Philippine High School for the Arts

The Philippine High School for the Arts (PHSA) is a public, non-secular, non-profit
special school for artistically gifted and talented adolescents founded on June 11, 1977 through
the Presidential Decree (PD) 1287. In 1990, under Executive Order 420, the school was
converted into a regular government agency attached to the Department of Education (DepEd)
and implemented its program in consultation with the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP).
It is located at the National Arts Center owned by the CCP found in the premises of University of
the Philippines in Mt. Makiling, Los Banos, Laguna.
PHSA envisions a nation nurtured by the peoples pride in their artistic and cultural
traditions and a national center for excellence and leadership in the arts, research, training,
education and support system (ARTES). It combines the secondary education level program
with a special curriculum and support programs committed to the preservation, enhancement
and promotion of Filipino Cultural Heritage.
The school continues to innovate programs that directly address the socioeconomic,
political and cultural realities in the country, in line with its firm belief that the artist plays a big
role in nation-building. The institution offers five courses of specialization in the arts: Dance
(Ballet and Folk), Creative Writing, Music, Theater Arts, and Visual Arts.
Entrance to the school is highly competitive. Every year, the school opens its application
process through the Annual Nationwide Search for Young Arts Scholars (ANSYAS). Applicants
must be graduating Filipino elementary school students not more than 14 years old with
outstanding abilities in the arts. The successful applicant is awarded free tuition fee, board and
lodging (with weekend home leave with parents or with a designated legal guardian), classes
with master teachers, a monthly stipend, plus the chance to represent the country and the
school in international festivals, competitions, and exchange programs. The grant is renewable
every year for four to six consecutive school years upon satisfaction of academic and nonacademic requirements.

Maquiling Ballet
The Maquiling Ballet (MB) is the resident ballet company of Philippine High School for
the Arts (PHSA). The company aims to produce excellent classical and modern ballet
performers, choreographers, and cultural leaders of the country. MB has dedicated itself to
research-based choreographies and productions to help conserve our vanishing tradition and
folkways in dance and to underscore the role of a carefully planned dance education in national
economic development.
MB has done numerous outreach performances in Manila, Laguna, Baguio, Mindoro,
Pangasinan, Bicol, Davao, Bacolod, Batangas, Nueva Ecija, Silay, Leyte, Bohol, Cebu,
Midsayap, and General Santos City. The troupe has also been invited to perform and compete
in countries like Brunei, Monaco, Belgium, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, and Singapore.
Thirty-nine years (39) since its inception, the organization has produced over 100
alumni, most of whom have made their mark as choreographers, artistic directors, ballet
masters, art managers, and performers in various dance companies, schools, and universities
locally and internationally.
(The Maquiling Ballet logo is designed by Jarmonya visual arts major, Wika P. Nadera.
For background, he used blue, which is the official color of Philippine High School for the Arts.
The blue color, according to him, also represents daloy or flow of movement of dancers. The
brush strokes accentuate the fluid motion.
The initials of Maquiling, M and B, are written in baybayin or the ancient Filipino
alphabet. The script Ma, which looks like arms of a dancer, is placed on top of the script Ba,
which looks like a ballerinas tutu. The Q in the MaQuiling Ballet, which serves as head,
completes the ballet dancer figure.)
Jarmonya
Jarmonya is the batch name of students who entered the Philippine High School for the
Arts (PHSA) in schoolyear 2012-2013. The students themselves chose the national artists that
would represent their batch and they chose Jose T. Joya and Severino Montano.
Jose T. Joya (1931-1996), a painter and multimedia artist, pioneered modern and
abstract expressionism in the Philippines. Severino Montano (1915-1980), a playwright,
director, actor and theater organizer, institutionalized legitimate theater in the Philippines.
The batch name, Jarmonya, combination of Joya and Montano, simply means unity and
concord. It is said that those who carry this name have deep inner desire to lead, organize,
supervise, and to achieve status. It is hoped that the batch becomes the nations next leaders
in the different art fields.
Jarmonya is the 39th batch of Philippine High School for the Arts.