Hungarian Anthem Postcards

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The Irish Who wrote the First Version of Japan's Anthem Kimigayo

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The music for the first version of the Japanese national anthem, the Kimigayo , was penned by an Irishman, John William Fenton . Fenton, who was born in Kinsale, County Cork in 1828, came to Japan as a bandmaster with the British army in 1868, the year of Meiji Restoration. In the following year, he started training of the Brass Band in Japan for soldiers of the Satsuma clan at Myoko-ji temple in Yokohama. This band became the country's first military band. When the Emperor Meiji inspected the troops consisting of 4 clans including Satsuma, the military band played for the first time in public. In this occasion, Fenton hastily composed a ceremonial melody to accompany the poem "Kimigayo". Over time, this became accepted as the national anthem, although the current anthem is different from Fenton's original version. Fenton is also known as the father of brass band music in Japan and is celebrated for his musical contribution to Japan. Above is a first day composer fe...
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The National Anthem of Yugoslavia

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" Hej Slaveni " was composed in the mid nineteenth century by a Slovak in response to the loss of cultural identity in his homeland. Taking inspiration from the Polish anthem (which the melody is almost identical to), he composed an anthem that soon became popular with the whole Slavic community, in fact becoming the anthem of Slovakia during World War II (with Slovak words).    Being a confederation of mainly Slavonic states , the song seemed to be a natural fit for post-royalist Yugoslavia. It was sung at the first meetings of the resistance movement (later, the government), and became the temporary national anthem upon the re-establishment of Yugoslavia after the Axis defeat. A search was undertaken for a permanent anthem, but "Hej Slaveni" remained the most popular choice with the citizens; it was declared the temporary anthem in 1977, and was finally made official in 1988.   After most of the members of the Yugoslav federation had declared independence in the...
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The National Anthem of Paraguay

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Paraguayos, República o Muerte (Paraguayans, The Republic or Death!) is the national anthem of Paraguay . The lyrics were written by Francisco Acuña de Figueroa (who also wrote Orientales, la Patria o la tumba, the national anthem of Uruguay) under the presidency of Carlos Antonio López , who at the time delegated Bernardo Jovellanos and Anastasio González to ask Figueroa to write the anthem (Jovellanos and González were commissioners of the Paraguayan government in Uruguay). The anthem was officially finished by Figueroa on May 20, 1846. It still remains unclear who was responsible for the music. Some sources claim that Fre nchman Francisco de Dupuis was the composer, while others cite Francisco Acuña de Figueroa as the composer. Other sources claim that the music was composed by Francisco José Debali, repeating the team of the Uruguayan national anthem. What it is known for sure is that in 1933, the Paraguayan composer Remberto Giménez re-arranged and developed the final version o...
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The National Anthem of Belgium

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The Belgium anthem had its genesis when Belgium gained its independence in 1830. The popular legend goes that it was written by some young people in a cafe on Fource St. in Brussels in September 1830. While the story may or may not be true, the anthem does date back to that time. In 1860, the anti-Dutch lyrics were softened and the version that is in use today was created. When Dechet (better known as "Jenneval") wrote his verses, he called the poem 'La Bruxelloise'. His publisher thought it better to broaden the scope from the city's to the area's name (Brabant) and renamed it " La Brabançonne " (Song of Brabant). The music was written in September of 1830 and the first public performance of the anthem occurred the following month. Finally, in 1921, it was decreed that only the fourth stanza of the 1860 lyrics are official in the French and Dutch versions. However, an official version of the "Brabançonne" does not actually exist. Differe...
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Famous Cebuano Cubist Painters

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  Cubism was a revolutionary new approach to representing reality invented in around 1907–08 by artists Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque . They brought different views of subjects (usually objects or figures) together in the same picture, resulting in paintings that appear abstract and fragmented. In the Philippines, the best known cubist painter is the National artist from Pampanga ,  Vicente Silva Manansala .  He was of the first Abstractionists in the Philippine art scene.  His paintings depict a nation in transition, an allusion to the new culture brought by the Americans. Manansala together with Fabian de la Rosa are among the best-selling Philippine artists in the West.  Most of the other well known Cubist like Jose Joya and Ang Kiukok are from Luzon and Mindanao. Let us now look at the best cubist artists from Cebu . 1. Celso Duazo Pepito - (Spiritual Cubist) He is in the forefront of Cubism in Cebu . A renowned and well-respected cubist, he is ...
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The National Anthem of Portugal

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At the end of the 19th century, " A Portuguesa ," was written by the republicans Alfredo Keil (music) and Henrique Lopes de Medonca (words), upset over the British ultimatum to Portugal regarding Africa. Anywhere there was protests against the monarchy as a result, "A Portuguesa" could be heard. The song still echoes the original intent, the verses and especially the chorus speak of a call to arms, the third verse speaks of "insults" and "embarrassment" (which is how the Portuguese saw the British ultimatum), and the original last line of the chorus read "Contra os bretões marchar, marchar" (Against the British we march, we march!). With the success of the Republicans in ousting the monarchy and replacing them with a democratic government, "A Portuguesa" was approved as a national anthem shortly after in 1911, it is the first verse and chorus that is usually presented as the anthem. In 1956, there were a number of variations ...
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"Tayo na sa Antipolo"

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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 ...
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