Sunday, 9 February 2014

Angel M. Peña


Photo from Angel Peña Facebook page
Angel Matias Peña was born on the 22nd of April, 1921 in Laoag, Ilocos Norte, Philippines. He is a composer and bass player.  He received a certificate of merit in double-bass playing under a grant (with Gary Hickling as his mentor) and a Licentiate from the Royal Schools of Music, London.

He has arranged various jazz concerts for the Upsilon Sigma Phi at the University of the Philippines. He worked as the dance band leader at the Hong Kong Hilton for a time and conducted lecture-demonstrations, among others at the Thomas Jefferson Library in Manila in 1968, and at the University of Hawaii in 1975.

Among his compositions for orchestral music are Igorot Rhapsody (1958), Concerto for Double Bass and Orchestra (1969), Concerto for Jazz Quartet and Orchestra (1981) and Symphonic Variations on Two Manobo Themes (1983). He has also composed chamber music works.  His most popular kundiman is "Iyo Kailan Pa Man" with words by Levi Celerio.

Angel Peña won two first prizes at the Philippine National Compositions Contests. He also received a plaque from the Order of Knights of Rizal for his composition, Homage to Rizal. He has three long playing records of original compositions released in Manila, the United States and Germany.

Angel Peña is affiliated with the Performing Rights Society Ltd of London, the United Kingdom Song Writers Guild of Great Britain, the American String Teachers' Association, the Musicians Association of Hawaii, and the Audition Committee of the Honolulu Symphony Orchestra.

Read more about Angel M. Peña on the following sites:



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