Grace Ann Buenaventura

Sagada is located approximately 390 kilometers North from Manila, with an average elevation of 1,455 meters. Nestled in the mountainous regions of Mountain Province, Sagada is part of the Kankana-ey ethnolinguistic group residing in the western areas of Cordillera, Mountain Province. As of the year 2020, it has a population of 11,510 people. While most of its current population is Anglican, the community continues to practice the traditional aspects of the culture, through their food, music, crafts, language, and festivities and rites that are based on agricultural cycles, among others. It is a scenic town known for its caves, hanging coffins, agricultural products, and tourism.

“Collection and ReCollection: recording the traditional vocal and instrumental repertoire in Sagada” is a community archiving endeavor borne out of the long-term connection between the UP Center for Ethnomusicology and the community of Sagada.

Why Sagada? This relationship has been established since 1958, when UPCE Founder Dr. Jose Maceda researched and published the vocal expressive traditions of Sagada, and was nurtured during the period between 2013-2020 when multiple repatriation, data collection, and publications were produced through mutual cooperation between the institution and the community. In 2020, an interest for establishing a community archive was expressed by Ms. Alma Bagano, a Member of the Board of Trustees of the Saint Mary’s School of Sagada, Inc. to the then UPCE Director, Dr. LaVerne David de la Pena, during their work on producing a book chapter which discussed the repatriation of Sagada audio recordings which then enabled the transcription of these recordings by the community members.

The plans for the community archive were further articulated during multiple workshop sessions held over online meetings because this happened at the height of the pandemic – this was conducted as a graduate project; among the results of which included dream boards and a draft of an archive appraisal policy.

    When the quarantine eased, personnel from the UPCE and the SMSSI were able to meet face-to-face to draw up the plans for what will become the beginnings of a community documentation and archiving project. While the design of the workshops and who to conduct them were mostly identified by UPCE personnel, most of the decisions regarding schedule, venue, participants, and what materials to record and preserve, which members of the community to interview, among others, were made by the SMSSI.

    The project was conducted from February 11, 2025 – June 30, 2025. The purpose of the project was to record the traditional vocal and instrumental repertoire of Sagada and to sustain the continued documentation of living traditions, while continuing to preserve the older records that are already in their possession in perpetuity. Underscoring the activity is community archiving, where the members of the community will be recording themselves, and have full-control of the project and its outcomes. The project aimed to build the capacity of its students, as well as other interested participants, incorporating field work activities in exercising their knowledge in qualitative research, and to equip them with the necessary skills and tools to create, preserve, and access a sound archive of their own community. Likewise, the resulting archive was imagined contributing to the continuation of the rich musical traditions by using recorded audio and video for teaching and demonstration.

    A total of thirty-seven (37) participants worked on data gathering and metadata processing and were largely involved in making decisions that will affect the archive that will be established in the future, using their data as one of the pioneering collections.The project has compiled 200 recordings, consisting of 167 audio files and 33 video files. Project Manager, Ms. Kili Piluden reported that:

    [d]uring the workshop proper, three resource persons were interviewed and recorded[…] The students were able to produce a number of videos and audio files involving the interview and the chants, songs, and instrumentals performed by the resource persons.

    The next week after the workshop concluded, the students continued their fieldwork and data collection by selecting resource persons and elders within the different communities in Sagada. Coincidentally, three weddings, a funeral, and a gubbaw (naming ceremony) happened during the week, and the students took these opportunities to record as well. Ethical considerations were practiced, and the students remained respectful of the practices and activities being done.

    The students also took the time to arrange and organize their metadata sheets, which contained a general summary of what they had recorded throughout the entire two weeks they had gathered data. Some also took the initiative to transcribe some of the interviews, the chants, and the songs. (Piluden, 2025, p.2)

    As required by the grant, copies of all digital data will be furnished to the NCCA and NAP at the end of the project. Through its partnership and to serve as an off-site storage, the UPCE has also been handed a copy of the materials last May 19, 2025. Beyond the project, the original recordings stay with the SMSSI, with copies in the UPCE only available for room use. The UPCE endeavors to maintain this partnership in the long-term, where it can continue to serve as consultant, off-site storage, and a portal for educational dissemination.

    Reference:
    Piluden, K. E. (2025). NCCA Progress Report, 1st Tranche.

    Acknowledgements:

    Steering Committee

    Maritess Guron, SMSSI Principal

    Lisa Veronica Decenteceo, PhD, UPCE Director

    Alma Louise Bagano, SMSSI Board of Trustees Member

    Project Manager

    Kili Europa Piluden (SMSSI)

    Project Coordinators

    Nonalee Domanog (SMSSI)

    Grace Ann Buenaventura (UPCE)

    Project Assistants

    Dick Espirito (SMSSI)

    Sol Maris Trinidad (UPCE)

    Workshop Facilitators

    LaVerne David de la Pena, PhD

    David Dino Guadalupe

    Roan May Opiso

    Grace Ann Buenaventura, MLIS

    Workshop Assistants

    Benedic Justine Velasco (UPCE)

    James Dan Gazmin (UPCE)

    Ezer Dy Kiwang (SMSSI)

    Chloie Anne Solang (SMSSI)

    Deanna Fay Badongen (SMSSI)

    William Kent Dongail (SMSSI)

    Lyka Danio (SMSSI)

    Jada Tambiac (SMSSI)

    Resource Persons

    Mr. Manuel Amdengan

    Ms. Florence Dom-an Macagne

    Mr. Jobel Gumabay

    Ms. Nonalee Domanog

    HUMSS 12 (2024-2025) Students of the SMSSI

    Abellon, Meagan

    Agacia, Justine

    Agwiking, Dexter

    Badongen, Deanna

    Balicag, Clydine

    Balonglong, Khiana

    Batnag, RJ

    Bawayan, Britney

    Briones, Marvin

    Buslay, Pauline

    Daday, Jefferson

    Danio, Lyka

    Dapidap, Cleojhay

    Didican, Jilian

    Domegyas, Karlyne

    Dongail, William

    Dumansi, Felicito

    Epay, Kris Ann

    Espirito, Dick

    Fao-anan, Yanka

    Galawe, Rey

    Gomgom-o, Jeanbel

    Kim, Jael

    Kiwang, Ezer

    Lansang, Ashley

    Macalo, Vince

    Okyo, Merilyn

    Oyagat, Pinky

    Pangda, Ayhla

    Poyongan, Yuri

    Punhalban, Frenzel

    Sadcopon, Denver

    Salvador, Reynaldo

    Sangbaan, Jake

    Solang, Chloie

    Tambiac, Jada

    Tiwaken, Jan Klaus

    Yodong, Jorielle

    Librarian UP Center for Ethnomusicology