Tunug tu kinabuhi: a rhythmic analysis on Manobong Agusanon folksongs

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to describe and unravel the uniqueness of the folk songs of the Manobong Agusanon who are dominantly living in the Island of Mindanao particularly in Agusan Del Sur. It aims to discover the different technicalities of music present in their folk songs. This qualitative study used the phenomenological design with the (7) respondents from in-depth and (7) focus group interview that each of the participants is a bona fide resident of Agusan del Sur and a member of the Manobong Agusanon tribe. This study revealed what kinds of basic elements of music present in Manubong Agusanon Folksongs particulary the following: Rhythm, Timbre Element, Tonal Element, Temporal Element and Dynamic. Thus, the result of this study was able to unravel various kinds of factors that greatly affect and threatens the life of the sacred and valued folksongs from the Manobong Agusanon and how they overcome it. Moreover, There were six major themes emerged from the data collected on the factors that threaten the existence of Manobong Agusanon folksongs such as Adapting of New Trends, Embracing Contemporary Music, Fading of Interest, Understanding the language of the Song, Transferring of Practices and Judging the Acceptance of Practice. In addition, there were also four major themes emerged from the data collected on the challenges of the Manobong Agusanon and how they managed to address these, such as Hearten to Practice the Tribal Song, Instill the Importance of Music, Enjoin the Songs in the Gatherings and Engrave as an Identity.