MEBUYAN has released one album to date: “Mga Kuwentong Bata” (Children Stories). The album contains songs and music for and about children, with emphasis on children’s rights (to play, to go to school, to have a home, etc). It is a response to the call for more vigilance towards the safety and the rights of children, and the United Nations Decade of a Culture of Peace and Non-Violence to Children of the World (2000-2010).
Baking in the oven is a second album entitled “Mga Kuwentong Mindanaw” (Mindanao Stories), in collaboration with various music artists in Davao, Philippines. It features the winning (and finalist) entries to the “Tunog Mindanaw (Mindanao Sound) Annual World Music Competition” in Davao City, Philippines, where members of Mebuyan competed against each other for the plum prize. It also includes the entries to the “2007 Global Cooling: the first Mothers for Peace Singout and Songwriting Competition” where again, Mebuyan members also competed against each other.
Bassist Paolo Sisi’s song “Mag-iban Kita,” won first place at the Tunog Mindanaw 2008, vocalist-percussionist Geejay Arriola’s “Hohoy” won second place. Maan Chua and Gauss Obenza won the plum at the Global Cooling competition with “Dahon Puno Ugat Lupa” and Gauss Obenza reaped the second place with “Celebrate, Glorify, Spread the Peace.”
Sisi’s winning piece was performed by Renee Baker Project 6 at the Annual Chicago Calling Festival as part of Mebuyan’s participation in the festival.
It is difficult to put Mebuyan’s music into just one category although the sound of Mindanao indigenous instruments such as the “kulintang,” the “agong,” and the “kubing,” provide vernacular color to what otherwise would be categorized as simply folk, acoustic, pop, rock, or adult contemporary music. Safely, though, they can be grouped with bands under the category World Music even as their music are quite eclectic.
Mebuyan is an aggregrate of composers-musicians, each with his/her own wealth of musical background. Geejay Arriola, has been writing music for various theater and dance productions in Mindanao, Philippines for 17 years, where indigenous artistic expressions are naturally woven into contemporary performances. Gauss Obenza has been a folk and jazz musician for 20 years. Her major work to date is writing the music and score for Arnel Mardoquio’s film “Hospital Boat.” Paolo Sisi is a music teacher and has been a session artist for many bands in Manila and Davao for about 15 years. Chico Zambrano has likewise been session percussionist for various bands for about the same number of years as Paolo. And the younger ones–Maan Chua, Maree Contaoi, and Maia Tampoy—have been having regular gigs as solo musicians-singers for the last 7 years or so.
Mebuyan participated in the following productions as composers, arrangers, and/or musicians:
—”Panaw,” a dance-musicale written by Malou Tiangco and Geejay Arriola, produced by Mebuyan Peace Project, Inc. Performed at the Asian Theater Festival in India, and at the Asia-Pacific Festival for Women in the Arts in Manila, 2003
—”Salima,” a concert-theater production on peace in Mindanao conceived by Geejay Arriola, written by Arnel Mardoquio, produced by EarthMusic Foundation, Inc., The musicale brought together music artists from various musical persuasions, including Eric Gancio, Popong Landero and Gary Granada, who collaborated in the music writing; 2004.
—”Uwahig,” a dance-drama written by Steven Patrick Fernandez, produced by MINDULANI, Inc., and performed at the International Theater Institute Festival in Manila, 2006
—”Madonna Brava,” an adaptation of Bertolt Brecht’s “Mother Courage and Her Children,” written by Don Pagusara, produced by Tanghalang Pilipino, 2009.
Mebuyan is composed of:
GEEJAY ARRIOLA – kulintang, various percussion
GAUSS OBENZA – guitar
MAREE CONTAOI – cajon, djembe
MAAN CHUA – guitar, various percussion
MAIA TAMPOY – keyboard
PAOLO SISI – bass
CHICO ZAMBRANO – conga, cymbals, various percussion
RAFFY AYALA - kulintang, flute, various percussion
The group plays occasional gigs at Taboan, Matina Town Square, in Davao City, Philippines, and is often invited to perform for conferences and other big events in Davao City.
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For more info (repertoire, technical rider, etc):
Download MEBUYAN PROFILE, REPERTOIRE, AND TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS
To buy Mga Kuwentong Bata CD in the Philippines
Send P450 via GCASH to:
Marie Anathea C. Chua 09272824246
then text your complete name and address to:
09173786659
with the information that you have sent GCASH
so we can LBC / DHL the CD to you.
To buy Mga Kuwentong Bata CD outside the Philippines and for mp3 downloads, click CD BABY icon on left sidebar or at the top of this page.
For performance bookings in the Philippines, contact:
Maree Contaoi / Mobile 09067139492.
For performance bookings outside the Philippines, email:
mebuyanpeaceproject@gmail.com
