THE 2008 Pista’y Dayat celebration promises to have the trimmings of a real summer treat that is uniquely Pangasinan as organizers of the annual sea festival finalized the series of week-long activities aimed at drawing a crowd bigger than in previous years’ celebrations.

Every presentation will be “Pangasinan’s Best,” said Ramon Morden, executive assistant to Gov. Amado Espino Jr. and chief event coordinator of the Grand Orchestra Showdown, one of the highlights of this year’s Pista’y Dayat.

The staging of the 1st Pangasinan Tourism and Trade Expo, dubbed as “Aliguas ed Turismo tan Ekonomiya”, at the GSP grounds, will serve as an economic booster as “best products” of every town and city of the province will be showcased, according to Morden.

With Lingayen Gulf as the matrix of festival activities, the “Dayat Ko, Linisan Ko” segment of the festivities will pit 12 coastal towns and one city in a search for cleanest coastal community.

Preserving the coastal environment is one big leap for the tourism industry, a major economic development thrust of the incumbent governorship, Morden said.

For adventurous and family-oriented visitors, a “Youth and Family Beach Camp” will be opened as Pangasinan’s version of a grand beach holiday.

The Pangasinan festival as a whole is an avenue in promoting the tourism potentials of our province, its warm people and its products thus showcasing Pangasinan as a tourist hub, Morden said.

ORCHESTRA SHOWDOWN

A grand orchestra showdown has been lined up to highlight local musical talents.

The ‘Pangasinan Orchestra’, for example, was started by a clan in the small agricultural town of Basista, now known as the hometown of famous orchestras.

In Barangay Dumpay alone, seven orchestras are always being contracted for fine musical entertainment, especially during big fiestas in other towns.

Dubbed as “Panturugtugan, Pansasayawan”, the orchestra showdown will be the biggest assemblage of street orchestras, punctuated by a ‘Dance Sport Fest’ on April 24 at the Narciso Ramos Sports and Civic Center in Lingayen.

Egbert de Guzman, drummer and son of the prominent Don Podring de Guzman, said orchestras started in Basista by farmers who needed to entertain themselves while harvesting palay.

Later, these farmers formed a group singing Christmas carols from house-to-house during the Yuletide season.

The farmers soon realized that they could earn more money by performing at parades during fiestas, staging soap opera shows during rainy days, and performing at the former US naval yard in Subic, Olongapo City and at the Clark Airfield in Pampanga.

Among the groups expected to participate are EC Jammers Orchestra of Sison, Lina Abuan Orchestra of Villasis, Joe Caranto Orchestra of Basista, and Palaganas Orchestra of Malasiqui. #

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