Tag Archives: music

Filipino Musical Folktale – Dip Dippo

Context:

My informant is a 18-year-old girl from Seattle, Washington. She is half Filipino and grew up learning about Filipino culture.

Text:

“One of my old, like, great grandpas from the Philippines told me a story about this guy who I’m pretty sure is like reincarnated into a drum, like a traditional drum. And he goes around and he’s like being used by the people and it’s bringing back all the memories of like, how important music is for like, the community and cultural celebrations. And it’s talking about just like how traditions are passed down through generations through music. He later wrote a short story, called Dip Dippo about it. But it was really cool.”

“Do you know where he learned it?,” I asked.

“I think that he was drawing on old Filipino folklore, but he told it to me as a children’s story in his own way.”

Analysis:

I noticed that as my informant was telling the story of this folktale, although she did remember the specifics of this tale, what she took away seems to be the core values of Filipino culture. This tale revolves around music, community, and culture. The tale builds off of the belief of reincarnation but adds in Filipino values. I think the story describes that, even after their loved ones have passed on, they can still connect with their spirit through music, building off of their community and culture.

George Washington Bridge Song

Text: The George Washington Bridge song is a song that repreats the words “George Washington Bridge” over and over again in rising and falling tunes. 

Context: The informant recalls that this song would be sung by their father whenever they passed over any bridge, not necessarily the George Washington Bridge specifically. The informant originally thought this was a song that their father made up, but the informant’s father notes that he believes he learned it from his father at some point in his childhood. The informant is from Connecticut, but their father is from New York State. 

Analysis: It is performed specifically when crossing bridges, turning an ordinary activity into a ritual. Interestingly, the song is used for any bridge, not just the George Washington Bridge, which shows variation and flexibility. Geography adds another layer. The reference to the George Washington Bridge (a well-known New York landmark) reflects a kind of regional influence, even when performed elsewhere (like Connecticut). This suggests how folklore can carry place-based identity, even when removed from its original setting.

Song lyrics as Fanfiction titles

Text: Song lyrics are often used as fanfiction titles on Archive Of Our Own.

Context: Archive of Our Own (Ao3) is a fanfiction site popular in the modern day. EK is a college student in Southern California who has been active in fandom spaces and fanfiction culture for a number of years. She describes the common practice of using song lyrics to title fanfictions because, as she says, “titles are hard, and songs are cool.” She notes that it is common to see this on “one-shots,” or single-chapter fanfics, but if this is found in a multi-chapter fic, she also describes the practice of using different lines from a song for each chapter title, as it applies to the content and characters. EK also mentions the genre of YouTube videos that compile these lyric titles, editing them together to create a kind of “lyric video” made entirely out of Ao3 screenshots.

Analysis: I view this as another form of texual poaching, as Henry Jenkins identifies in his studies on fan practice in Textual Poachers. This is the nature of “transformative work,” as fanfiction has often been called–here, different forms of copyrighted IP are brought together in a fanwork, used for new, explorative creative purposes. This, combined with the age-old tradition of fan playlists, as well as fanfiction often being populated by young writers who struggle with finding titles for their work, gives way to this fan practice. This also acts a kind of signalling to others within the same in-groups as the author–people who recognize the title are able to recognize that the author likes the same music and stories as they do, therefore creating a trust and connection between audience and author.

Ritual: Pre-performance Routine

Date of Performance: 04/30/2025

Nationality: British

Primary Language: English

Residence: Edinburgh, Scotland

My informant is a performing musician, and describes to me his pre-show ritual. He’s a singer, and so his routine is precise – while some of it is mental, any anomalies could compromise the condition of his vocal cords. It consists of several conditions: first, without fail, on the day of a show, he drinks “two full britas” worth of water. This, he explains, is to keep his vocal cords as hydrated as possible. This step is probably the most critical – as an example, he recounts a time when he had several alcoholic drinks instead of water, and embarrassed himself deeply onstage after the fact. Next is his diet: on the day of the performance, he eats only a sandwich with tomatoes and cucumber. Anything oily, like meat or fried foods, throws him off, he says. Before he arrives at the venue, he drinks a thermos of tea, specifically throat coat, at a medium temperature. Finally, while driving to the show, my informant listens to “Boogie Wonderland” by Earth, Wind, and Fire to get him in the right state of mind for his performance. 

He says that he doesn’t necessarily ascribe meaning to each of the steps in his ritual, but that adhering to them keeps his mind and body in the right space so as to perform to his best ability. When asked as to how he formulated each step, he responded that they were things that just sort of stuck with him as he performed more and more. I did witness a concert of his after this interview, and I can attest that his ritual seems to have worked. 

Being a performing musician myself, too, I can understand the importance of a standardized pre-show routine to my informant. While personally, I don’t adhere to as strict of a regimen, the music I perform doesn’t rely heavily on vocal technique, which might be the difference. A lot of singers I know have similarly precise routines, likely due to the biological component of singing properly. Often, they are encouraged to follow more rigid warm-up rituals so as to keep the vocal cords, a muscle, in its best condition, much like athletes would do before a game or competition.

El Caballo Dorado Dance

Age: 20


Date of performance: 4/25/2025


Language: Spanish


Nationality: Mexican American


Occupation: Full-Time Student


Primary Language: English


Residence: California

Text: “El Caballo Dorado” AKA ‘The Golden Horse’

Context:

My informant recalled a dance they learned as a child during a party, which they associated with ‘ranchero’ culture. The dance, known as “El Caballo Dorado,” is commonly performed at indoor parties, sometimes even during public celebrations outdoors, and features traditional clothing. It derives its name from traditional Mexican song under the same name that plays during the dance Similar to the “Cha Cha Slide” in American party culture, my informant added that it’s a group dance with synchronized movements. A signature move among the male dancers includes holding one hand on their cowboy hat and the other with a thumb tucked under their belt, reinforcing its cowboy-related theme. The dance starts at a manageable pace but increases in speed, turning into a sort of informal competition where participants must keep up with the rhythm. Those who fall behind are seen as having “lost,” though there isn’t a single winner—multiple people can succeed if they maintain the pace. The informant emphasized its role as both a cultural expression and a competitive party activity.

Analysis:

I listened to this song growing up under a Hispanic household, in doing so I hold a similar interpretation to my informant. Much alike my informant, I never learned the actual history about this dance just its background. This has made me arrive at the conclusion that—though it might’ve initially had a significant historical value upon its commencement—it has ultimately evolved to the traditional point of serving as just an entertainment value for Hispanic communities. Despite this, it has held on strong due to its levels of complexities people in the community take it and have continued to pass down throughout generations. Music is a strong foundation for most Latin communities, and this song and dance has served to cement this ideology of bringing generations of diverse individuals to continue to share the dance floor and enjoy their culture.