Practically every nation has or must have had its own version of a small guitar-like instrument . Examples of these are Spain's vihuela or timple, Indonesia's krongcong and  Puerto Rico's bordonua. The most popular of these instruments  is the ukulele  ( meaning "jumping flea" in Hawaiian) which   had  taken root in the state of  Hawaii.   Patronized by Burt Bacharach (Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head), endorsed by  Paul McCartney, played by George Harrison,  and coddled by Elvis in "Blue Hawaii", the uke (as it is called in short) is the unofficial symbol of the state of Hawaii.
 
       Here in the Philippines, we have a similar stringed instrument  known as the  "kutibeng" (literally "touch to produce sound" from the Ilocano words "kuti" and "tibeng") .   It was , and could in very rare cases still be,  in use at least in the Ilocos -  the northern  part of  the country's main island of Luzon.  It was a popular  home-made singing tool until the arrival in our shores ( at the start of  the 20th century) of the Americans who introduced the ukulele.
 
       While the uke  sounds  endemic to Hawaii, the instrument did not originate there as the kutibeng (kuti) did in our country. Then known as "braguinha" or "cabaquinho",  the uke was introduced in that island state  in  1879  by Portuguese immigrants .  But with the  spreading American influence and relative control of international communications  in the early 1900's,  the Hawaiians (15 % of whom is of Filipino descent)  richly  deserve credit for  the uke's successful promotion worldwide.  Today,  well known  ukulelists  like Jake Shimabukuro, Roy Sakuma, Bryan Tolentino, James Hill, Abe Lagrimas Jr. (of Filipino descent),  Herb Ohta and many others play in bars, concert halls, TV stations and festivals.  
 
       The kutibeng is one musical  instrument that strongly deserves revival in our country. If a related instrument can thrive in another country,  with stronger reason should it in ours - one inhabited by millions of  music lovers  and musicians many of whom are posted worldwide. I recall, while growing up as a small boy in Camiling, Tarlac decades back when there was hardly electricity in the barrios,  the beautiful sounds emitted by this lovable instrument amidst the stillness of the night and the majestic sparkle of fireflies.