The agung is a set of two wide-rimmed, vertically suspended gongs used by the Maguindanao, Maranao, Sama-Bajau and Tausug people of the Philippines as a supportive instrument in kulintang ensembles.

[2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14] They are hung vertically above the floor at or a bit below the waist line, suspended by ropes fastened to structures like strong tree limb, beam of a house, ceiling, or gong stand.

Found on the player's left, it is mainly played on the weaker double and triple beats of the rhythmic structure, in counterpoint to the pangandungan's part.

[11] Further evidence of this comes from a British explorer, Thomas Forrest, who in the 1770s wrote Filipinos were "fond of musical gongs which came from Cheribon on Java and have round knobs on them".

The mallets, called balu, are made from short sticks about half a foot in length and padded with soft but tough material such as rubber at one end.

Recently, new ways of handling the agung have emerged, including grasping a portion of the boss rather than the flange to dampen or using regular strokes upon the busel while striking the surrounding gong surface with the opposite, wooden end of the beater.

To be considered a good player, one must possess strength, stamina (playing extremely fast tempos with no mistakes) and endurance.

Even though the players compete, they still understand they are a single entity, closely accompanying the melody,[15] employ different variations without destroying the music's basic patterns.

Both Maranao and Maguindanao cultures traditionally adhere to Islamic customs which prohibit dating or causal conversation between the opposite sexes (unless married to or related to by blood)[14] and therefore performances such as kulintang music provided the opportunity for such a connection.

[1] Among the Maguindanao, the rhythmic modes of duyog and sinulog a kamamatuan allowed agung players to serenade the young, unmarried women on the kulintang.

And supposedly due to the deep, loud sound the agung produces, people believed that it possessed supernatural powers.

[1][4][5] In the Sulu Archipelago, the kulintang orchestra uses not two but three low-sounding agungs, which serve as accompaniment in Tausug, Samal and Yakan ensembles.

For the Tausug and Samal, the largest of the agungs with a wide turned-in rim is called the tunggalan or tamak , which provides slow, regular beats, similar to the Maguindanaon pangandungan and Maranao p’nanggisa-an.

[19][25] For instance, the Hanunoo of Mindoro have a small agung ensemble consisting of only two light gongs played by two musicians on the floor in a simple duple rhythm[2][24] while the Manobo have an ensemble (called an ahong) consisting of 10 small agungs hung vertically on a triangular frame.

[1][21] The Manobo sagabong ensemble follows a similar format, consisting of five small gongs, each held by one musician playing a unique pattern with rubber mallets, interlocking with other parts.

[10] Both the Bagabo and the B’laan refer to their agung ensemble as a tagunggo, a set of eight metal gongs suspended on a harness, which is played by two, three, or more people.