“If you’re alone, your voice cannot be heard.”

For the pioneers of Barcelona’s Kudyapi Children’s Choir, finding the right community and having the determination to stay together can make even the smallest voices resonate far beyond their neighborhood.

That idea is at the heart of “Mosai-KO: Fifteen Stories from the El Raval Neighborhood,” a Spanish-language anthology written by 15 young Hispanic-Filipino members of the choir.

Instituto Cervantes in Manila hosted a launch of the anthology on Wednesday, 2 September, ahead of its official release in Barcelona.

The book brings together stories from Filipino children born and raised in Spain, offering personal accounts of growing up between cultures and navigating questions of identity, diversity and belonging in Barcelona’s El Raval neighborhood.

The anthology also traces its roots to the Filipino community that has grown in Barcelona over generations.

Filipinos who migrated to the city sought not only economic opportunities but also a community that could ease the difficulties of living far from home.

Many eventually settled in El Raval, a densely populated neighborhood in central Barcelona that has long been home to migrant communities but has also struggled with negative perceptions about the area and its residents.

Nans, one of the book’s presenters, said “Mosai-KO” grew from personal narratives into an effort to break down barriers between the Filipino community, other residents and visitors to Barcelona.

From church choir to community voice

The beginnings of Kudyapi can be traced to efforts to create a stronger community among Filipinos living in Barcelona.

Father Abel, a Filipino priest based in the city, sought to bridge the divide between Filipino migrants, local residents and institutions.

A church community was eventually established where Filipinos could gather, worship and support one another. As the congregation grew, around 700 Filipinos began regularly attending its services.

The community later formed the Kudyapi Children’s Choir, giving young Filipinos an opportunity to showcase their talents while serving during Mass.

What began as a church choir gradually expanded beyond the congregation.

Its young members performed on the streets and at receptions, weddings and other events, eventually staging their own annual concert.

But the group’s ambitions went beyond music.

Its members wanted to strengthen ties with the wider Barcelona community and challenge negative perceptions of El Raval by showing people what life in the neighborhood was actually like.

That goal eventually found another medium: writing.

Nans said she noticed the writing ability of several choir members and saw an opportunity for them to tell their own stories.

Rather than simply entertaining readers, the young writers could provide an intimate account of El Raval through the eyes of those who actually grew up there.

‘Living, serving, inhabiting, listening and discovering’

Benjamin, one of the anthology’s 15 authors, recalled struggling to translate his thoughts and emotions into words.

After months of working toward a deadline, he eventually completed his piece during four sleepless nights of writing.

Despite the difficulty, Benjamin said writing his story was one of the best things he had done as a young Hispanic-Filipino resident of El Raval.

His story, like those of the other contributors, reflects experiences of “living, serving, inhabiting, listening and discovering” within the neighborhood they call home.

The people behind “Mosai-KO” are now working to translate the anthology into several languages in hopes of bringing their stories to a wider audience.

The first 100 copies were released during the soft launch, with organizers saying 70 were immediately sold.

For the young authors, however, the book represents more than copies sold.

It is a record of the lives they have lived and the community that helped shape them, told in their own voices.

What began with a small group of Filipino families seeking belonging in Barcelona has evolved into a new generation telling its own story.

And if the Kudyapi community’s experience is any indication, a voice that begins quietly does not have to remain unheard.