In Bontoc the gang'-sa is held vertically in the hand by a cord passing
through two holes in the rim, and the cord usually has a human lower
jaw attached to facilitate the grip. As the instrument thus hangs
free in front of the player (always a man or boy) it is beaten on the
outer surface with a short padded stick like a miniature bass-drum
stick. There is no gang'-sa music without the accompanying dance,
and there is no dance unaccompanied by music. A gang'-sa or a tin
can put in the hands of an Igorot boy is always at once productive
of music and dance.
The rhythm of Igorot gang'-sa music is different from most primitive
music I have heard either in America or Luzon. The player beats 4/4
time, with the accent on the third beat. Though there may be twenty
gang'-sa in the dance circle a mile distant, yet the regular pulse
and beat of the third count is always the prominent feature of the
sound. The music is rapid, there being from fifty-eight to sixty full
4/4 counts per minute.
It is impossible for me to represent Igorot music, instrumental
or vocal, in any adequate manner, but I may convey a somewhat
clearer impression of the rhythm if I attempt to represent it
mathematically.
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