The Singing of the Anthem

The law is the law. And there's a law on the proper way of singing the Philippine National Anthem. "The rendition of the National Anthem, whether played or sung, shall be in accordance with the musical arrangement and composition of Julian Felipe." Whether sung in the country or abroad, the Lupang Hinirang has to be given due respect. It is the song and not the singer. It is the law and artistic freedom
cannot cancel such law.

I personally want the anthem sung the way it should be sung. According to Ambeth Ocampo, 2002 chair of the National Historical Institute (NHI), the anthem, when played, “must carry a brisk martial tone and tempo.” Celebrity singers may defend their stylized singing by invoking their "artistic freedom". (I just hate it when the last lines are shrieked with almost a vein-popping passion.) But their personal renditions only brought attention to themselves and not to the flag and country as a whole.

The many vocal versions of our National Anthem may have somehow revealed that we don't yet have a true national identity as a people. We're not united and therefore, divided, or worse, broken.