Mabuhay, Pilipinas!
Today marks the Philippine's 124th Independence Day. In celebration of this historic day, I wanted to share with everyone one of my favorite kundiman songs. A kundiman is a genre of traditional Filipino love song that has a soothing, gentle melody and was oft used by gentlemen during harana (a traditional courtship practice where a besotted gentleman would, under their fair beloved's window, perform a moonlight serenade).
"Bayan Ko" or My Country is one of the most famous and recognizable patriotic songs in the Philippines. It is a kundiman, but instead of singing about romance, it speaks of love for our motherland and sadness for being occupied by foreign invaders. It was originally written in Spanish by revolutionary José Alejandrino and decades later translated into Tagalog (a.k.a. Filipino) by poet José Corazón de Jesús and paired with music by Constancio de Guzman.
I've attached below transcriptions of the original Spanish lyrics, the Tagalog and English translations, and videos of the kundiman sung in Spanish and Filipino.
Nuestra Patria
Nuestra Patria Filipina,
cuya tierra es de oro y púrpura.
Tantos tesoros guarda en su lar
que tientan al hurtador.
Y es por eso que el anglosajón,
con vil traición la subyuga;
Patria mía en prisión,
sacúdete del traidor.
Aún el ave libre en su volar,
llora cuando en la jaula está,
cuanto más nuestra Patria de amor
al verse sin paz ni dignidad.
Filipinas de mi corazón,
tus hijos jamás permitirán
que así te robe
tu bienestar y libertad.
Our Homeland
Our Philippine Homeland,
whose land is of gold and purple.
So many treasures hidden under,
that tempted the thief.
And that is why the Anglo-Saxon,
with vile treachery is subjugating it;
My Homeland in prison,
free yourself from the traitor.
Even the free bird in its flight,
Cries when it is in the cage,
How much more our beloved Homeland,
To be without peace nor dignity.
Philippines of my heart,
Your children will never allow
That you be robbed just like that,
Of your well-being and your liberty.
Bayan Ko
lupain ng ginto’t bulaklak.
Pag-ibig ang sa kaniyáng palad,
nag-alay ng ganda’t dilág.
At sa kaniyáng yumi at ganda,
dayuhan ay nahalina.
Bayan ko, binihag ka,
nasadlak sa dusa.
Below is the well-known "mistranslation" of the original Spanish. If you look at the Spanish text and its English translation, there were some parts that were altered completely, e.g. the reference to Anglo-Saxons is replaced by a generic dayuhan (foreigner) in the Tagalog version by José Corazón de Jesús. The alterations do not diminish the beauty of the song and I actually prefer it. It's more universal and is applicable to all foreign powers who ever eyed the Philippines.
Bayan Ko
Ang bayan kong Pilipinas,
lupain ng ginto’t bulaklak.
Pag-ibig ang sa kaniyáng palad
nag-alay ng ganda’t dilág.
At sa kaniyáng yumi at ganda,
dayuhan ay nahalina.
Bayan ko, binihag ka,
nasadlak sa dusa.
Ibon mang may layang lumipad,
kulungin mo at umiiyak!
Bayan pa kayáng sakdal-dilag,
ang ‘di magnasang makaalpas?
Pilipinas kong minumutya,
pugad ng luhá ko’t dalita,
aking adhika:
makita kang sakdal laya!
This is a more modern rendition of the song. I picked this because I've always loved Lea Salonga's voice and her singing conveys such emotion and grace and is technically brilliant.
p.s.
Some relevant reading:
https://www.philstar.com/opinion/2014/06/01/1329687/small-correction-reveals-important-detail
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bayan_Ko#cite_note-philstar-11 (Yes, yes, I know its Wikipedia., but it's short and sweet and has all the relevant translated texts and history of the song.)
p.p.s.
If you search for it on YouTube, you'll find renditions of Bayan Ko in English. Those, however, do not speak to me so I chose not add them to the post.
