Metropolitan Manila, commonly shortened to Metro Manila and formally the National Capital Region, is the capital region and largest metropolitan area of the Philippines. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay, the region lies between the Central Luzon and Calabarzon regions. Encompassing an area of 636.00 km2 (245.56 sq mi) and with a population of 13,484,462 as of 2020, it consists of sixteen highly urbanized cities: Manila—the capital city—Caloocan, Las Piñas, Makati, Malabon, Mandaluyong, Marikina, Muntinlupa, Navotas, Parañaque, Pasay, Pasig, Quezon City, San Juan, Taguig, and Valenzuela, along with one independent municipality, Pateros. As the second most populous and the most densely populated region in the Philippines, it ranks as the 9th most populous metropolitan area in Asia and the 6th most populous urban area in the world.
The music of the Philippines includes the musical performance arts in the Philippines and the music of Filipinos composed in various local and international genres and styles. Philippine musical compositions are often a mixture of Indigenous styles, and various Asian styles, as well as Spanish/Latin American and (US) American influences through foreign rule from those countries.
Maria Lea Carmen Imutan Salonga, is a Filipino singer and actress. Known primarily for her work in theatre, she has starred in musicals on Broadway and in the West End. Her accolades include a Tony Award and a Laurence Olivier Award, in addition to nominations for two Grammy Awards. She was conferred with the Presidential Medal of Merit in 1990 and the Order of Lakandula in 2007, and she was honored as a Disney Legend in 2011.
Intramuros is the 0.67-square-kilometer (0.26 sq mi) historic walled area within the city of Manila, the capital of the Philippines. It is administered by the Intramuros Administration with the help of the city government of Manila.
The Upsilon Sigma Phi (ΥΣΦ) is the oldest Greek-letter organization and fraternity in Asia. Founded in 1918, it is also the oldest student organization in continuous existence in the University of the Philippines. It has two chapters—a single chapter for the UP Diliman and the UP Manila campuses, and another for the UP Los Baños. Membership remains exclusive to UP students, and is by invitation only.
Juan Bautista H. Alegre III, known professionally as Johnny Alegre, is a jazz guitarist and composer from Manila, Philippines. He leads the jazz group Johnny Alegre Affinity and the world music group Humanfolk.
Cynthia Alexander is a singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist originally from the Philippines. She has performed on local and international stages including the Rainforest World Music Festival in Malaysia, the Jack Daniel's World Music Tour in Singapore and the Southeast Asian Night Market Festival in New Zealand. She also played gongs and electric bass in foreign engagements with Joey Ayala at ang Bagong Lumad.
Jose Ariel Jimenez Rivera, professionally known as Ariel Rivera, is a Filipino singer, songwriter and actor.
Regina Encarnacion Ansong Velasquez is a Filipino singer and actress. She is considered one of the most influential figures in Philippine popular culture and is known for her vocal range and belting technique. She had unorthodox voice training during her childhood, where she was immersed neck-deep in the sea. Velasquez rose to prominence after winning the television talent show Ang Bagong Kampeon in 1984 and the Asia Pacific Singing Contest in 1989. Under the name Chona, she signed a recording contract with OctoArts International in 1986 and released the single "Love Me Again", which was commercially unsuccessful. The following year, she adopted the stage name Regine Velasquez for her debut studio album, Regine (1987), under the guidance of Viva Records executive Vic del Rosario and producer Ronnie Henares. She explored Manila sound and kundiman genres on her second and third studio albums, Nineteen 90 (1990) and Tagala Talaga (1991).
Gerard Imutan Salonga is a Filipino musical conductor, composer, and arranger. From 2012 to 2020, he was the music director of the ABS-CBN Philharmonic Orchestra, assistant conductor of the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra from 2016 to 2018, and from 2019 to the present the resident conductor of the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra.
Maria Josefina Albert known as Joey Albert is a Filipino singer, songwriter, and lyricist. An alumna of St. Theresa's College Manila and Assumption College San Lorenzo, she began her professional singing career in 1981. In 1982, she was proclaimed winner of the Dream Girl Filipina contest on The Party, a television program hosted by Ariel Ureta over the now-defunct Banahaw Broadcasting Corporation. Albert became a member of The New Minstrels, a popular Philippine show band during the 1970s and the 1980s. Apart from Albert, The New Minstrels also produced many other outstanding Filipino musical artists.
Laurice Ilagan Guillen-Feleo is a Filipino actress, film and television director, and college professor.
Numerous events and festivals are held annually in Metro Manila. They include:
HUMANFOLK is the musical collaboration and concept band of guitarist-composer Johnny Alegre with the New York City–based Fil-Am percussionist Susie Ibarra and her husband, drummer Roberto Juan Rodriguez, together with the multi-instrumentalist Cynthia Alexander and the electronica exponent Malek Lopez. This collective is a pioneering effort marking the convergence in a contemporary Philippine setting of multiple musical idioms. The group's name is a deliberate conjoining of the words "human" and "folk", akin to "menfolk" and "womenfolk", without prejudice to gender and frequently set in all caps to distinguish it from a dictionary term.
Gerphil Geraldine Flores is a German-Filipino classical crossover singer. In 2015, she joined the inaugural season of Asia's Got Talent, where she finished as second runner-up. A soprano, she was dubbed "Asia's Golden Girl."
Ben&Ben are a Filipino indie folk-pop band from Manila. They were formed in 2016 by twin brothers Paolo and Miguel Benjamin Guico, calling themselves The Benjamins. A year later, they expanded into an ensemble and settled on the current name, adding Poch Barretto, Keifer Cabugao (violin), Patricia Lasaten (keyboards), Toni Muñoz (percussion), Andrew de Pano (percussion), Agnes Reoma, and Jam Villanueva (drums). The band's musical style has garnered praise for its anthemic quality and emotional engagement that appeals to a broad audience, while their lyrics focus on subjects including loss, heartbreak and relationship, and the journey towards self-love.
Tots Tolentino is a jazz musician from the Philippines.
