University of the Philippines Cherubim and Seraphim

The UP Cherubim and Seraphim is the official children's choir of the University of the Philippines. Composed of selected schoolchildren ranging from 6-15, the University's official children's choir has achieved national and international prominence having toured Europe, the United States, Canada and Asia.

Founded on September 21, 1971, by Flora Zarco Rivera of the U.P. College of Music, the U.P. Cherubim and Seraphim was intended to be a laboratory for experiments on children’s choral singing in the Philippines. In the 34 years of its existence, the choir has championed the development of a unique Filipino repertoire for children, regularly commissioning new works and drawing on the expertise of artists from various colleges of the University. It shares this repertoire with children all over the nation in the form of live performances, workshops, recordings as well as appearances on television for various networks. The group also serves as the laboratory choir for the U.P. College of Music, regularly lending its services for student recitals. Finally, it acts as a service choir for U.P. concerts, programs and other official functions.

Its present director is Prof. Elena Rivera Mirano, Ph.D. of the U.P. College of Arts and Letters.

For 31 years, the choir has joined various music festivals here and abroad. However, Rivera and Mirano have made it a choir policy not to join contests, as it encourages competition and not cooperation among members.

“We don’t join competitions as a matter of policy. We want to emphasize the spirit of cooperation rather than competition,” explained Mirano.