Passing on the IGOROT Heritage through Dance

Young American Igorots in full costume
Photo from the Igorot Gallery at sagada.com.

I visited a gathering of several BIBBAK groups in Texas while I was there on a project during the fall of 2004. (BIBBAK stands for Bontoc, Ifugao, Benguet, Baguio, Apayao / Abra, Kalinga) I noticed that there was a lady who was in charge of meeting with the children and talking to them about the Igorot culture. Majority of the children were born in the US, and most likely never set foot in the place where the Igorots come from – and that’s in the Cordillera Mountains of Northern Philippines. Still, as most people of every culture has done in history, the parents of these children would like them to learn about who they are. So it is very common amongst migrating Igorots to meet together, and pass on the Igorot heritage to the younger generation.

Teaching children how to play the gong and participate in Igorot dances are effective and fun ways to keep the practice alive. For someone like me who is a very awkward dancer / gong player, it is difficult to teach something I could not even be decent at. (I blushed and huffed my way through an Igorot dance during my wedding day – a terrible memory, really.) But my inabilities shouldn’t pose a problem. There will always be groups of Igorots wherever you are, and most of them will likely be good dancers.

There is a family picnic for BIBBAK – ILLINOIS on Saturday, Aug 23, 2008 at Des Plaines. I’ll be bringing the boys over and we’ll be looking forward to the Cultural Presentation and Native Dance Rehearsal in the afternoon. I will also be posting some pictures in this blog after the event.

My youngest, at 2, playing with a gong in Maryland.