Cultural Center of the Philippines Cultural Exchange Grantee Sanfule Band in partnership with the Passionist Center-Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation (PC-JPIC)
and Kalimudan Culture and Arts Center
Often, the concert begins by inviting old folks from the crowd to say prayers in a traditional Blaan “malem”—chant type. Ronnel, the main vocalist, will connect to this ‘malem’ with his own chant of invitation. Here, he invites the audience to take part and gather in their performances. Romeo, in a tempo, also connects to Ronnel with his own ‘malem’ of challenge to the members of the band. In this episode, one will see a dueling match pitch against pitch in a traditional exchange of antiquated words, often, this would extend much time because of a captured audience known when they are already cheering and shouting with glee and approval.
As the battle of ‘malem’ ends, Jimjay will signal the start of the performance by playing the flute in a melancholic way. This sadness of tune is strongly reflected on his facial antics drawing the crowd to be serious about the upcoming presentation. Then the faglong is played by either Ronnel or Romeo that will give intro to the music pieces then later followed by the beat of the ‘tinunggong’ by Rolito interspersed with the sound of the ‘jembe’ by Jimjay.
Then the first iconic song entitled “Kastifun” will be the first to be performed. Here, the band will invite the old folks to join them in a group ‘maral’—or traditional dance. “Nimo Kre-e” will follow to the delight of the crowd. Another crowd pleaser is the song “Kaflayam”—the way of generosity and hospitality of the tribe.
The concert continues with the band’s signature original compositions which are resplendent of the group’s experiences of hardship and struggle. Then the song “Buhay naming Mga Blaan” composed by Pammie Malayon of the S’lek Band, will lead to the group’s connection to the crowd that will end up with a question from them about the suffering and travails of the tribe. Here, they will engage with the crowd in a forum like exchange between these performers and their audience.
After this, a series of songs that will reinforce the above advocacy of promoting the traditions of the tribe and the importance of preserving them. To connect with the modern consciousness of the audience, a series of selected songs by Freddie Aguilar, ASIN and Joey Ayala are performed to the amusement of the many fans of the legendary Filipino singers.
The concert’s multiple selection of songs in their repertoire is an indication of the non-commercial type of their event. The group’s only objectives are to amuse their audience, reinstate their traditional ways of performances, advocate for the preservation of their heritage and culture, and the emancipation of their musical soul to better connect to their given audience, their own people!
