Rondalya sa Seattle…
… is a Filipino American folkloric music group, founded in 2004 by students at the University of Washington.
Photo by Erika Shultz. (Thanks, Erika!)
Mission…
Rondalya sa Seattle exists to help foster an awareness of traditional Filipino culture throughout the Seattle community—and beyond.
We strive to provide a space for community members to gather and collectively engage in a musical tradition that has been historically significant to our people.
We also acknowledge that rondalla is just one of many significant musical traditions passed down by our ancestors.
Rondalya especially endeavors to encourage Seattle-area youth to cherish and appreciate traditional aspects of Filipino American culture as well as serve as a catalyst for intergenerational dialogue.
The Filipino rondalla is one of several “rondalla” traditions that exist throughout Castilian Spain and its former colonies.
In the Philippines, the term “rondalla” has come to refer to an ensemble of plucked string instruments and its associated genre of music—inarguably influenced by the popular music ensembles brought to the islands by Spanish colonizers. Such ensemble types included the comparsa (cumparsa), murga (mursa, murza), tuna and estudiantina—in addition to the serenading ensemble that serves as the Filipino rondalla’s namesake (Pfeiffer 1976:149).
Through the 18th and 19th centuries, these ensemble forms were adapted by “indio” musicians and incorporated into the existing pre-colonial music culture.By the 20th century, the Filipino rondalla had evolved characteristics that now distinguish it as a unique musical genre and ensemble form.
Left to right: bandurya, oktabina, and la-ud.
Instrumentation…
While the Spanish ensemble forms also included bowed string, wind, and percussion instruments, the Filipino Rondalla has become defined as an ensemble of only plucked string instruments: bandurya (bandurria, banduria), oktabina (octavina), la-ud (laud), gitara (guitarra, guitar), and bajo de uñas (which is now commonly supplanted by the upright bass).
Now tuned slightly lower than their European predecessors, the Filipino bandurria and laud have also evolved slimmer bodies and additional strings. The octavina and bajo de uñas are Filipino developments, unique to the Philippines. See Molina (1967) and Pasamba for a more detailed description of each of these instruments.
"The banduria is a valued legacy of our forefathers. It is a mark of Filipino ingenuity and an emblem of the musical culture of the nation."
- Celso Espejo
Repertoire…
Spanish precursor ensembles used popular European compositions as the basis for repertoire. To this day, remnants of these European songs and styles remain in the music traditions of the Philippines—but noticeably altered by aspects of Filipino cultures and languages. Chinese, American, and Latin American influences are also noticeable. Yet, as with so many other aspects of Filipino culture, the distinct and unique character of rondalla should not be overlooked for all of its non-native influences. The core of the rondalla’s repertoire are melodies and forms that could have only originated in the cultural crossroads of the Philippines—though not uncommonly supplemented by any song that catches the musician’s ear, regardless of genre or origin.
Social function…
It can be assumed that any European musical tradition brought to the Philippines by the Spanish would have been initially placed within the social hierarchy of the colonial society. Castilian music would have been primarily reserved for and enjoyed by the elite—inaccessible to the native “indio” populations. From historical archives, little has been published regarding the emergence of the Filipino rondalla among the lower-classes, or the evolution of its social function over the course of the Spanish period (1565-1898). Molina (1967:11) writes: “During the last years of the Spanish regime, there were hundreds of rondallas more or less formally organized and scattered throughout the island [sic]—which can be considered as the pioneering musicians—but no record of their activities is available.”
After the tumultuous period in which the Philippines was surrendered to American rule, the rondalla—by then utilized among numerous folk traditions throughout the islands—began to take on a decidedly nationalist role within Filipino music culture. Molina writes of a “peak of popularity” between 1905 and 1913, when the “Native String Bands” were regularly employed to entertain the passengers of American trans-Pacific ocean liners. Undoubtedly, the rondalla’s versatility and portability made it an ideal ambassadorial cultural symbol for the emerging nation. This role would become even more galvanized with the University of the Philippines’s decidedly nationalist project of collecting native songs and dances (1934-1938). The resulting anthologies documenting 138 folk songs and 238 folk dances were disseminated throughout the islands primarily through the American-established public school system—supplying the rondalla with a core repertoire (Santos 2005:189).
Another peak of rondalla popularity would occur in the late 1960s and into the 1970s, paralleling the rising prominence of the Bayanihan National Folk Dance Company—as well as the nationalist projects of the Marcos dictatorship. Today, a new recognition of rondalla music can be seen among Filipino Americans, fostered primarily within second-generation student organizations that endeavor to promote a sense of collective Filipino (American) identity.
References…
Molina, Antonio J. 1967. Music of the Philippines. Aspects of Philippine culture, 3.
Pfeiffer, William R. 1976. Filipino music: indigenious [sic], folk, modern. Dumaguete City, Philippines: Silliman Music Foundation.
Santos, Ramon Pagayon. 2005. “The UP conservatory of music: nesting ideologies of nationalism in a Filipino music.” Tunugan: four essays on Filipino music. Diliman, Quezon City: University of the Philippines Press.
Rondalla resources…
Get #rondalyawoke
The following is an annotated listing of rondalla resources that I have found over the years. Everything that I wish I'd had access to when I was a kid. It's definitely a labor of love in progress. Any copyrighted material posted here is for educational purposes only. Many of these sources are rare and obscure; please take the time to properly cite each source that you use.
Charts & scores…
Rondalya Charts & Transcriptions
In Rondalya we try to preserve the tradition of learning songs and arrangements by rote. But apparently I made a few efforts to transcribe some arrangements for future reference. None of these have been edited very carefully. Sorry, use at your own risk.
Buenaventura Rondalla Arrangements
Planting Rice
I found these manuscripts handwritten by Alfredo Santos Buenaventura in the library at UP Diliman. Full disclosure, these scanned scores are almost impossible to read. But I'm putting them out into the world in the hope that someone will copy them into a music notation program—a project that I've been meaning to get to for years now. But then #life. HMU if you beat me to it!
Maharlika Rondalla members, Mrs. Rumbaoa and Mrs. Flor. Beacon Hill (2005).
Websites…
Santos, J. Sonny. Rondalla, U.P. Alumni and Friends Rondalla, 1995.
This is the first rondalla website I found—and it still is one of the most comprehensive. This was a godsend in our group's early development and is one of the models for this website. The UPA&FR current website is also very cool. Definitely a first stop—and definitely like stepping through an internet time warp.
Raise your hand if you saw The Debut, and almost started crying when you saw a real rondalla up on the big movie screen. Since that first exposure to RCLA, the sense of cultural pride I feel when listening/watching these guys has made me similarly emotional on multiple occasions. Like, right now, too.
Books & articles…
Culig, Edna Aurora Cabilatazan. 2004. Rondalla arrangements of Filipino folk dances. Quezon City: The University of the Philippines Press.
I hope to one day find this woman and give her a hug. These arrangements are straight-forward if not classic. Nothing too fancy and impossible to play - a good dose of rondalla basics conveyed in clean/legible music notation.
Dadap, Michael. The virtuoso bandurria: basic method for the bandurria as a solo instrument. 4 ed. 1, Dumaguete City, Philippines: UniTown Publishing House, 2007.
The only bandurria method that I've found (on Amazon.com!). Starts with open string exercises and then works up on each string over 20 lessons. Easy to follow, but explained through solfege (do, re, mi) so American kids will have to do a little bit of adjusting.
Molina, Antonio J. 1967. Music of the Philippines. Aspects of Philippine culture, 3.
This is one of the more extensive discussions of rondalla that I've found. It's also got the funkiest pictures.
Pasamba, Angelita Cariaso. Rondalla Music. Manila, Philippines: Rex Book Store.
A useful collection of rondalla arrangements—original compositions and folk songs. The introduction gives an overview of the rondalla tradition and of rondalla instruments (including tuning and "technical regularities").
If you can get past the fact that indigenous is misspelled on the cover, you'll find a concise little entry on rondalla music.
An examination of the role of rondalla music in the Filipino diaspora (particularly Taiwan and Australia). The section on rondalla history and ensemble characteristics is particularly dope.
Recordings…
Bayanihan Philippine Dance Company. 1959. Bayanihan Philippine Dance Company. [S.l.]: Monitor.
This was the recording of Filipino music that I grew up with. It wasn't until high school that I realized how bad-ass the Bayanihan rondalla was. These old guys could play SO fast. In regard to the "tribal" and Moro sections of this recording, I think it's important to remember that much of Bayanihan's repertoire could be considered as much the product of Marcos-era nationalist fervor (and aesthetic conventions) as it was the presentation of "authentic" cultural traditions. For rondalla players, be aware that some of these tracks are in fact short medleys (e.g. Bailes de Antaño)—not necessarily discrete songs.
Bayanihan Philippine Dance Company. 1978. Bayanihan Philippine Dance Company: Vol. 7. New York, N.Y.: Monitor.
From what I gather, Bayanihan's trademark was presentations of songs and dances sewn together to create long, theatrical suites. While I get how Bayanihan (which took a lot of cues from the ballet world) came to call these non-stop dance medleys "suites," I am not totally comfortable with the way that the term is used in the Filipino Club/Pilipino Cultural Night world—e.g. "the Tinikling is from the Rural Suite of dances." Supposedly, a suite is a larger work created by cutting a bunch of smaller pieces together (a mixtape of sorts). Bayanihan created many suites (and full-out ballets) that were inspired by traditional Filipino dances. To my understanding, "suite" is not a synonym for genre. I get a little nervous when we start referring to monolithic, given suites that don't actually exist. End of diatribe. This recording features two amazing rondalla-accompanied Bayanihan suites: "Tacon y Punte" and "People Under the Sun." The musicianship is first-rate—maybe a little too much crowd noise.
Bert Buena and His PBS Rondalla. 2002. Rondalla musicale. [Manila]: Dyna Music.
I'm almost certain this recording was not made in 2002. Other than this, I don't really know much about Buena or even what PBS might stand for. Music-wise the tempos are very deliberate (a little slow for my taste), there's a percussion section—and the rondalla's phrasing is more percussive than romantic. This rondalla's sound is reminiscent of the rondalla on the Juan Silos, Jr. recordings.
Juan Silos, Jr. and His Rondalla. 1990. Philippine folk dances. Philippines: M.P. Villar Enterprises.
This is the re-issued recording that our titas used when they taught us folk dancing for the parish barrio fiesta because "di masyadong mabilis yung mga tempo." Silos uses a percussion section and seems to be fond of tossing the melody call-and-response style between the octavina/laud and bandurria sections.
Ramon Obusan Folkloric Group. [1990s]. Folk and traditional dances: Vol. 2. [Metro Manila, Philippines]: Concorde.
The ROFG recordings frequently feature more obscure, regional songs and dances. One could describe the ROFG as more anthropological and less theatrical than Bayanihan. Some of these songs are deceptively hard to play (Jota Paragua...grrrr)—whoever's playing on these albums has crazy chops. And as a band geek that grew up with the Jamey Aebersold play-a-long series, I throughly appreciate the spoken introductions. Sala ti Mais! Teyk tu!
Rondalla Club of Los Angeles. 2002. Alay: a musical tribute. Los Angeles, CA: RCLA.
Dear Rondalla Club of Los Angeles: I wanna be just like you when I grow up. Sincerely, Rondalya Sa Seattle.
Videos…
Here are a few videos that I've found on Youtube over the years. There are so many more rondalla videos available now than when Rondalya first started. But these continue to be the most instructive and inspirational.
Plectum string instruments in the Philippines pre-date the Spanish colonial period. Maybe a cultural affintity toward this timbre helped facilitate the spread of Spanish plectum instruments throughout the Philippines.
Gawad sa Manlilikha ng Bayan Awardee demonstrates an indigenous Philippine string instrument called the kutyapi.
Yes, this may be vintage corporate/neo-colonial propaganda, but it's corporate/neo-colonial propaganda with an ALL RONDALLA SOUNDTRACK. Whoever directed this understood how the sound of the rondalla can appeal to an audience's notalgia and emerging national identity simultaneously... At about 19:22, you get a nice shot of some Coca-Cola fueled rondalla musicians.
A few years ago I subbed in on keyboard for a friend's banda/ranchera group. It was a crazy fun gig at a Fiesta Patrias celebration in South Park. I flipped out because I caught a girl in a mariachi group playing this melody—which I had always thought was a rondalla song because my grampa knew it and it was also on a Bayanihan recording. According to a guy on YouTube it's by a Mexican composer named Quirino Cortez y Mendoza.
I know that rondalla traditions still remain in Spain and Mexico (even though the Wikipedia entries seem to be Filipino dominated). The Mexican variety has evolved into a form noticeably different from ours, but the Spanish variety still bears a striking resemblance. This clip comes from a community celebration in Tudela, Spain.
Admittedly, one of the pleasures of being in a ensemble of young musicians is more willingness to play everything fast. And everything I've seen of Justin Mambaje and Hiyas has been exciting—revitalized. On a personal note, Jota Moncadeña was one of the first songs I learned to play—I still have memories of my grampa playing this for me. Ilokano pride!
I mean.. c'mon. Who doesn't like Hotdog?