Habilog

A circle is a circle is a circle is a circle. An oblong is an oblong is an oblong is an oblong. A circle can never be interchanged with elliptical. Nor can a round shape stand for a sphere.

Pit Señor!

What I love about music is that it does not only serve as a “vastly complex code” to express various emotions, it does not only compel people emotionally to act and respond more than written or spoken languages could achieve, but it also does serve as appetizers for discussions (and or debates) to raise concerns which we don’t give much thought with the daily grind.

Music has proven to be an effective tool in teaching and preaching. In fact, to best remember lessons, teachers have devised the method of putting these into songs – and action songs — making such more stimulating.

According to The Scriptures, music was designed to promote joy in the heart of man. Such even is efficacious in the mental condition of King Saul. In the first Book of Samuel, the music of David the Psalmist made even more interesting by his command over his harp soothed King Saul and “calmed him down.”

Music has this revitalizing force that uplifts the human spirit. Pop anthems like “We Are the World” were written to promote charitable causes and encourage global consciousness.

Much more, music is a powerful tool in political advertisements such as those in the form of infomercials. Most of us know from our own experience how the value of a good jingle has an impact on us. Good songs get stuck in our heads, sometimes to the “point it really hurts.” It was said that a “speech we don’t remember; but a good song, we remember and spread around.” This is why politicians and their campaigners bank on the value of a good song to cement a message about a candidate in the public’s mind.

However, there are infomercials – though creatively produced – that are misleading and come to the point of being annoying or irritating. Rather than educating, it sows confusion. While I doff my hat to the purpose-driven move of educating voters on automated polls, I couldn’t help from reacting loudly to the “bilog na itlog” thing.

In recent discussions with friends and family (at home or online), I share in the opinion that “bilog” is not an appropriate term and neither does it represent how we have known eggs since birth. And as we have a Filipino term for oblong which is “bilohaba,” why wasn’t it preferred?

However, taking into consideration the art of syllabication in the development of a so-called music structure, “bilohaba” wouldn’t fit in either; so I did consider “habilog” – a contraction of “haba-bilog” which is just as precise as “bilog na pahaba.”

No matter how good the arrangement or the music instructional video is, it still is giving us a lot of trouble differentiating now what used to be so easy to understand. So, ano ba talaga mga ate? Bilog na hugis itlog or itlog na naging hugis bilog kasi hindi na-develop into an oblong?

Hmmm…a circle is a circle is a circle is a circle. An oblong is an oblong is an oblong is an oblong. A circle can never be interchanged with elliptical. Nor can a round shape stand for a sphere. We have long learned this from our first teachers. We will also be passing this info down to our children. I have almost forgotten the “Spell Remittance” mess which had overdone a thing in its desire to achieve a witty and catchy message. And now this.

To be true to our shape as a nation and to the purpose of education, terms are — and must — be used to the letter.