Biography
Nicanor (Santa Ana) Abelardo (February 7, 1893 – March 21, 1934) was a Filipino composer, one of the most important and popular classical composers in his country. He was among the composers who made the Kundiman, a Filipino traditional song form, into a sophisticated art song comparable to the Western lieder.
Born in San Miguel de Mayumo, Bulacan, to a family of artists, he was introduced to music by his father who taught him solfège and guitar at age 6. He showed great musical talent and quickly learned the violin and other stringed instruments. In 1901 he wrote his first composition, "Ang Unang Buko" which dedicated it to his grandmother.
In 1902, his uncle, the painter Juan Abelardo, took him to Manila to attend better schools, where he began to learn the piano; soon, he got a job as a pianist in a tavern.
From 1908 he started playing the piano in theaters and cinemas. In 1916, he entered the newly established Conservatory of Music in the University of the Philippines; during his studies, he composed the tune for the university's official anthem. The officials of the Conservatory recognized his talent and by 1918 he was appointed assistant instructor in solfège and harmony. He continued to conduct film orchestras and play the piano in saloons and cabarets, at that time he started drinking too much. In 1921 he finally received his bachelor's degree in science and composition and then attended a master's degree which he finished the following year. In 1924 he became head of the conservatory's composition department. He wrote most of his important works while at the conservatory. His graduation piece, a Piano Sonata in G major, was the first Sonata composed by a Filipino composer, and his graduate piece, the Piano Concerto in B minor, was the first concerto by a Filipino composer.
In 1931 he received a scholarship to pursue advanced musical studies abroad. He accepted the offer and enrolled at the Chicago Musical College where he was influenced by the musical innovations of the post-romantic European composers. He adapted with great ease to the new musical style as shown in his Violin Sonata which he wrote in 3 weeks after he began studying there. His music quickly became popular in college but he had problems with depression and alcoholism and returned home within a year without getting a degree. He continued teaching at the Conservatory in Manila and at the same time ran a boarding house which was nicknamed "The Little Conservatory" because he taught his students there.
Abelardo drank heavily and died on March 21, 1934 of heart failure. He left behind many pieces of unfinished music, among them a symphony and an opera.