Albay teacher launches book preserving region’s less popular folk songs

LEGAZPI CITY — A college professor who also makes music on the side has launched a book that compiles choral arrangements of lesser-known folk songs from Bicol to preserve the region’s musical heritage.

Ramil “Plok” Chavenia, 59, launched the book on Saturday, Oct. 3, saying it was the product of a decade of collecting and researching Bicolano folk music.

He said the book, “Bicol Folksongs” believed to be the first collection of choral arrangements in Albay, would serve as an accessible reference for teachers, singers and cultural workers.

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“This is where we fall short, we need to do more to promote local songs. Popular music has increasingly overshadowed local music, and hopefully, this will encourage more people to recognize the importance of appreciating and supporting our own local music,” Chavenia told the Inquirer during the book launch at a mall in this city.

The book presented 11 choral arrangements, including eight folk songs and three songs which were written by other known Bicolano writers with whom Chavenia has collaborated.

Some full renditions of folk songs were “Buhay Istambay,” a folk ballad; “Rosdos na Duli-duli,” a children’s song; “Baston Bantolinaw,” a novelty song; “Katurog na Nonoy,” a lullaby; and “Igwa akong Manok,” a metaphorical song about courtship.

Chavenia said most of the songs in the book reflect the stories, experiences and culture of Bicolanos, explaining that their “rhythm and harmony were carefully considered to preserve the integrity of the original material.”

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Adrian Aguilar, dean of the Bicol University (BU) College of Arts and Letters in Albay, said the book would help preserve folk songs and pass them down from one generation to the next.

Many folk songs containing stories about Bicolano identity remain undocumented, Aguilar said.

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National Artist for Music Ryan Cayabyab, who wrote the book’s foreword, described Chavenia as one of the dedicated students who attended his music workshops.

“I warmly welcome this worthy contribution to our nation’s choral repertoire and to the preservation and celebration of our collective musical heritage,” the foreword reads.

During the launch, Cayabyab congratulated Chavenia on the event through a recorded video message, while some of the folk songs were performed by the BU Chorale led by Apple Rubio and the Bicol Voices Choral by Jim Rey Baloloy.

Chavenia started his career as a music and arts teacher, and handled children and teacher’s choir at the Department of Education in 1990.

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He transferred to Bicol University in 1996, where he trained various choral groups and became the chair of the Humanities Department. /dp