The Anthem Philatelist

Benigno Simeon Cojuangco Aquino III (born February 8, 1960) also known as Noynoy Aquino, is the fifteenth and incumbent President of the Philippines and is concurrently the Secretary of the Department of the Interior and Local Government. Aquino is a fourth-generation politician: his great-grandfather, Servillano "Mianong" Aquino, served as a delegate to the Malolos Congress; his grandfather, Benigno Aquino, Sr., held several legislative positions from 1919–44; and his parents were former President Corazon Aquino and former Senator Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino Jr . Aquino is a member of the Liberal Party. Born in Manila, Aquino graduated from Ateneo de Manila University in 1981 and joined his family in their exile in the United States shortly thereafter. He returned to the Philippines in 1983 shortly after the assassination of his father and held several positions working in the private sector. In 1998, he was elected to the House of Representatives as Representative of...

Antipolo Pilgrimage is a month-long celebration that brings devotees and pilgrims to venerate the " Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage " which is enshrined in Antipolo Church in Antipolo City . This is annually celebrated every month of May.   It is during the month of May when Filipino devotees to the Blessed Virgin Mary from different parts of the country throng on the hills of Antipolo to make a pilgrimage at the shrine of Nuestra Señora de la Paz y Buenviaje (Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage).   The folk song “ Tayo na sa Antipolo ” vividly captures the festive air of this season in this rural town some decades ago. 'Tayo na sa Antipolo' 'at doo'y maligo tayo' 'sa batis na kung tawagin' 'ay Hi-hi-hinulugang Taktak' 'at doo'y kumain' 'ng mangga' 'kasuy at balimbing' 'kaya't magmadali ka at' 'tayo ay sumama sa Antipolo.'   The pilgrimage is a month-long celebration that sees ...

The Manila Symphony Orchestra is one of the oldest orchestras in Asia. Founded by Dr. Alexander Lippay in 1926, the orchestra has played a major role in Philippine history. Through the years it has hosted artists Montserrat Caballé, Yehudi Menuhin, Igor Oistrakh, Eugene Istomin, Fou Ts'ong, Barry Tuckwell, Paul Badura-Skoda and Rony Rogoff, as well as conductors Andre Kostelanetz, Arthur Fiedler, Mendi Rodan, Robert Feist, Gareth Nair and Helen Quach.   MSO has instituted two main programs intended to develop Filipino musical artistry and showcase Filipino musical talent, the "Young Artists’ Competitions" and the Luneta Concerts (known as “Concert in the Park”).    The Manila Symphony Orchestra today has young musicians who are trained by the Philippine Research for Developing International Soloists (PREDIS), which was founded by Basilio Manalo and Sister Mary Placid Abejo at St. Scholastica’s College. Filipino conductors have taken the helm of the MSO, including Franci...

The kutiyapi or kudyapi, is a Philippine two-stringed, fretted boat-lute. It is the only stringed instrument among the Maguindanao people, and one of several among other groups such as the Maranao and Manobo . It is four to six feet long with nine frets made of hardened beeswax . The instrument is carved out of solid soft wood such as from the jackfruit tree.   Common to all kutiyapi instruments, a constant drone is played with one string while the other, an octave above the drone, plays the melody with a kebit or rattan pluck (commonly made from plastic nowadays). This feature, which is also common to other related Southeast Asian "boat lutes", which were influenced by varying degrees by Indian concepts of melody and scale via the Malay archipelago .   Among the T'Boli , Manobo and other Lumad groups, the instrument (known as Hegelung, Kudyapi or Fedlung) is tuned to a major pentatonic scale . Among groups like the Bagobo , the Kutiyapi (Kudlung) is also used as...

The Las Piñas Bamboo Organ , in the Parish Church of St Joseph in Las Piñas City, Philippines, is a nineteenth-century church organ made almost entirely from bamboo; only the trumpet stops are made from metal. The organ, the church and the surrounding buildings have been restored to their 19th century state by Architect Francisco "Bobby" Mañosa and partner Ludwig Alvarez, making a trip to the site a popular excursion for Filipinos and foreign visitors alike. The builder of both the church and its organ was Fr. Diego Cera de la Virgen del Carmen, a priest under the Augustinian Recollects. A native of Spain, he served as parish priest in Las Piñas through many endeavors. Historians portray him as a gifted man-natural scientist, chemist, architect, community leader, organist and organ builder. Having previously built organs in Manila area with some organ stops made of bamboo he chose bamboo for most of this organ, and only the trumpet stops are made of metal. The choice of bambo...

Tonga , officially the Kingdom of Tonga is an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, comprising 169 islands, 36 of them inhabited. The Kingdom stretches over a distance of about 800 kilometers (500 miles) in a north-south line. The islands that constitute the archipelago lie south of Samoa, about one-third of the way from New Zealand to Hawaii. Tonga also became known as the Friendly Islands because of the friendly reception accorded to Captain James Cook on his first visit there in 1773. He happened to arrive at the time of the ʻinasi festival, the yearly donation of the first fruits to the Tuʻi Tonga, the islands' paramount chief, and received an invitation to the festivities. According to the writer William Mariner, in reality the chiefs had wanted to kill Cook during the gathering, but could not agree on a plan. The only sovereign monarchy among the island nations of the Pacific Ocean, Tonga - uniquely among island nations in the South Pacific region - avoided formal coloniz...

Palau, officially the Republic of Palau , is an island nation in the Pacific Ocean, some 500 miles (800 km) east of the Philippines and 2,000 miles (3,200 km) south of Tokyo. Having emerged from United Nations trusteeship (administered by the United States) in 1994, it is one of the world's youngest and smallest sovereign states. In English, the name is sometimes spelled Belau in accordance with the native pronunciation. It was formerly also spelled Pelew. The National anthem of Palau is "Belau er Kid" (Our Palau), composed by classical musician, Ymesei O. Ezekiel and the lyrics combined from several authors. It adopted its anthem in 1980 when independence was first requested. It gained independence from the United States in 1994.

Figurative Art in Cebu owes its sense of realism and classical ardor to the late Martino Abellana and those he mentored, particularly Romulo "Molong" Galicano . Since the eighties, Galicano has taught and encourage a band of Cebuano artists to excel in the academic techniques of figurative painting, and who has since emerged as the leading edge of a new generation of figure painters. They include Boy Briones , Pepe Villadolid , Carly Florido , Dodong Tallo , Jun Impas and Jonathan Galicano .    Bag-ong Hinan-aw (New Perspectives) is a brief survey of this new movement in Philippine art that combines academic technique with contemporary vision that combines tradition, innovation, and Cebuano creativity to a new degree of excellence.    Publio "Boy" Briones (b. 1949) originally graduated with a BS and MBA from UP before learning how to paint during landscape sorties by fellow Cebuanos in the provinces. He subsequently took watercolor workshops and sketching c...

Nguyen Van Cao , a noted Vietnamese writer and composer, composed " Tien quan ca " (March to the Front) in 1944 while working for an independence group. It was published in a newspaper and was well-received by the citizens, and was sung often during demonstrations and meetings of the revolutionary council.    The provisional government adopted it as the anthem in 1946, becoming the anthem of North Vietnam. In 1976, when unification with South Vietnam occurred, "Tien quan ca" was adopted as the anthem for the entire nation. Vietnam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea, referred to as East Sea, to the east. With a population of over 86 million, Vietnam is the 13th most populous country in the world. The people of Vietnam regained independence and broke away from China in AD 9...

The Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis, also known as the Federa tio n of Saint Christopher and Nevis), located in the Leeward Islands, is a federal tw o-island nation in the West Indies. It is the smallest sovereign nation in the Am er icas, in both area and population. The capital city and headquarters of govern ment for the federated state is Basseterre on the larger island of Saint Kitts. The smaller state of Nevis lies about 2 miles (3 km) southeast of Saint Kitts, across a shallow channel called "The Narrows". Historically, the British dependency of Anguilla was also a part of thi s union, which was then known collectively as Saint Christopher-Nevis-Anguill a . Saint Kitts and Nevis are geographically part of the Leeward Islands. To the n orth-northwest lie the islands of Saint Eustatius, Saba, Saint Barthélemy, and Saint-Martin /Sint Maarten. To the east and northeast are Antigua and Barbuda, and to the southeast is the small uninhabited isla nd of Redonda, and the i...

The puzzle box is my second favorite mechanical puzzle (after entanglement puzzles. A puzzle box (also called a secret, or trick box) is a box that can only be opened through some obscure, and sometimes complicated, series of manipulations. They are usually made of wood and in various complexities. Some puzzle boxes may require only a simple squeeze in the right spot, whereas others may require the subtle movement of several small parts, to open the box. This puzzle box from China belongs to the former category. It took me less than 15 minutes to open the box and by accident after I squeezed the right spots.    Some boxes, especially those from Japan , consist of several moves with a variety of twists to trick the person trying to open the boxes. But the real trick is finding the correct series of movements that can range from 2 to 300+ moves.

There is fun in assembling puzzles, sometimes even more challenging than disassembling it. Recently, I created some replicas with variations of existing puzzles using materials from Wizard's Workshop and my children's toys. The first one is similar to the "Easy Does It" puzzle (1). The object of the puzzle is to separate the two loops of rope. In the original puzzle, a wooden ring which snugly fit the pole was used instead of the metallic ring that I'm using.    The second one is a variation on Dilemma Games, Ring and String puzzle, Lord of the Rings (2). The object is to release the ring. In this puzzle, another metallic ring was used instead of the wooden ring and a block a nd string from Wizard's was used to secure the "other end" of the puzzle.     The third puzzle is another Ring and String puzzle (3 and 4). The object is to release the ring which can only be done if you separate the two interlocking ropes. I made two these- a complicated...

The enigma is one of my favorite mechanical puzzles. This puzzle was invented by Eldon Vaughn and patented in America in 1975. and manufactured and distributed worldwide by Hanayama , a toy company based in Japan. The object to dis-join the three somewhat swirled pieces of this puzzle and then to put them back together again.    Basically, the technique to solve this puzzle involves several sequences of sliding through, rotating, overhanging and a tricky move at the end to dis-join the two remaining pieces. Separating the last two pieces is already challenging in itself. Putting it back is more difficult than the first task of disassembling it. I really had a fun time with this puzzle. Once or twice a week, I toy with the moves so I will never forget the sequences (more than 8). I also love the feel of this puzzle, so stern yet docile, so lustrous and fusible. Another cast puzzle which I like is the Chain puzzle which was invented by Oskar van D eventer .    ...

The Macedonian National Anthem is entitled "Denes Nad Makedonija" (Today Over Macedonia). The anthem of Macedonia (referring to the former Yugoslavian republic, and not the neighbouring Greek province of the same name) was created in 1943 by Vlado Maleski , a poet from Struga. The music was composed by Todor Skalovski , a famous Macedonian composer, chorus and orchestra conductor. It was adopted as the anthem of the Republic of Macedonia upon its establishment after World War II for a few months, and continued to be the anthem of the Socialist Republic of Macedonia while in Yugoslavia. The song was later selected to be the anthem of the newly independent Republic of Macedonia in 1991. Todor Skalovski (born 21 January 1909, Tetovo, Ottoman Empire – died 1 July 2004, Skopje, Republic of Macedonia) was a famous Macedonian composer, chorus and orchestra conductor. He was the founder of the First Macedonian State Symphony Orchestra, (1945. - 1948) and was editor in chief of R...

Manuel H. Bernabe (1890-1960) “King of Balagtasan ” in Spanish was a poet, linguist and politician, Manuel Bernabe was born on February 17, 1890 to Timoteo Bernabe and Emilia Hernandez of Paranaque, Rizal .   At the age of 10, he already started writing verses. He studied at the Ateneo de Manila where he finished his Bachelor of Arts degree with high academic standing in 1907, and then took up law at the University of Santo Tomas , but not able to took up the bar exams. In 1910, Manuel’s first poem was published in the Renacimento Filipino.   In 1912, he translated Virgil’s Aenid from Latin to Spanish. In 1913, he received an award for his poems: “Himno al Sagrado Corazon de Jesus (Hymn to the Sacred Heart of Jesus ), “El Zapote,” and “Espana a Filipinas”.   In 1912, he joined the staff of La Democracia and in 1918, of La Vanguardia of the Roces Publications . He was a columnist but from time to time he also published poems and short stories in the magazine Exelsi...

Claro Mayo Recto , Jr. (February 8, 1890 – October 2, 1960), was a Filipino politician, jurist, poet and one of the foremost statesmen of his generation. He is remembered mainly for his nationalism, for "the impact of his patriotic convictions on modern political thought".   He was born in Tiáong, Tayabas (now known as Quezon province) of educated, upper middle-class parents, namely Claro Recto [Sr.] of Rosario, Batangas, and Micaela Mayo of Lipa, Batangas. He studied Latin at the Instituto de Rizal in Lipa, Batangas from 1900 to 1901. Further schooling was at the Colegio del Sagrado Corazón of Don Sebastián Virrey. He moved to Manila to study at the Ateneo de Manila where he consistently obtained outstanding scholastic grades, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree maxima cum laude. He received a Masters of Laws degree from the University of Santo Tomás.   Claro M. Recto, Jr. is considered the "finest mind of his generation". Through his speeches and writings,...

Santiago A. Fonacier was born in Laoag, Ilocos Norte on May 21, 1885. He took his elementary education in his town and secondary education in a high school accredited by the University of Santo Tomas and the Liceo de Manila. He studied for the priesthood in a seminary of the Iglesia Filipina Independiente and was ordained priest in 1902. After his ordination, he taught for two years. However, being inclined towards journalism, he left teaching and founded and edited Spanish periodicals, among them La Lucha, which survived from the 1900’s to 1941. Thereafter, he became a reporter of La Democracia and El Grito del Pueblo. He did translations into Ilocano of Rizal’s two novels, Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo. In 1912, Fonacier was elected to the first Philippine Assembly as representative of the first district of Ilocos Norte. He served in full his four-year term. In the following election, 1919, he ran and won as senator for the first senatorial district, composed of the province...

Felipe, the composer of the Philippine National Anthem also won many awards for his many nationalistic compositions, He wrote "Un Recuerdo" for the thirteen martyrs of Cavite (Trece Martires). He was appointed by Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo as Director of the National Band of the Philippine Republic with a rank of Captain. Julian Felipe was born on January 28, 1861. He was the youngest son of the twelve children of Justo Felipe and Victoria Reyes. Julian inherited his talent in music from his father who was also a musician. He studied at a public school in Cavite and Binondo, Manila for his primary education. At an early age, he showed his talent in music. He also learned how to play the piano and the organ. Later, He became an organist in St. Peter's Parish Church. As an organist, Felipe was given the chance to hone his gift. Soon after he was composing songs. Among his early popular compositions were Moteti el Santesisimo, Sintos y Floras Rogodones and Amorita Danza. He i...

Edilberto Evangelista (b. February 24, 1862 - February 17 1897) was a civil engineer trained in the University of Ghent, Belgium. He returned to the Philippines shortly after the start of the revolution and quickly rose to the rank of Lieutenant General in the Philippine Army. He died in 1897 at the Battle of Zapote Bridge.   Edilberto was a native of Sta. Cruz, Manila, who received his early education with his uncle at Dulumbayan, Luneta. In 1871, he studied at Colegio de San Juan de Letran where he excelled in mathematics. At the young age of 16, he finished degree in A.B. in 1878. Later studied at the University of Santo Tomas where as a medical student, was able to support his studies by buying and selling carabaos for slaughter and engaged in tobacco business.   He went to Spain and studied at the Polytechnic School in Madrid, where he met Jose Rizal and suggested him to take a civil engineering course at Ghent, Belgium. After finishing his study, he returned to Manila...

Jose Wright Diokno (February 26, 1922 - February 27, 1987) was a Filipino nationalist, human rights advocate, lawyer, senator and government minister. Born to Ramon Diokno, a former senator and associate justice of the Supreme Court, and Eleanor Wright, an American who became a Filipino citizen, Jose "Pepe" Diokno graduated from elementary school with distinction, and finished his secondary education at De La Salle College in Manila as Valedictorian in 1937. In 1940, he earned his Bachelor of Science in Commerce Degree summa cum laude from De La Salle. He topped the Certified Public Accountants (CPA) Board Examination the same year with a rating of 81.18 percent. In 1944, without finishing his Bachelor of Laws Degree, he took and topped the bar examination, with a rating of 95.3 percent. After the 1986 People Power Revolution, which effectively ended Marcos rule and was pivotal to Corazon Aquino's election to the presidency, Diokno was appointed to the chairmanship of th...

The origins of "Hatikvah" (The Hope) far predate its use as the Israeli national anthem, in use since soon after its founding as the first Jewish state in modern history. The music is based on a folk song of unknown origin, but appears several times in European folk songs and religious music. The arrangement by Shmuel Cohen from 1888 is probably based on a Romanian folk song he heard during his childhood in Romania, most likely "Carul cu boi" ("The Ox Driven Cart"). The melody also somewhat resembles Smetana's symphonic poem "Ma Vlast", which in turn was based on a Swedish version of the Romanian song. The lyrics of the anthem were taken from the first verse and chorus from Naftali Herez Imber's 1878 poem "Tikavatenu" (Our Hope), which had nine stanzas. At the first Zionist congress of 1897, it was adopted as the anthem of Zionism. The lyrics (primarily of the chorus) underwent a few changes between that time and the creation of...

I got this puzzle from eBay from a very good seller who was kind enough to give me some freebies. I don't know if he was really kindhearted or this was done to compensate for some little rusty elements on the metals, well anyway, I do appreciate his gesture. I definitely received more puzzles than I deserved- a whole box with no less than ten puzzles! I'll feature the other puzzles included in the box in my next blog.    The Bungler's Block , aka the Chinese Pendulum Puzzle , looks deceptively simple, but it is really a tricky puzzle involving several coordinated movements that's guaranteed to twist your brain. The long delay in my solving the puzzle ( 2 days) was attributed to a maneuver which I totally missed out.   The opening and closing loop has two movements--this is the key to solving it. The other moves include coursing the rings through the movable loop and passing the ring over the big hump- a maneuver thats only possible if you are aware of the movable...