"A revolution without dance is a revolution not worth having."
The Dancers & Harana Singers
Thrill to the magic of PASACAT’s talented dancers who perform an array of traditionally-based folk and indigenous dances of the Philippines.
Audiences around the world have been entertained and enchanted by their beautiful performances. The stage comes to life with intricate dances, colorful traditional costumes, and lively music as they share the rich diversity of Filipino culture with its Chinese, Spanish, and Asian influences.
PASACAT strives to inspire a new pride among Filipinos in San Diego through discovering their cultural heritage through music, song and dance. Dancers are trained to sing, taking their performances to another level. As one dancers shared,
“wearing the costumes from the Philippines transforms you and takes you to another place in time.”
The Rondalla & Percussionists
The Rondalla, a string ensemble, reveals the Spanish inuences in the music of the lowland Christians in the Philippines. The ensemble is composed of plucked instruments called the bandurria, laud, and octavina. The bandurria is usually played as the main melody or 1st and 2nd voice while the laud and octavina play counter melodies. These instruments are played with a plectrum. The guitar and bajo (bass) provide the basic rhythm.
Indigenous instruments come from the mountains of Luzon and the island of Mindanao. The instruments of the Luzon mountains are of carious bamboos which include the bungkaka, which has split fork ends and is hit in the palm of the hands. Bamboo flutes are played by either nose or mouth. Hollow logs with one end covered with animal skin, serve as drums and are called solibaw and gimbla. The main instruments are the flat brass gongs and gangsa, which are centuries old. The gangsa are hit with sticks and hands.
The instruments from Mindanao differ from those of Luzon. Theirs is the unusual bamboo xylophone, the gabbang. The basic drum is the dadabuan and is played in a standing position. An assortment of large gongs with knobs are played in different manners. The major instrument is the melodic xylophone called kulintangan, a graduated set of eight gongs set on a wood frame. The gandingan is a set of four large gongs with narrow rims suspended vertically from a rack. Other gongs are called the agong and babandil.
