MUSIC RECITAL REFLECTION

Our country was picked to sing a song is South Korea and we chose the
traditional folk song, Arirang. In terms of learning the piece, since the type of
singing in south korea is more on vibrato and chesty type of singing,since it's
their way of expressing the song. I was struggling a bit to adjust to this type of
singing since I’m more on doing a falsetto. So, I arranged the first part of our
music and picked a melody in arirang by the famous artist in south korea So
Hyang that really suits my voice, i just pick the first part and cutting it after the
first verse and i followed the main tune of arirang and amazingly our song turns
out great and it also fits to me groupmates. The challenge I was facing was
teaching my group mates how to sing, because I know it's hard for them to sing
this kind of song since it's true that it's really hard and new to them even for me
and the most challenging is that when i was starting to perform, my mic was off
haha since my mind was also occupied in many things like arranging the mics for
us, my voice and all and so i just calmly find the on button of mic but i can't find it
and i just transferred to another mic and pressed the on button haha . It was very
chaotic but a great experience and a lesson for me to really check the mic before
performing.

Before our performance, I honestly felt nervous because my throat was itchy and
I wasn’t fully healed from my cough. But even though I was worried, I was still
excited to sing in front of everyone. Surprisingly, during the actual performance, I
felt really calm and I actually enjoyed it a lot. After the performance, I felt relieved
but also a bit disappointed because I found out my mic was off. It embarrassed
me because I really practiced that part, but it turns out the first part wasn’t even
heard haha but still, the most memorable part for me was performing the song
itself. I felt so honored to sing a South Korean folk song in front of many people.
What I really liked about the song Arirang is its melody, simple but very
emotional. When I learned about the background of the song, I felt more
connected to it. Arirang talks about longing and separation, so it helped me
understand how to express the emotion while singing. It’s true that when you
understand the meaning and story behind the music, you sing with more
confidence and emotion. I also appreciated the culture of South Korea more,
knowing that their music really reflects their feelings and stories.

The most important lesson I learned from this recital is to stay calm even when
there are problems. Whether it’s the difficulty of learning a song in another
language or technical issues like the mic, you really need to stay composed and
just keep going. I also realized that I’ve grown a bit as a performer,I was able to
handle everything professionally and didn’t panic. This experience helped me
build more confidence, and I know it will help me do better in future
performances.
 DANCE RECITAL REFLECTION

During the dance recital, I was one who performed the ethnic dance which is the
Maral dad Libon. This kind of dance is really not new to me since I've already
danced an ethnic dance before so it's not that hard for me to adjust but it was
already a long time ago. During the weeks of practicing since I danced it a long
time ago, I was not expecting that it would be a bit hard for me to execute and
portray the Maral dad Libon like how the hips should move, our footworks and
how our hands should be holding the malong and how we would dance using the
malong. The most difficult part for me was how I should really bend my hips since
Maral dad Libon is praising the land for giving them a good harvest. So it's more
on bending their knees and hips and facing toward the land. I really got a muscle
ache during practice and even after the performance. So that was really one of
my unforgettable moments while dancing the Maral dad Libon.

One thing I realized during our weeks of practice is how helpful it is to train in
different ways.This is called variability of practice. Our teacher sometimes made
us change the space where we practice the dance, and how we adjust our dance
steps in the tempo of our music and it helped me adjust to different situations. At
first, it was confusing and tiring to keep changing how we danced, but eventually,
I understood the purpose. It trained me to stay focused and adapt quickly no
matter what the situation was. Because of this, during the actual recital, I didn’t
feel too nervous even when things weren’t perfect. I felt more prepared and calm
because I had already experienced dancing in different and challenging
conditions. This kind of practice really helped boost my confidence and made me
more comfortable performing on stage with my group.
I also experienced the associative stage of motor learning, which is when you
already know the steps but still work on getting better. I really struggled with the
mincing step, especially when I had to bend my knees while doing the footwork.
It took a lot of effort for me to do it smoothly. But thanks to my teacher and
classmates, who gave me feedback on how to bend and move my hips properly, I
improved little by little. My hips became more flexible, and my footwork became
more accurate. Even if I still got muscle pain, I knew I was getting better, and that
made me proud of myself.

Overall, the recital was truly a great and meaningful experience for me. I realized
that dancing well doesn’t just happen overnight. It takes a lot of practice,
patience, and being open to feedback. Every correction from my teacher and
classmates, even the smallest ones, helped me improve little by little. I also
learned that even when it gets hard, not giving up really makes a difference.
These lessons will not only help me become a better performer, but also guide
me when I start teaching others in the future. Dancing Maral dad Libon made me
feel more connected to our Filipino culture, and it reminded me how much I truly
enjoy performing ethnic dances. This whole journey was tiring but very fulfilling,
and I’m proud of what we accomplished.