Sarong Banggi and the dearth of mainstream Bicol songs

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Sarong Banggi and the dearth of mainstream Bicol songs. Now added on the sidebar of the Bicol (House Journal) section only, is the unofficial regional Bicol romantic anthem Sarung Banggi (Sarung Bangui, Sarong Banggi) a reggae version by the band Mudflow from the town of Sto. Domingo in Albay province.

We are happy to incorporate their interpretation, albeit temporary, in our site as our definite support in the propagation of the Bicol culture in this section.

Sarong Bangui (one night) is a song originally composed by Potenciano “Poten” Valladolid Gregorio, Sr., a native of Sto. Domingo town in Albay.

It is believed it was composed in the year 1897, while some observers have reservation on that fact, it may have been composed after that and onwards to 1910.

The song debuted during the town fiesta celebration of Guinobatan, Albay on August 15, 1910. It was first publicly heard with the accompaninent of a guitar, then the piano.

While there are many speculations as to the original content of the composition of Gregorio, available sources said that the two first paragraphs of the song stand as the original with additional lyrics added as the song became popular and for the convenience of the “additional write-in” anonymous composer(s). It won’t be a surprise if we get to hear three versions of the same song now.

Due to lack of singers and music producers patronizing the language, songs in Bicol is a rare commodity, even with the rich musical and cultural heritage in the region.

A handful of songs find outlet in YouTube. As we move forward, we will post some worthy of review here.

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