Bulakenyos revive kundiman songs, folk dances on Singkaban Festival

CITY OF MALOLOS – The Provincial Government of Bulacan takes pride in preserving its rich culture and heritage and in a bid to relive its importance, the annual KBS Rewaynd or the Kumpetisyong Bayan ng Singkaban, a competition on Kundiman, Balagtasan and Katutubong Sayaw will be held on September 11, 2015 from 10 am to 5 pm at The Pavilion, Hiyas ng Bulacan Convention Center in this city.

As one of the activities lined up for Singkaban Festival 2015 with the theme “Bulacan, Dangal ng Bansa! Lahing Bulakenyo, Ating Ibandila!” the said contest aims to promote and promulgate traditional art forms among young Bulakenyos and the residents from the neighboring towns, cities and region.

Also, organizers of KBS Rewaynd hope to open a regional competition and later on elevate performing arts to the national level competition.

Gov. Wilhelmino M. Sy-Alvarado said it should always be a priority to teach the youth to look back and give importance to what makes one’s province known and whole.

“Ito’y pundasyon ng lahing Filipino, dito tayo nakikilala maging ng mga taga-ibang bansa ngunit paano natin ito ipagmamalaki at itatanyag sa mundo kung ang mismong taga-rito hindi na ito kilala, kaya patuloy nating buhayin ang sariling atin,” Alvarado said.

According to Provincial History, Arts, Culture and Tourism Office, 15 participants per category are encouraged to join. The Balagtasan is open to elementary students; Kundiman is for high school students and Katutubong Sayaw competition is open for both high school and tertiary students.

The elimination round for Kundiman, Balagtasan and Katutubong Sayaw will be on the same date from 10:00 A.M to 12:00 noon which will be held at Francisco Balagtas Hall, Mariano Ponce Hall and The Pavilion respectively. The final round for the top five finalists will be held from 2:00 to 5:00 P.M at The Pavilion.

Winners of Kundiman will get P15,000 for the first place, P10,000 for the second place and P5,000 for the third place.

For Balagtasan, first placer will receive P30,000, second placer will take home P20,000 and the third placer gets P10,000.

Winners of Katutubong Sayaw will get P70,000 for the first place, P40,000 for the second place and P20,000 for the third place.

Moreover, Cultural Center of the Philippines President Dr. Raul Sunico is expected to grace the event.