Ihudyat! 2017 “A Festival of the Finest Philippine Marching Bands”

IHUDYAT! 2017 is a joint project of the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP), the University of the Philippines Diliman-Office of Initiatives for Culture and the Arts (UPD-OICA), and the UP Vanguard Makati Chapter. It will be held on Saturday, March 25, 2017, 4 p.m., at the UP Diliman Amphitheater. Dubbed as “A Festival of the Finest Philippine Marching Bands”, it highlights the participation of elite bands of the Philippine Air Force, Philippine Army, Philippine Coast Guard, Philippine Marines (Navy Fleet), The Citizens’ Brigade Band of Dasmariñas, Cavite, and the University of Luzon (Pangasinan) Drum & Bugle Corps.

IHUDYAT! 2017 features select pieces of National Artists Col. Antonino Buenaventura and Maestro Lucio San Pedro, who made significant contributions to what Philippine marching band music is today. Buenaventura’s popular folksong “Pandango sa Ilaw” and San Pedro’s masterpiece “Lahing Kayumanggi” are some of the pieces that will be played by the bands while in synchronized marching formation.

The festival also aims to propagate and elevate a genre of music that has become a huge part of Filipino life and culture, particularly in the provinces. Owing to our Hispano-Catholic heritage, the Philippines continues to be known today as a country of “fiestas”. We are a people who celebrate life and salvation almost the whole year round. In honor of our Savior or patron saints, we welcome friends and strangers alike into our homes to savor our finest culinary delights, while an interminable procession of beautiful and bountiful blessings are paraded in our streets.

As soon as we hear the processional music, we say “hayan na ang dagundong ng mga tambol at hagithit ng torotot”. Then with all excitement we spring towards our widely opened windows and wiggle for the best spot to view the arrival of a spectacle. The faint distant sound of melodious brass winds and the rhythmic beating of the drums anxiously build-up into a climax as the band, clad in its most colorful gala attire, marches right before us in lilting Filipino compositions of gaiety and splendor.

This is the kind of music that has spiced-up every Filipinos’ life. Street marching band music, especially in the provinces, is sure to be there in baptisms, birthdays, sporting events, graduations, funerals, and practically every event celebrating life. Community organized bands show how interconnected its people are and perhaps how well governed or organized they are. Bands have been a source of pride and have somehow directed many of our youth away from societal menaces such as drugs.

With IHUDYAT! 2017, we celebrate the significance of street marching band music in Filipino culture. We acclaim the many wonderful ways this kind of music has enriched our society and our lives.

For ticket inquiries, please visit facebook.com/ihudyat2017 or contact Ms Carlyn at 0917-865-0497 or Ms Roseanne Realubin at 0915-158-5180. The event is open to the public.

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