Francisco Buencamino
Biography
Francisco Beltran Buencamino was born on the 5th of November, 1883 in San Miguel de Mayumo, Bulacan. He is the sixth of ten children of Fortunato Buencamino and Luisa Beltran. His father was a church organist and band master, and his mother, a singer. Francisco was married to Pilar Luceno and they had two children, both of whom also took up music.
Francisco first learnt music from his father. At age 12, he could play the organ. At 14, he was sent to study at the Liceo de Manila. There, he took up courses in composition and harmony under Marcelo Adonay. He also took up pianoforte courses under a Spanish music teacher. He did not finish his education as he became interested in the sarswela.
Employment Background & Compositions
In the early 1900s, Francisco Buencamino taught music at the Ateneo de Manila and at the Centro Escolar de Senoritas. At the latter, he founded the Conservatory of Music and was its head until 1938. At the same time, he also handled music lessons at the Liceo de Manila. In the 1940s, he started working as a musical director. For a time, Francisco Buencamino frequently acted on stage. He also collaborated on the plays written and produced by Aurelio Tolentino. The Philippine Music Publishers, which Buencamino established, undertook the printing of his more important compositions, but it was not a successful venture.
Mayon Concerto
1948
Ang Larawan
1943
Pizzicato Caprice
1948
Some of the sarswelas he wrote are: "Marcela" (1904), "Si Tio Celo" (1904) and "Yayang " (1905). In 1908, the popularity of the sarswela started to wane because of American repression and the entry of silent movies. Francisco Buencamino then turned to composing kundimans. One of his earliest compositions is "En el bello Oriente" (1909), which uses Jose Rizal's lyrics. "Ang Una Kong Pag-ibig", a popular kundiman, was inspired by his wife. In 1938, he composed an epic poem which won a prize from the Far Eastern University during one of the annual carnivals. His "Mayon Concerto" is considered his magnum opus. Begun in 1943 and finished in 1948, "Mayon Concerto" had its full rendition in February 1950 at the graduation recital of Rosario Buencamino at the Holy Ghost College. "Ang Larawan" (1943), also one of his most acclaimed works, is a composition based on a Balitaw tune. The orchestral piece, "Pizzicato Caprice" (1948) is a version of this composition. Many of his other compositions were lost during the Japanese Occupation, when he had to evacuate his family to Novaliches, Rizal.
Achievements
Buencamino Music Academy
He founded the Buencamino Music Academy in 1930. It was authorized by the Department of Public Instruction to grant music degrees. Some of his pupils were Nicanor Abelardo, Ernestina Crisologo, Estela Velasco, Beatrice Alba, and Amelia Hidalgo.
Manila Music Lovers Society Award (1952)
Francisco Buencamino died on the 16th of October, 1952. in the same year, he was given a posthumous Outstanding Composer Award by the Manila Music Lovers Society.
Personal Opinion
Overall, Francisco Buencamino is a great composer. It is sad to know that the rest of his works were buried in the sands of time. But despite of this, it is still good to know that his best works are still available in this time to hear, which are honestly good to listen to. I hope that works similar to Francisco's may be able to gain some attention in the future.