Pagpangalimug and Narrative Experience: Hearing Metaphysical (Hi)Stories in Panay Bukidnon Vocal Music Genres

Abstract Grounded in the idea that vocality is linked to narrativity, this article argues that pagpangalimug (intoning) functions as a proto-narrative that sonically structures and mediates narrative experience among the Panay Bukidnon community in Panay Island, Western Visayas, Philippines. Beyond preparing the voice and body for singing, pagpangalimug is central to how narratives are evoked. I frame this process in two ways: a “tuning in” that prepares the vocal-narrative frame, and a “tuning out” that recalls other narratives from personal and collective memory. Through singing of style-specific tunes across three vocal music genres, spiritual and spatial (hi)stories of social, cultural, and affective significance are explicitly heard, experienced, and evaluated.