Fides Cuyugan-Asensio | |
|---|---|
(cropped).png) Fides Cuyugan-Asensio in 2022 | |
| Born | Fides Belza Cuyugan (1931-08-01)August 1, 1931 (age 93) |
| Nationality | Filipino |
| Occupation(s) | soprano, librettist, director, teacher |
| Spouse(s) | Manuel D. Asensio, Jr. |
| Awards |  Order of National Artists of the Philippines |
Fides Belza Cuyugan-Asensio (born August 1, 1931) is a Filipinocoloratura soprano, director, librettist, TV host, translator, and teacher.[1]
Fides Belza Cuyugan is born on August 1, 1931, inLucena, Philippines. She is the daughter of Gervasio Santos Cuyugan and Jacinta Belza. During the war she directed, wrote, performed, and designed short musicals and plays. She studied at thePhilippine Women's University and finished two courses - a Bachelor of Arts in English, specializing in Drama in 1950 and a Bachelor of Music, Major in voice and minor in piano in 1951.
Her graduation recital in 1951 was well-received. It appeared in the front page ofThe Manila Times declaring "A star is born". More significantly, she was praised by the grand dameJovita Fuentes (who was in the audience), who proclaimed that the young soprano would "inherit my mantle someday."[2] After graduating she received a scholarship from theCurtis Institute of Music inPennsylvania where she graduated in 1955 with an Artist's Diploma, major in voice with special studies in stage movement andeurhythymics. She married Manuel D. Asensio, Jr. in 1954 and after graduating from Curtis Institute she returned to Manila.
Since 1955, she has become one of the leading performers and producers of opera in the country. She made her operatic debut in 1955 singing as Adele inStrauss'Die Fledermaus. She also performed in many world premiere performances of Filipino operas, like in Rosendo Santos'Mapulang Bituin, Eliseo Pajaro'sBinhi ng Kalayaan,Kasilag'sDularawan, and most notably as Sisa inFelipe de Leon'sNoli me Tangere in 1957. She has also sung lead roles inMenotti'sThe Telephone,Donizetti'sLucia di Lammermoor, Mozart'sDie Entführung aus dem Serail,Verdi'sLa Traviata,Britten'sTurn of the Screw, andDebussy'sL'Enfant Prodigue and many more. She also directed productions of several Filipino and Western operas.
In 1969-1974 she appeared as one of the hosts in the TV showSunday Sweet Sunday and in 1989-2002 in the TV showA Little Night of Music. She also appeared in four films: inOro Plata Mata (1982),Niño (2011),Aparisyon (2012), and inMana (2014).[3]
In 1986, Fides Asensio formed theMusic Theater Foundation of the Philippines (MTFP), a non-profit organization dedicated to promote, stage, and give scholarships to young classical performers. In 1988, she was appointed Chairman of Voice and Music Theater Department at the U.P. College of Music, a position she held until she retired in 1997. After her retirement, she was granted the title of Professor Emeritus by the U.P. Board of Regents. She is the artistic director of the Opera Guild of the Philippines and the president of the MTFP since 1987.[1][4][5]
Asensio is among the people listed in the 1999 bookOutstanding Woman of the Philippines by Victoria Paz, She was also awarded thePAMA-AS Gintong Award for the Musical Arts by theNCCA in 2005 and theGawad CCP Para sa Sining Award in 2015.[1]
She was also recognized as a National Artist for Music in 2022.[6]
Fides is also known for writing operalibrettos for several Filipino composers. Some of the librettos she wrote are listed here:[1][7]
