When the mass at dawn today signals the start of the Christmas season, there is a song waiting to be sang in Loboc town. It is an interesting sidebar for a band of musicians in Loboc, one song that makes all the difference in their musical career. Unknown to outsiders and even to some residents in the town, the dawn mass provides the unusual rite of passage to the Loboc Band. “Before one can become a member of the Loboc Band, he will have to sing solo (at the dawn mass),” revealed composer-arranger Rene Balbin.

Balbin, who has been Loboc's resident band master for the past 20 years, said this rule continues to be in force to this day. He said the calenda, which is how the song is called, is sung before the mass on Dec. 24 when virtually all the faithful are watching. “The song was originally in Spanish but it was translated to Cebuano during the Second World War,” he explained. The song chronicles the roles of the Biblical characters who figured in the first Christmas.

It may not sound too impressive in the videoke generation. But it is a daunting task in a town considered as Bohol 's music capital. Balbin, who was initiated at the age of 11, said the experience is life-changing because it gives one a certain degree of satisfaction that is hard to describe. “Who would not be excited about it?” he blurted, the youngest ever admitted to the band. He recalled that the prospective member is chosen by the members of the group on the basis of his readiness and not because of age. As early as October, the member who will be initiated is informed about his turn at the calenda so he can practice the song which is about 7 minutes long. Balbin said that a full-time band member gets a full share in the fees paid to the band during engagements. More than that however, he said it is about prestige and a sense of fulfillment. “Just the thought that I finally made it, ahead of others who are already grandfathers, is a major accomplishment,” he added.

After the successful initiation, the entire band will march on the way to the new member's house and celebrate it with a feast that includes the traditional lechon. Despite the dwindling numbers, there has not been a year in recent memory when no new member was initiated in one year. The calenda is the highlight of the season that opens in Loboc with another very prominent group, the Loboc Children's Choir. The critically-acclaimed is one of three choirs that will alternately provide music for the duration of the novena.

“They are the ones assigned because this mass is for the youth,” explained Fr. Alger Angcla, Loboc parish priest. In itself, the songs provided by the choir that won critical acclaim in music festivals abroad are as much an attraction as the traditional dawn mass itself in Loboc about 24 kilometers from Tagbilaran. Angcla however see no big deal about the children's choir, obviously making sure that the music from the group does not distract significance of the worship. “(Their music) has become common place because of the familiarity,” he added when asked if this can bring about an increase in the attendance in Bohol 's second oldest church. Angcla however conceded that music from the famous choir has become an added attraction to the mass in Loboc, a town considered as Bohol 's music capital. “People from other places call ahead and inquire when the children are singing so they can adjust their schedules,” he noted. Angcla said the calenda continues to be a very interesting sidebar to the dawn mass.

Loboc Mayor Leon Calipusan said the band has given the town so much particularly in providing music during major events. “It means a lot when you have a band with the caliber of the Loboc Band,” the mayor said. He noted that people expect so much from the people of Loboc when it comes to music because of the long tradition of music excellence. For this reason, Calipusan said the quality of the band is very important especially when there are out-of-town guests. “The calenda is important because it allows the band to live up to its tradition because only the best and the qualified are accepted into it,” he added. Balbin said that at present, the band only has about 30 members. This is very low for a band that had as much as 80 in the past, At present, Balbin said he is training some 300 recruits, half of the original number that auditioned with him at the start. That would assure the people of Loboc that the calenda will be here to stay for quite a while.