Rooted
School of Filipino Martial Arts & Culture
Sunday, May 16 4:00 PM - 5:30 PM via zoom
Join us for the online launch of the Rooted School, an online platform that promotes cultural learning for Filipina/o/xs in the diaspora. The Rooted School features top instructors and cultural practitioners based in the Bay Area, but coming directly to your homes through its online platform. This event will give you a sneak peak of sample courses and an opportunity to learn from the instructors live.
Schedule:
4:00 PT - Eric Solano of Parangal Dance Company
4:20 PT - Kristian Kabuay
4:40 PT - Conrad Benedicto of Kulintang Dialect
5:00 PT - Gregory S. Manalo of VSCK Eskrima
Registration is sliding scale $0-$10 - No one turned away for lack of funds. Register now - zoom link to follow!
About the instructors
Eric Solano
Eric Solano has vast experience in researching and performing traditional dances and music from the Philippines. He has trained with Bayanihan, the Philippine national folk dance company; renowned folk dance authority, Ramon Obusan; Philippine Normal University’s Kislap Sining Dance Troupe; and Maguindanaoan and Ifugao experts. He has performed with Kislap Sining Dance Troupe, Ramon Obusan Folkloric Group, Magui Moro Master Artists; Ifugao Music and Dance Ensemble of Banaue; KulArts; and the Madayaw Cultural Ensemble in Davao, Mindanao, Philippines. He is the former Artistic Director for the Barangay Dance Company and is the founder and president of the Parangal Dance Company.
Eric has received training sessions from Pangalay Master Artist Ligaya Fernando-Amilbangsa in 2011 and in 2014, he received classical Pangalay training from Sitti Airia Sangkula Askalani-Obeso, a Ta’u Sug, Cultural Master and former member of the pioneering Ta’u Sug performing arts, founded in the 1970’s, the Dayang-Dayang Dance Troupe, and with Mark Angel Tolentino, visual artist and performer, and Ta’u Sug at heart, Sitti Airia’s young Master Artist.
Kristian Kabuay
Kristian is an artist/entrepreneur/futurist specializing in endangered writing systems from the Philippines. As a leading authority for the propagation and instruction of prePhilippine scripts, he launched his own edutainment business specializing in custom art, books, events, technology, and apparel. Kristian has spoken around the world at museums, schools, and companies. His work is wide-reaching that spans across multimedia, traditional practices, and technology. He is currently working on his 7th book, documentary, education startup, and learning traditional tattooing.
Conrad J. Benedicto
Conrad J. Benedicto 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, Conrad’s first novel, is to be published by KulArts in May 2021.
Gregory S. Manalo
Gregory trained with Sonny for a decade, in 1997 up until his untimely death in 2006. Guro Gregory has also trained a bit in wing chun, capoeira, muay thai, and jiu jitsu, but always came back to what he considers his native martial base art, eskrima. Gregory originally created the Rooted school in 2021 for the sole purpose to inspire and cultivate the warrior scholar through the cultural lens. The Rooted School is a great opportunity to bring Pilipino culture to a global audience. The pandemic of 2020 necessitated the need for online interaction, activities, and learning. Coupled with the far spread Filipino diaspora, the time was right to bring forth the various Pilipino culture bearers together in an online community to be more accessible.