Ilocos Norte as concert destination

"TAKE note of that house. Aside from distinct Ilocano decor, it has singers

chanting the Guling-Guling songs. Mark the beat and the rhythm."

Thus admonished Irene Marcos Araneta, the musician, as I boarded a

caromata for judges led by former Miss Universe Margie Moran-Floirendo,

choreographer Ramon Obusan and INQUIRER columnist Bambi Harper.

As Jury No. 4 in the House Decor and Street Dancing contests of the recently

concluded Guling-Guling Festival in Paoay, Ilocos Norte, my mind was not so

much on house decors but on possible concert venues, ideas for an Ilocos song

cycle (in the category of one superbly done by Eliseo Pajaro and sang by an

Ilocano tenor, Noel Velasco) or an orchestral suite inspired by the place.

The Guling-Guling was introduced by Spanish friars in the 16th century as a

way of interacting with local parishioners. Now it has evolved into a festival

where women don their abel (hand-woven clothing material) kimona and

house owners join decor tilts showcasing what is unique about the Paoayeño

way of life.

The festival certainly revealed Paoay’s colorful past—its dances, its delicacies

(dudol), its wine (basi), its folk rituals.

But after going through hundreds of gaily decorated houses and an equal

number of street dancers garbed in assorted abel costumes, my mind was on

Ilocos Norte as a cultural destination. Bambi and I inspected the Paoay Church

(now a UN Heritage Site) and I said what a perfect venue for Mahler’s

"Resurrection."

After a walk on Pagudpud Beach and a breathtaking view of the China Sea on

top of Cape Bojeador Lighthouse in Burgos town, I certainly would want to

proceed to the Luna House in Badoc town where the country’s first violinist,

Manuel Luna (brother of painter Juan Luna), came from. That house should be

transformed into a venue for chamber music to remember the country’s first

violinist who graduated in a Barcelona conservatory of music in the late 1800s.

Old musical glory

Also perfect for theater is the Bacarra Ruins in Bacarra town where I saw old

discarded violins and a dilapidated piano and harpsichord in the parish museum.

Those neglected musical instruments certainly speak of the old musical glory of

this town and I hope the NCCA will do something about them.

"Are you calling the bats?" Bambi Harper asked me as I clapped to test the

acoustics of Sarrat Church. In the company of Margie Moran, we inspected the

church catacombs as I played on my tape soprano Sumi Jo to neutralize a

"bold" pop song ("Sex Bomb") being played somewhere else.

As bats flew in and out of the Sarrat Church catacombs, I told Margie M. and

Bambi H., "Isn’t this catacomb perfect for ‘Giselle’ Act II?"

At the Palazzo de Laoag where we were served exotic Ilocano dishes, the hotel

manager, Nonong Ablan (a confessed frustrated musician), offered his Capilla

Multipurpose Hall as a possible chamber music venue. To one’s surprise, the

hotel has two pianos—a baby grand at the Café Teresa coffee shop and an

upright in the Capilla Hall.

"All you need in this hotel is a concert season and a piano tuner," said Nonong.

Grandeur

But speaking of grandeur, nothing beats the Fort Ilocandia Hotel as another

cultural venue. It managed to capture the Ilocano century-old living quarters

and it sits on a 77-hectare land by the sea.

The grand ballroom has a Yamaha baby grand and the hall itself can

accommodate a symphony orchestra.

What I’d suggest to NCCA and the CCP is to mount a composition and

choreographic competition on the subject "Ilocos Norte Sketches" and the

winning suite should open a season of music and dance in the province’s

different concert venues.

But right now, I could hardly wait to listen to Pajaro’s "Ilocano Song Cycle"

being sang in a recital at Palazzo de Laoag.

How I wish the next edition of the Guling-Guling Festival will feature celebrated

Ilocano artists interpreting Ilocano songs and I hope the festival’s rich folkloric

components will not end in a comedy skit at the town plaza but in an evening of

Brahms and Pajaro at the town’s cultural center.

[ Paoay Church Wiki ]