Description
An archipelagic land of adventure, Agmana is home to the Lukat, common folk who are inherently warriors, whose lives are in constant threat from their colonizers. At the heart of the story is the young Lukat musician Alad, who, along with his friends and his people, encounter fantastic creatures and evil forces in their fight for their lives, territory, and heritage. In Alad’s quest for Musalaya’s Gift and the fulfillment of his dream of becoming a legendary kulintang musician lies the key to winning a battle and attaining freedom and peace in Agmana.
This is the first book published by KULARTS, the premier presenter of contemporary & tribal Pilipino arts in the United States.
Here's what people are already saying about Musalaya's Gift:
Conrad J. Benedicto is a teacher, author, and kulintang musician who was born in the Philippines and immigrated to the United States at age thirteen. He studied with kulintang master artist Danongan Kalanduyan from 1997 until his passing in 2016, including as his apprentice through the Alliance for California Traditional Arts' apprenticeship program in 2007 and again in 2013. In 2018, Conrad received an individual artist grant from the San Francisco Arts Commission to compose original kulintang music for his project, Kulintang Dialect. He teaches social studies, environmental education, and kulintang music and is the Executive Director of the Wilderness Arts and Literacy Collaborative, an award-winning environmental justice program serving students at Balboa and Downtown high schools in San Francisco. Musalaya's Gift is Conrad's first novel and is published by Kularts.
gmana.
An archipelagic land of adventure, Agmana is home to the Lukat, common folk who are inherently warriors, whose lives are in constant threat from their colonizers. At the heart of the story is the young Lukat musician Alad, who, along with his friends and his people, encounter fantastic creatures and evil forces in their fight for their lives, territory, and heritage. In Alad’s quest for Musalaya’s Gift and the fulfillment of his dream of becoming a legendary kulintang musician lies the key to winning a battle and attaining freedom and peace in Agmana.
This is the first book published by KULARTS, the premier presenter of contemporary & tribal Pilipino arts in the United States.
Here's what people are already saying about Musalaya's Gift:
- “Conrad Benedicto’s debut novel takes us on a whirlwind of an adventure featuring tall tales, fantastic creatures, and everyday characters who range from the horrifying to the heroic—winged beasts that separate at the waist, giants made of stone and wood, and common-folk family members who reveal themselves as deft warriors. At the heart of it all is a young musician who has to reckon with his personal talents and place in the tradition.” — Theodore S. Gonzalves, PhD, Author of The Day the Dancers Stayed: Performing in the Filipino/American Diaspora
- "From a school boy's struggle to refuse the conqueror's version of himself to a people's uprising against a foreign subjugator, Musalaya's Gift draws us into a story in a land that may be unknown to some but home to others. This gripping tale introduces us to a set of new heroes whose battle for their freedom we cannot but be a part of.” — Lucy San Pablo Burns, Author of Puro Arte: Filipinos On the Stages of the Empire
- "In Musalaya's Gift, is the healing power of Sound. Keep your eyes and ears tuned in to the gongs and visualize your body vibrating all the cells in your bodymindspirit as you turn the pages.” — Leny Mendoza Strobel, PhD, Professor Emeritus in American Multicultural Studies at Sonoma State University, author, and founding member of the Center for Babaylan Studies
Conrad J. Benedicto is a teacher, author, and kulintang musician who was born in the Philippines and immigrated to the United States at age thirteen. He studied with kulintang master artist Danongan Kalanduyan from 1997 until his passing in 2016, including as his apprentice through the Alliance for California Traditional Arts' apprenticeship program in 2007 and again in 2013. In 2018, Conrad received an individual artist grant from the San Francisco Arts Commission to compose original kulintang music for his project, Kulintang Dialect. He teaches social studies, environmental education, and kulintang music and is the Executive Director of the Wilderness Arts and Literacy Collaborative, an award-winning environmental justice program serving students at Balboa and Downtown high schools in San Francisco. Musalaya's Gift is Conrad's first novel and is published by Kularts.
gmana.