PASTORES A BELEN
(Shepherds to Bethlehem)

Pastores A Belen was one of the musical highlights in a Christmas play of the same title written by the Philippine national hero, Dr. Jose P. Rizal. The play, which was an array of choruses, solos and dances, was written at the request of a certain Father Sanchez during Rizal's exile in Dapitan (1892-1895), a remote town in Mindanao in southern Philippines. The song adheres to the style of villancico, a genre of Spanish music most prevalent in the Renaissance but later produced a variant that reflected the Christian vision imposed during the process of colonization by the Spanish and the Portuguese. As such, it found popular expression in Christmas festivities.

Composing was only one of Rizal's myriad talents. Some of his other musical works are "La Deportacion," a danza, "Talisay," a choral ode, "En El Bello Oriente," and "Alin Mang Lahi," both kundimans.