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Music director Barclay Martin’s trek to learn music traditions from indigenous communities in the Philippines led him on an enriching experience.
It was not only food for his music, but nourishment for his soul. That was abundantly clear when he visited an Aeta community.
Aeta girls perform a dance of thanksgiving as Barclay Martin watches and records a woman playing the guitar.
The Aeta culture is reported to be one of the oldest, if not the oldest, in the Philippines.
The community made Barclay feel welcome all day, as children followed him around. “They were so giving,” Barclay said. “Really happy kids.”
Barclay recorded a woman strumming a guitar. “I’m really excited to hear the way they play the guitar,” Barclay said. “It’s kind of a meditation, rhythmic, kind of modal in the way that it flows.”
Girls in sari-like dresses danced in a circle nearby. They told Barclay that the dance was a thanksgiving ritual to celebrate the harvest. A village man offered a lively dance and added vocalizations. Another man also chimed in with exclamations.
Although modernization is making its way into the village, the Aeta community reveres the environment. They have a tradition of farming, living on the earth and with the earth, Barclay said.
At the end of the day, the group of children who had danced and been with Barclay for many hours accompanied him for the 30-minute hike down the hill to leave.
Barclay was grateful for their hospitality, warmth and generosity in sharing their traditions with him – as well as their time and abundant energy.
“This is the kind of group of people,” Barclay reflected, “who will totally restore your faith in humanity.”
