Felipe Padilla de León

De Leon was the third of four children by the second marriage of his mother Natalia Padilla to Juan de Leon. His father died when he was three years old, leaving his mother to raise him and his elder half-brother, Pedro P. San Diego. Before becoming a musician, he took various odd jobs to support his family, such as a shoe polisher, carabao herder, carriage driver, and vendor of various items. In 1927, he took up Fine Arts at the University of the Philippines, but he had to abandon his studies to make a living. He played the trombone in cabarets and circuses, and later worked as an assistant conductor of the Nueva Ecija High School Orchestra, where he started composing music. To improve his composing skills he again enrolled to the University of the Philippines, and graduated in 1939 with a diploma of music teacher and conductor. Much later, he continued his studies under Vittorio Giannini at the Juilliard School in New York, U.S.[2]

De Leon married pianist Iluminada Mendoza with whom he had six children, including Bayani, a prominent composer, and Felipe Jr., a writer.[2]

• Republic Cultural Heritage Award
• Rizal Pro-Patria Award
• Presidential Award of Merit
• Patnubay ng Kalinangan Award
• Composer of the Year (1949)
• Musician of the Year (Manila, 1958)
• National Artist of the Philippines (1997)[1][2]

• Diwa de Leon, Felipe's grandson composer