By Philip M. Lustre Jr.
N.B. I was in Intramuros on March 25, 2018 (Palm Sunday) and I witnessed the following Filipino musical traditions.)
FILIPINO musical traditions hardly die. In fact, they persist. And I saw why and how.
I was witness this afternoon to two genres of Filipino musical traditions. I swear before the graveyard of my most beloved grandmother that they are very much alive today. The influx of modernity and other pernicious influences – local and foreign - do not affect adversely their musical survival.
I was about to enter the National Commission on Culture and Arts (NCCA) building in Intramuros to interview a source about the ecological issues confronting Boracay island and watch a rondalla concert there, when I saw denizens in the nearby urban poor community doing what we call “Pabasa,” or the singing of the sufferings and passions of Jesus Christ at the hands of His tormentors.
Pabasa, also called “Pasyon,” is a musical epic narrative of Jesus Christ focusing on his sufferings, death, and resurrection. It is a tradition that dates back to the Spanish colonial rule. It starts on Palm Sunday and ends during Easter Sunday. Hence, it is a week-long, 24-hour musical tradition usually done without any stop.
The musical tradition requires denizens to sing the he suffering and passion of the Lord Jesus in a monotone continuous voice. Assigned singers alternate in completing the weekly musical ritual. It is part of the tradition of the Roman Catholic Church, of which an overwhelming number of Filipinos belong.
I went to the Pasyon, where about nine persons gathered before an improvised altar with a white cloth on the wall and a table with three statues, two, Jesus Christ and one, Blessed Virgin Mary, a crucifix, and a lighted candlelight. They appeared to be neighbors in an urban poor comnunity. The women wore shorts and blouses, or the so-called “pambahay” type, and pairs of slippers. A lone guy was in sando and shorts too.
Each singer had a copy of a “Awit at Salaysay ng Pasyon ng Panginoong Hesus Kristo.” I was told it was the official copy of the Roman Catholic Church. A copy has about 100 pages. After completing reading and singing each page of the pamphlet, the Pasyon singers would repeat it again until they reach Eastern Sunday.
Pasyon is essentially a form of street music. It is meant to be sung on the streets, although, in some provinces, they do it in the comforts of a home. It is part of the Filipino culture of “panata,” or pledge. A person does the panata usually as an act of atonement for his sins. Following religiously a given panata could mean spiritual salvation for a devotee.
I was told certain musical scholars have attempted to give musical structures to Pasyon, but this has not been successful. Pasyon is Pasyon. It is not meat to be so structured unike othr formal musical genres. So long as the spirit of the song are there, it does not matter how its singers would do it.
After watching the Pasyon, I went to the NCCA auditorium to see the rondalla concert. For the first part, the 17-man NCCA Employees Union did some Filipino and western musical compositions. The second part had the six-man Cesar Espejo Rondalla Band, which did three Filipino songs (Pasa Doble, Matud Nila, and Dalagang Filipino) and three western Music selections (Couchard, Sole Mio, and Dance of the Dwarves).
I saw some rondalla bands performing in the malls or elsewhere, but in the small auditorium like the NCCA’s, rondalla music is delicate. A slight mistake could be fatal. This afternoon, I saw the rondalla players doing it with unparalleled musical virtuosity, clarity, and discipline.
The Cesar Espejo’s Rondalla Band did justice to the songs. Although it only had six members, what I saw and heard music that was most exhilarating to the soul. A rondalla band has four instruments – banduria, octavina, guitar, and double bass – but skillful players could produce outstanding music.
I left the auditorium deeply satisfied at our own musical traditions. Yes, we could claim to the world that we are a musical people. Filipinos know their music.
No comments:
Post a Comment