Today, we release the rock rendition and music video of PAGBABAGO Para sa Karaniwang Tao. Hope you could support it by sharing, airing, or simply spreading the word. You can also download the MP3 here for free.

We believe in music that amplifies the struggle for change. We believe in real social change that would benefit the many and not just a few individuals. Musicians should take part and stand for the interests of the common folk. Ika nga, tunay na pagbabago, para sa karaniwang tao!

PAGBABAGO was originally in dance and electronica. This release is a collaboration with friends from the band Plagpul (Jay Jamoralin on guitars, Pol Torrente on bass, and Peter John Balaoro on drums) and percussionist Peter Magat from Ciudad Tribu.

Music video produced by the Munting Media Group. Camera: Loujaye Sonido and Richelle Rosales, Editing: Loujaye Sonido.

And if you’re wondering kung saan at para saan ang cute Teddy. Click nyo to.

Hi po! Heto po ang isang bagong awitin and I hope you could support it by sharing, liking, and requesting it on the airwaves.

With only a few days to go before the start of the 2013 election campaign period, artists and musicians should take part and speak out. Create art that would criticize the system, propel and enlighten people to elect leaders that would truly represent the interest of the many. Leaders that would fight to change the system para sa ikabubuti at ikauunlad hindi ng iilan kundi ng mas maraming karaniwan.

Tulad ng isinisigaw ng title at koro ng awitin, hangad ng Pilipino ang ‘Pagbabago para sa karaniwang tao!’

You can download your copy here. Muli, salamat po sa pagtangkilik ng makabayang musika!

Sa munting paraan ng libreng download ng digital collection po na ito, nais namin ipaabot ang dakilang pasasalamat sa lahat ng tumatangkilik at patuloy na nakikinig sa mga likhang awitin at musika!

Mula sa aming pamilya, maraming salamat sa buong taong suporta! Sulong sa bagong taong mapagpalaya!

Ang libreng download ay matatagpuan sa karlramirezmusic.wix.com/music

Nilalaman po nito ang mga sumusunod na awitin at musika: 1. Handa na ba kayo? | 2. Makibaka | 3. Tagapagtanggol ng Bayan | 4. Manindigan (SCORE) | 5. Alagaan ang Kalikasan | 6. Ang Simula (SCORE) | 7. Desap | 8. Bien (SCORE) | 9. Makabayan, Palaban | 10. Desap (Acoustic) | 11. Bernal (SCORE) |12. Makibaka Reprise | 13. Pagpapasya (SCORE) | 14. Elian | 15. Mandirigma (SCORE)

Muli, maraming salamat po sa pagtangkilik at pagsuporta!

My first song at Apple’s iTunes store. For a limited time (25 days as of this posting) maaring ma-download ang FREE sa iTunes US store. As always, free download parin po ito sa aking Reverb Nation AND Soundcloud.

Musicians should be concerned with issues regarding the freedom to be creative and the freedom to express. At dahil isang paraan para magpaabot ng mensahe ang musika, heto po ang isang kontribusyon sa pagpapalakas sa boses ng ating pakikibaka.

Fight to be free! Junk RA 10175!*

RA 10175 (The Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012) poses serious threats to Internet freedom, the right to privacy and other essential civil liberties including the freedom of speech, expression, and the press. Read more and sign the petition chn.ge/QJZyzv

(This version of FREE is a track in the upcoming SULONG! album. You can download a copy at bit.ly/UHoZTa)

Republic Act No. 10175 poses serious threats to Internet freedom, the right to privacy and other essential civil liberties including the freedom of speech, expression, and the press. Sign the petition against it! www.change.org/petitions/junk-the-cybercrime-prevention-law Spread the word. Take action on October 2, 2012. Photo from PixelOffensive.

This short documentary follows the week-long visit of activist Richard O’Barry in the Philippines last September 2012. O’Barry, an activist against marine mammal captivity and the slaughter and capture of dolphins, is the star of the 2010 Oscar Award-winning documentary “The Cove”.

Watch as O’Barry travels from Manila to Misamis Occidental, convincing officials and negotiating with leaders in pursuit of releasing captive dolphins in a certain facility. Follow him as he gathers support for a local legislature banning field trips to dolphin amusement parks.

Watch as he moves from one place to another, adding his vibrant voice to the campaign and raising to a higher level the struggle of all freedom and dolphin loving Filipinos against captivity and dolphin shows.

Recently, I had the opportunity to do a rendition of the song “Tulog na Bunso”, a popular lullaby in a protest song anthology album (Kung tama ang pagkakapanood ko, nasa pelikulang Ka Oryang ni Sari Dalena din ang awitin). Kailan lang ay naikwento sa akin na ang awitin pala ay orihinal na isinulat noong 1979, nirecord sa cassette tape at unang dinala at lumaganap sa Cordillera.

Music and lyrics composed by Gerry Verzola in 1979.

For this arrangement, I used the same configuration and set of instruments in recording song Elian a year ago. Happy listening!

I came across this 1992 Midweek issue a month ago at the library and museum of the Bantayog ng mga Bayani. You can read the 3-page interview here.

In 2010, I remember being assigned the task by Kodao Productions to edit and upload this video of Ka Romy giving his keynote address at the 5th Conference of Lawyers in the Asia-Pacific. Sya ay chairperson noon ng National Union of People’s Lawyers (NUPL) and the president of the Public Interest Law Center (PILC). Wala halos putol ang editing and overwhelmed din ako, kami, sa talumpati ni Ka Romy.

A week after, I was able to complete this song. A part of the first stanza came from a concept by one of Grace Saguinsin’s students at Miriam College. This was recorded and published in 2010. Performed recently at the tribute for people’s lawyer Ramon Te of the Makabayan Coalition.

Along with Trixie Concepcion of Earth Island Institute Philippines and Ric O’Barry, the environmentalist in the 2010 Academy Award feature-length documentary The Cove, we went to Misamis Occidental last September 12 to investigate a so-called dolphin rescue and rehabilitation facility called Dolphin Island at the Misamis Occidental Aquamarine Park (MOAP). Here’s an excerpt of the trip. We were able to get there with the help of the provincial government.

We’ll post highlights of O’Barry’s RP visit soon. But for now, help us spread this short excerpt and Earth Island Institute Philippines’ End Captivity Now! documentary. Thanks!

Two firsts in our performance of “Makibaka” at the second National Convention of Makabayan. This was our (me, Pol and Tony) first time to perform Makibaka with Ka Tony on drums and not on guitar. Ka Tony by the way played the lead guitar in the recorded version of Makibaka, and in most of the song’s live performance. This was also the first time that a live performance of Makibaka was accompanied by a fiery flag-bearing dance routine courtesy of the Makabayan dance troupe.

This was held at the Polytechnic University of the Philippines gymnasium last September 7, 2012. Video is a combination of footage taken by Marion and Lolo Mon.

Tony Palis performs his composition Babaylan at the Second National Convention of the Makabayan Coalition held at the Polytechnic University of the Philippines gymnasium last September 7, 2012.

Performed by DZUP’s Edge Uyanguren and Bayang Barrios.

The Concerned Artists of the Philippines (CAP) together with the Miriam College Department of Communication, Communications Society, and the National Commission on Culture and the Arts will have an ISHcreening on Monday, September 3, 2012 starting at 11 AM at the Miriam College Little Theater.

ISHcreening is a celebration of the colourful life and meaningful works of director and people’s artist Ishmael Bernal. He was recognized as National Artist for Cinema in 2001, Director of the Decade by the Catholic Mass Media Awards, four-time Best Director by the Urian Awards, and given the ASEAN Cultural Award in Communication Arts in 1993.

Two films directed by Ishmael Bernal will be screened at Miriam College’s Little Theater on Monday. First will be “Nunal sa Tubig (1977)” an awardee of Urian’s Best Film of the Decade in 1981, followed by the original “Working Girls (1984)”. A short open forum will commence after every screening. ISHcreening is part of CAP’s tribute series on Ishmael Bernal which include an on-going production of a documentary.

End Captivity Now! is a short documentary produced by the Earth Island Institute Philippines about marine mammal captivity in the Philippines. The video talks not just about the situation of dolphins and other marine mammals in captivity but also about what we can do and has already been done to put a end to the captive animal “entertainment” industry. Learn more about the campaign at http://www.earthislandph.org/

Kakaiba ang kanilang podcast dahil ito’y hindi lang talakayan tungkol sa paghahanda bago maganap, mga dapat gawin kapag nirayan na, at mga kinakailangang pagtulong pagkatapos ang delubyo. Laman din ang nakaka-inspire na kwento ng mga komunidad sa pagkakaisa, pagsusumikap, at pagharap sa disaster situations.

Maari nating mapakinggan ang CDRC podcasts sa Podomatic, YouTube, at sa CDRC website. Tara, makinig na kay Kuya Caloy at Ate Dabet!

MUSICIANS Tony Palis (in white shirt) and Karl Ramirez (center) from the Concerned Artists of the Philippines teach the children how to play native musical instruments to accompany the story they read entitled “Nang Magkakulay ang Nayon.” RODEL ROTONI

Posted at the Philippine Daily Inquirer

MANILA, Philippines—Set to indigenous Filipino music, a special Read-Along session featuring stories about unity and teamwork was held at the Inquirer office in Makati on Saturday morning.

The session, which was part of the yearlong celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Philippine Daily Inquirer Employees Union (PDIEU), featured musicians Tony Palis and Karl Ramirez, Inquirer photographer Grig Montegrande and members of the PDIEU as readers.

Montegrande, a regular Read-Along volunteer storyteller, opened the session with “Ako si Kaliwa, Ako si Kanan,” a story about how a pair of slippers discovers the importance of teamwork when suddenly faced with life without each other. The story, published by Adarna House, was written by Russell Molina.

Before the reading, Palis and Ramirez, members of the Concerned Artists of the Philippines, introduced the children to several indigenous Filipino instruments such as the kulintang (a set of gongs), sarunay (a smaller kulintang), kubing (a bamboo instrument strummed while being held between the lips), tongali (a bamboo flute) and tambor (a small drum whose surface is made of human skin).

Music and a puppet show

Child volunteers then played the instruments as Palis and Ramirez read in tandem the story “When Color Came To Town,” written by Susan de la Rosa Aragon and published by Adarna, which tells about a dreary town that came to life after its people came together to clean it.

Capping the program was a puppet show of the story “Ang Patsotsay na Iisa ang Pakpak,” an Aklat Batibot written by Rene O. Villanueva and published by Philippine Children’s Television Foundation. Featuring new members of the PDIEU, the story tells of a group of one-winged creatures that discovered that they could reach new heights by linking their wings and flapping them together in perfect sync.

“Through this activity, we hope we were able to help instill among the kids the value of teamwork, selfless service and respect, as well as promote the union’s advocacy to spread love of reading,” said PDIEU president and Inquirer reporter Michael Ubac, who came to the session with other PDIEU officers.

Cultural education

“Aside from imparting the values contained in our story, we also want to teach children about these indigenous Filipino instruments. We want to educate the children about their culture,” Palis said.

Neil James Santiago, a Virlanie Foundation house parent who came with his wards, said the read-along sessions are instrumental in helping children improve their listening skills.

“It’s a good thing that children hear stories about helping each other out because back in their homes, they have different tasks assigned to them. I’m happy that they get to hear stories about not being lazy and helping other people,” said Santiago.

Aron, 12, one of Santiago’s wards, said his favorite story was “When Color Came to Town,” which taught him the importance of helping each other “if we want our work to be easier and everyone to be happy.”

Love for storytelling

House parent Remy Patricio said her wards really love storytelling and will surely have many stories to share with the other children when they get home.

Eight-year old Kimberly, a student at Palmer Elementary School, said her favorite story was “Ang Patsotsay na Iisa ang Pakpak.” She said “the Patsotsays were very cute,” adding that the story taught her not to tease others just because they were different.

Her classmate Jessa, 9, liked the same story because she found the puppets and props “very pretty and beautiful.” “I learned that people have to help each other in order to reach their goals,” she said.

Olivier Laot, a French Virlanie volunteer, said the Read-Along was “exactly what we need for the children—activities for comprehension and understanding. It makes children active.”

Saturday’s session, hosted by Libre editor-in-chief Chito de la Vega, was held in cooperation with Virlanie Foundation and PDIEU.

The next session, scheduled for August 18 at 1 p.m. at the Inquirer main office, will feature Metrobank Foundation awardees and Sophia School storytellers. Interested participants may contact Ellen Caparros at 8978808 local 329. Slots are on a first-come, first-served basis.—With reports from Kate Pedroso, Marielle Medina and Bea Ponce, Inquirer Research

Reblogged from The Camerawalls:

This song was written for “Batang Mag-aaral” an ongoing project for school children and students initiated by the Bayan Muna Party-list. It includes school supplies, support to public school students, and scholarships. Bayan Muna has two representatives at the 15th Congress: Rep. Neri Javier Colmenares and Rep. Teddy Casino. You can download the MP3 at http://soundcloud.com/karlramirezmusic/batang-mag-aaral