In celebration of the National Arts Month (NAM) in February, the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) will stage “Taal-Tunugan” as part of its Philippine Arts Festival. The event will showcase a new musical ensemble whose instruments are made from scraps and other recycled materials.

“Taal-Tunugan” will meld together the sounds and music found in different communities in the Philippines, utilizing locally crafted musical instruments.

The convergence performance will be held in Iloilo on Feb. 24-26, while “Pahingalay” (meaning “meditation”) will take place in Capiz and Bohol from Feb. 27 to March 1.

For the in situ performances, the first wave will be on Feb. 22-28, while the next is  Feb. 28-March 3. Different performances will be held around the Cordillera Administrative Region, Region 4-B, Region 6, and ARMM/Region 11.

NCCA chair and head of its National Committee on Music Felipe de Leon Jr. will lead this project.

‘Tanghal’

Meanwhile, the National Committee on Dramatic Arts of the NCCA’s Subcommission on the Arts, headed by Lutgardo Labad, will hold “Tanghal” in Bohol, a theater festival that aims to underscore the works and achievements of community- and university-based theater groups.

The Philippines celebrates NAM during February since the signing of Presidential Proclamation 683 in 1991. As the country’s main agency for the arts and culture, the NCCA leads in celebrating NAM with the Philippine Arts Festival (PAF).

With the theme “Art on the Edge,” PAF 2014 consists of the flagship projects of the seven committees of the Subcommission of the Arts: architecture, cinema, dance, literature, music, theater and visual arts.

Call tel. 5272192 or 0928-5081057. Log on to www.ncca.gov.ph or e-mail ncca.paio@gmail.com.