Fides Belza Cuyugan-Asensio was born on August 1,1931 and is a Filipino coloratura soprano, director, librettist, TV host, translator, and teacher.
12 Facts About Fides Cuyugan-Asensio
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Fides Cuyugan-Asensio is the daughter of Gervasio Santos Cuyugan and Jacinta Belza.
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Fides Cuyugan-Asensio studied at the Philippine 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.
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Fides Cuyugan-Asensio made her operatic debut in 1955 singing as Adele in Strauss' Die Fledermaus.
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Fides Cuyugan-Asensio performed in many world premiere performances of Filipino operas, like in Rosendo Santos' Mapulang Bituin, Eliseo Pajaro's Binhi ng Kalayaan, Kasilag's Dularawan, and most notably as Sisa in Felipe de Leon's Noli me Tangere in 1957.
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Fides Cuyugan-Asensio has sung lead roles in Menotti's The Telephone, Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor, Mozart's Die Entfuhrung aus dem Serail, Verdi's La Traviata, Britten's Turn of the Screw, and Debussy's L'Enfant Prodigue and many more.
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Fides Cuyugan-Asensio directed productions of several Filipino and Western operas.
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Fides Cuyugan-Asensio appeared in four films: in Oro Plata Mata, Nino, Aparisyon, and in Mana.
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In 1986, Fides Cuyugan-Asensio Asensio formed the Music Theater Foundation of the Philippines, a non-profit organization dedicated to promote, stage, and give scholarships to young classical performers.
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Fides Cuyugan-Asensio is the artistic director of the Opera Guild of the Philippines and the president of the MTFP since 1987.
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Fides Cuyugan-Asensio was recognized as a National Artist for Music in 2022.
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Fides Cuyugan-Asensio is known for writing opera librettos for several Filipino composers.