A pioneer of Cuyono music:
Fe Tria Fernandez and the tales from Cuyo
By Jan Kashmir Tan | posted 21/09/2024
‘’Music is a way of expressing, learning, and preserving one’s culture.’’
In the advent of popular music and other musical genres that capture the heart of those belonging to the new generation, folksongs often struggle
to find their place in our contemporary society. These songs, inspired by the local cultures and traditions of often very important places, are what
Fe Tria-Fernandez alongside her late husband, Jose Fernandez fought to promote, preserve, and enrich in her lifetime as a composer, musician, and educator.
Tria-Fernandez is a daughter of Cuyo. Born to Vicenta Timbancaya and Felomino Viana Tria on September 20, 1929, Fe spent her early years with her family in the island town situated northeast of mainland Palawan.
When she was two years old, Tria-Fernandez’s father died and her mother never remarried. Vicenta subsequently passed away when Fe was just
13 years old. At this time, her grandparents Matia and Juan assumed the role as her foster parents.
She finished her elementary and secondary education at the Cuyo Central School and St. Joseph Academy, respectively. Fe then attended Sta. Rita College in Batangas as a working student where she was tasked to play
the piano, a skill she learned as a young girl from her late mother, twice a day during masses. This, according to her daughter Mae, saved her from doing the laundry or cleaning the convent as she feared these tasks would have given her muscle spasms. Despite the struggles she had to overcome as a “probinsyana’’ miles away from her beloved Cuyo, Fe maintained good
standing in her academics and eventually obtained her elementary teacher’s certificate (which was then the equivalent of a bachelor’s degree)
graduating as the class valedictorian.
Eager to empower the community back home, she started her professional career as an elementary school teacher. It was during this time then that Fe had noticed people’s fading interest in listening to Cuyonon songs. Fearing
that the next generations of Palawenos would no longer be able to hear these songs that detailed the way of living in Cuyo, Fe utilized her skill in music and in playing the piano, tirelessly compiling and recording folk songs in her town back in the early 50s. She collaborated with her husband, Jose Torres Fernandez, himself a songwriter, in what turned to be the couple’s life-long mission. Jose was responsible for writing the songs’ lyrics while Fe composed the music for them.
“Papa and mama made beautiful music together,’’ shares her youngest daughter Mae. ‘’They collaborated on many researches preserving the culture of Cuyo.’’ One of their most notable works include the couple’s research on Ploning, which provided background and inspiration for the 2008 romantic family drama of the same starring Judy Ann Santos and some of the country’s best movie actors and actresses. Fe first heard the song from the locals in Magsaysay, a former barangay in Cuyo which is now its neighboring town, back in 1953. It tells the story about the life and longing of Cuyono women in the absence of their beaus back in the time when Cuyono men leave the island to seek a better life in the cities. Tria-Fernandez then provided the musical notes for the song so it can be performed in choirs. The movie, which was loosely based on the song, received several accolades from different award-giving bodies and was featured in different International Film Festivals. It was also the country’s official entry for Best Foreign Language Film in the 2009 Academy Awards (Oscars).
In 1976, Fe became the Music, Arts, and PE supervisor of the Schools Division of Palawan. Some of the policies she implemented during her stint at the Department of Education pertain to the proper way of singing the national anthem, patriotic hymns. She encouraged teachers to teach the correct melody of Cuyono folk songs as they were sung by the old Cuyonons.
Fe was also instrumental in the composition of our university’s hymn, PSU
Beloved. She and her husband Jose were asked by the then University President Walfrido Ponce De Leon’s wife to come up with the idea. It was an overnight affair, say their children. A day after they were requested to compose a song that would be sung the Palawan State University community, Fe and Jose were able to
complete their task.
She was deeply in-loved with Cuyo and its rich culture that her songs
often delved into the way of life in the island. She composed Cuyo Balitaw which according to her, ‘’tells about the life of Cuyo.” This song is now considered as a folk song and is sung during public cultural programs in the province. Here is a fragment of its lyrics, with the corresponding translation:
Sa kapoporoan maambeng kong
Masanag ngani ang bolan
Manga bata ig mga malam nagaparasiar sa pantalan
Mga soltero ig daraga nagagitara magkaranta
Kada isara mi isara maambeng anang leba.
(It’s a happy time in the islands
When the moon is shining bright
Young and old alike go strolling to the wharf
Young men and women play the guitar and sing,
Everyone is happy!)
The Fernandez couple’s other notable compositions include: Marcha Cuyo,
Manigpangisda, Palawan Polytechnic College, Inc. (PPCI) Hymn, Fullbright Hymn, and the Puerto Princesa City Hymn, all of which reflect the cultures, traditions, and way of life in these respective places. Aside from these, they also co-authored several books, including Palawan Flora and Fauna, Makaranta Kita (a compilation of Cuyono folk songs), Mga Karantaen sa Palawan, Chronology of Events in Palawan History, and a Translation of Cuyono words and phrases.
Even after retiring from government service, Fe did not cease to be active
in promoting her local culture. She still worked with her husband, until his death in 2009, on several other researches and helped budding researchers by providing insights to their works.
Her work did not go unnoticed, as she was a recipient of various awards,
among which were the Ulirang Ina, Outstanding Woman, Governor’s Award, and VP Leni Robredo’s Istorya ng Pag-Asa award in 2018.
Despite being the colossal figure that she is in her field of expertise, Fe
Fernandez did not lack the qualities of a loving and affectionate mother. After marrying her former high school classmate, Jose, they were blessed with six children, all of whom are also accomplished writers, musicians, academicians, and professionals. Their children also worked with them on some of their researches and books. Three of her children are now working in PSU. Bimbo, her oldest son, is the head of the SCAO (Sports and Cultural Affairs Office) while her daughters Mae Legazpi and Dr. Marie Jardinico are teaching. Mae, who has followed in her mother’s footsteps to become a teacher and researcher of Cuyonon culture, is the Director of PSU’s Public Relation, Information, and Media Office (PRIMO). Dr. Marie Jardinico, on the other hand was the former dean of the CBA and of the Graduate School. Her other children are Cynthia, a CPA-lawyer, Dindo, an overseas ship captain, and Ket, also a music teacher.
Old age did not seem to take a toll on her. She was diabetic for almost 45 years and underwent operation on her intestines when she was 88. Her health, however, declined after her intestine operation. Fe was working on her autobiography in mid- 2019 when she accidentally slipped in their house. She was hospitalized for weeks but finally succumbed to pneumonia, almost two months after her 90th birthday. Tributes poured in for the late music icon. Amidst the atmosphere of grief and sorrow, her children could only speak of the fondest memories they had of her when she was still living.
While she was characterized as a strict and disciplinarian mother who hated tardiness, irresponsibility, and procrastination by her children, they all agreed that she was actually caring. “Ma was very protective. She used to tag along whenever she’s going to school because according to her, I was accident prone as a toddler,’’ said Dr. Marie Fernandez-Jardinico.
Her eldest child, meanwhile, recalls how their mother feared being late. ‘’If her flight is scheduled at 5 pm, she would already want to leave for the airport and dress up at 8 in the morning.’’ Her favorite saying was ‘’It’s better to be an hour early than a minute late.’’ She was also punctual at work, sometimes even coming to work earlier than the janitors and always had a ready smile for everyone she meets on the road. “I inherited from her that infectious smile…to smile at and greet everyone I meet even if I don’t know who they are.,’’ Mae added.
Her son Bimbo shared funny memories with her mother. ‘’My son, of all my children, you are the most talented…talented in choosing the wrong friends!’’ her mom, he recalled, would say to him. He added that whenever their parents had a new composition, Fe would ask him to make a critique of it before publicizing their work.
Even Fe’s grandchildren speak of her in the sweetest and most affectionate
manner. In a Young Blood column published in Inquirer.net, Mae’s son, Franz, described his grandmother as ‘’ a most ardent Palawena,’’ highlighting her contributions to the preservation of our cultural heritage. “The greatest lesson I learned from her was this: Support and love your family wholeheartedly in their endeavors, and always be ready to forgive,’’ he wrote.
Mae’s youngest child, Rafi, who is currently studying in Palawan State
University’s Laboratory Junior High School took to social media to pay tribute to her Lola Fe. ‘’On very special Sundays, she would make us Bandi, which is still my favorite snack. When she plays the piano, the world spins faster and faster. Tempo of the songs she plays goes faster and faster until I imagine she’s back on the dance floor with grandpa,’’ he said.
Fe’s colleagues in the academe also joined in sharing good words about her.
‘’She was very passionate about promoting the Cuyonon culture, particularly the Cuyonon songs. She was a very simple person, a devoted and sincere wife, and a loving and caring mother,’’ said Ester Palao Menciano, a retired teacher and one of those who share Fernandez’s advocacy to streamline Cuyo’s rich culture.
Fe left behind her six children, 21 grandchildren, and 11 great grandchildren. She lived a full life. Her efforts to bring Cuyonon music out of the shell and into the urban areas bore fruit when a provincial ordinance back in 2008 required a special night to highlight Cuyonon songs and performances during the annual Baragatan sa Palawan festival. In one of her last interviews, Fe Fernandez proudly shared. “Now, more people embrace Cuyonon music. They learned to appreciate it. Because if we don’t push for the recognition of our own culture, it might eventually be forgotten.’’
Her children are proud with the legacy that she and her husband had:
that not only of promoting and preserving their hometown’s culture but also the goodness of her heart, her generosity, decency, respect, and love that she shared to everybody.
Thank you to Mrs. Fe Tria-Fernandez for without her, we will not be able to
listen to the songs which form part our shared identities as sons and daughters of Palawan. May her soul rest in eternal peace and may she finally be reunited with her childhood sweetheart, Jose.
This feature article was released on the Tabloid edition of Pioneer, in the Academic Year 2019–2020.
