Salidummay [A Song of Life] (SATB)

The term salidummay conveys the essence of life’s journey, though it has no direct translation. This composition by Gerard Dela Peña was translated from the Ibaloi language of the Cordillera by his friend, Joshua Angelo Mondares of the UST Conservatory of Music. It was premiered by PUP Bagong Himig Serenata, under the direction of Mark Gregory Isip, at the 2019 Philtoa Eco-Choral Competition, where it won the Champion Award. Since then, it has been performed and recognized as a winning piece by numerous Philippine choirs.

The piece opens with a vivid scene: a Cordilleran tribe dances in a circle around a bonfire, surrounded by the serene highlands. However, the peace is fleeting—the tribe is at war, and tension builds. At the heart of the piece is a grieving mother who has lost her child; until her final breath, she cries out for justice.

To evoke the rich soundscape of indigenous Filipino music, the composition employs interlocking rhythms, mimicking the textures of traditional instruments such as the gangsa (a set of flat gongs), bungkaka (bamboo buzzer), and other native percussion.

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