", the machine copy of the musical score of Rosas Pandan, submitted as part of the copyright registration application; and Annex "D", a photocopy of the contract on royalties for "Rosas Pandan" between Lopez and MARECO, Inc. represented by Mr. Manuel P. Villar, the owner.[3]
- ↑ Since "Rosas Pandan" has become a folk song, some characteristics of the character have become part of popular memory despite not being mentioned in the original lyrics. For example, she did not have a brother named Buko, although a suitor named Dodeng is mentioned in the song.[2]
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 4 Dioquino, Corazon C. (1994). "Rosas Pandan". CCP Encyclopedia of Philippine Art. Updated by Arwin Q. Tan (2018). Cultural Center of the Philippines. Retrieved 7 May 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Garcia, Myles A. (5 February 2019). "The Late, Surprising 21st Century Success of 'Rosas Pandan'". Positively Filipino. Retrieved 7 May 2026.
- ↑ Lo, Ricky (8 January 2015). "Aiza, Liza wed again". The Philippine Star. Retrieved 7 May 2026.
- 1 2 3 Sabanpan-Yu, Hope (2018). "Lopez, Minggoy". CCP Encyclopedia of Philippine Art. Cultural Center of the Philippines. Retrieved 7 May 2026.
- ↑ Almendras, Ruben (15 October 2023). "The musicality of Cebuanos". The Freeman. Archived from the original on 16 December 2024. Retrieved 7 May 2026.
- 1 2 Tejero, Constantino C. (20 August 2012). "The Queen of Visayan Songs is ready for her swan song". Lifestyle.INQ. Retrieved 7 May 2026.
- ↑ Lacsamana, Brontë H. (14 April 2025). "'Asia's Queen of Songs' Pilita Corrales, 85". BusinessWorld. Retrieved 7 May 2026.
- ↑ SOCIO ECONOMIC PROFILE; BARANGAY BANAGO; BACOLOD CITY (PDF) (Report). City of Bacolod. July 2022. p. 3. Retrieved 7 May 2026.