Malaysia , Federation of (Malay Persekutuan Tanah Malaysia).

(v) Social popular music.

1. The Malays.

Types of indigenous Malay music are many and varied and reflect the character of the various regions on the Malay peninsula from which they come. The northern states of Kelantan, Kedah and Trengganu maintain rich musical, dance and theatrical traditions, while the southern states and particularly those on the west coast of peninsular Malaysia show a strong bias towards Western European performing arts. Traditional music consists of folk, classical (or court) and syncretic types. Much of the traditional music is associated with drama and dance, and there is also a largely undocumented tradition of vocal music.

(i) Instruments.

(ii) Ceremonial music.

(iii) Theatre music.

(iv) Dance music.

(vi) Vocal genres.

(i) Instruments.

Drums and gongs in particular play a central role. Membranophones are numerous and varied. Tubular drums appear in cylindrical and elongated barrel shapes. The gendang double-headed barrel drum, especially important in many ensembles, appears in two sizes, the larger called ibu (‘mother’) and the smaller anak (‘child’), tuned by rattan laces and held horizontally in the player's lap (or sometimes on a wooden stand) and hit with the hands, or with rattan or stick beaters.

The Rebana is a single-headed frame drum, with the drum head laced to the body, related to the duff of the Middle East. It appears in many forms and sizes: rebana berarak (with a deep wooden frame and large head), redap (shallow frame and large head), rebana kercing and tar (shallow frame with metal discs or jingles inserted into the frame and a small head); all are struck with the hands. The kompang is a shallow frame drum without jingles in small to medium sizes, with a single head tacked to the body, while the hadrah frame drum has the same basic construction as the kompang but with brass jingles.

Also called rebana but with a cone-shaped body, the rebana besar and rebana ubi (fig.2) are massive in size and originate from the state of Kelantan; between the circular brace at the base of the body and the lower rim of the body are inserted 15 or more large tuning wedges. The rebana besar is always hung vertically and accompanies the singing of zikir (religious texts; see §1(vi) below) or, in sets of three or more, is beaten with the hands to play interlocking rhythmic patterns for entertainment. The rebana ubi is slightly smaller; it may be hung or set on the ground, usually with the head in a vertical position, and is played with the hands or a padded beater. Two men often beat a single drum in interlocking rhythmic patterns, and ensembles of four or more drums play in an interlocking style.

The gedumbak, a wooden goblet drum with an open base, is placed horizontally in the player's lap; the head is struck by the hand and fingers while the other hand closes and opens the base to produce specific timbres. Like the gendang, this drum appears in large and small sizes.

The geduk, a short barrel drum (also in two sizes) with its heads glued and pegged to the body, is placed vertically and supported by two wooden or rattan struts so that one drum head, which is struck with a pair of wooden beaters, faces the player.

The most common idiophones are gongs, which function as time-marking instruments in most Malay ensembles. The largest is the tawak (also tetawak), usually made of bronze with thick walls, a central boss and deep rim; these are hung vertically in pairs and produce a low and a high pitch when struck on the boss with a padded beater. There is also a slightly smaller hanging gong with thin walls, called mong, in north Malaysia and south Thailand.

The gong-chime with two to six (or more) gong kettles placed horizontally in a wooden rack is called canang in Malay theatrical ensembles and caklempong in the Minangkabau musical traditions of Malaysia and Sumatra. A slightly larger pot-shaped gong, also suspended horizontally in a frame, called mong, is used in the wayang kulit Melayu of north Malaysia and in ensembles of southern Thailand.

The kesi and cerek (krek) are concussion idiophones. The kesi is a set of hand cymbals with a central boss and flat rim. One pair of kesi is held in the hands and struck against another pair attached to a piece of wooden board, producing ringing and damped timbres. The cerek, used by the Thai in the theatre genre menora, consists of two thin pieces of bamboo that are struck together. These instruments also function as markers of time in their respective music ensembles.

The kertuk kelapa, a single-bar xylophone with a large coconut resonator (fig.3), appears in ensembles of four or more that play a repertory of interlocking rhythmic patterns, often in competitions between rival teams. The idiophone known as kertuk kayu, kertuk buluh or gambang tali is also a xylophone with horizontally suspended wooden or bamboo tubes, played with a wooden beater. Another idiophone, Angklung, formerly used only in the ensemble for the kuda kepang horse trance dance of Johore and Selangor, is now a popular instrument in schools, appearing in large sets tuned to diatonic scales.

Another percussion-dominated ensemble, the gamelan, brought to the Pahang court from the Riau Islands of Indonesia, was used to accompany dances known as joget in the early 19th century. By the early 20th century joget gamelan was established at the neighbouring court of Trengganu, where it continued to flourish until World War II. It was revived in 1969 and today is used to play newly composed repertory by Malaysian composers and to accompany modern dance dramas.

In the southern state of Negeri Sembilan the Minangkabau peoples perform tambuk kalang. Originating from the pounding of rice with a mortar and pestle, tambuk kalang is folk entertainment that sometimes includes dramatic sketches told through the singing of pantun (four-line verses). The mortar, supported in a frame, is struck in different places with at least four different sizes of pestles to produce specific timbres in an interlocking style, purely for entertainment or to accompany the singing. Sometimes the seruling (duct flute), rebana and caklempong gong-chime are added to the ensemble.

The chordophone used in Malaysian folk music ensembles is the rebab tiga tali (fig.4), a three-string spike fiddle that is greatly respected because of its supernatural associations. Its heart-shaped soundbox is usually made of hardwood, and its sound-table is made with skin from a cow's stomach or a buffalo's bladder. The neck consists of the upper section of a wooden shaft that runs through the soundbox; the head often resembles a Khmer or Thai crown. The three strings, passing over a small bridge to the lateral tuning pegs, are played with a gracefully arched bow strung with coconut fibre or plastic fishing-line. The rebab is used in ensembles for the dance-drama known as ma'yong, for the healing ceremony called main puteri, and in former times by the narrator of tarik selampit, a form of story-telling partly in rhythmic spoken prose and partly in song. The two-string rebab (rebab dua tali) is shorter and much plainer and is used in the ensemble for wayang kulit Melayu (see below).

A popular chordophone found in ensembles playing syncretic genres is the Gambus, a lute with lateral tuning pegs believed to be derived from the Middle Eastern ‘ūd; it is the main melody instrument in many syncretic music ensembles such as the ghazal and zapin.

Aerophones include end-blown flutes and oboes. End-blown bamboo flutes, generally known as seruling, are of the duct or notched flute types. The finger-holes are usually equidistant. This type of bamboo flute is sometimes found in folk percussion ensembles such as tambuk kalang, while a wooden duct flute is found in the caklempong ensemble.

The serunai (oboe) is found in nobat and silat theatrical ensembles. It is normally the only melodic instrument in otherwise percussion-dominated ensembles. Featuring a quadruple free-beating reed, it is sounded using a circular breathing technique (see Sarunai).

(ii) Ceremonial music.

Each of the royal courts of Kedah, Perak, Selangor and Trengganu has its own nobat ensemble – a mark of the ruler's sovereignty and an essential part of his regalia. This classical ensemble plays at his installation and at weddings, funerals, birthdays and other celebrations of the royal family, and marks specific times such as the breaking of the Muslim fast. In function and composition it is related to the tablkhāna of the Middle East: both have the same basic instruments, and in both a drum (in Malaysia, negara, nahara or nengkara, from Arabic naqqāra) is accorded special respect. The ruler of Malacca is thought to have adopted the tradition of possessing a drum of sovereignty in the early 15th century, and since then peninsular Malay rulers have been invested to the sound of drumming. The first mention of the nobat on the peninsula, in the Sejarah Melayu (‘Malay annals’), indicates that it was used in Malacca during the reign of Sultan Muhammed Shah (1424–41). The rulers who paid homage to his successors and asked for the drum of sovereignty included the Rajah of Kedah. The Kedah nobat now has six instruments: a negara (a metal kettledrum), two gendang, one nafiri (a long silver trumpet), one serunai and one suspended gong (fig.5). After the Portuguese capture of Malacca, its ruler Raja Muzaffar migrated to Perak, taking a nobat with him for his installation. The Perak nobat now comprises one negara, one gendang nobat, one gendang kecil (small gendang), one nafiri and one serunai. In Kedah and Perak only orang kalur (‘hereditary families’) may play the instruments: spirits are said to inhabit them, and illnesses have been reported when they were maltreated. In both states the instrumental pieces are called man. Selangor acquired its nobat when its first ruler travelled to Perak to seek recognition and to be installed to the sound of its nobat. The Selangor nobat instruments are one negara, two gendang besar, two gendang kecil, one nafiri and one serunai. When Sultan Abdul Rahman Muazam Shah II abdicated from Riau-Lingga in 1911 he gave his nobat to Trengganu. The Trengganu nobat now consists of one negara and two gendang nobat (all three drums are encased in silver), one nafiri, one serunai and a pair of kopok-kopok (small cymbals, also of silver).

Music and dance are also an integral part of a folk ritual healing ceremony called main puteri. The ceremony is based on the belief that certain illnesses result from possession of an individual by spirits. The bomoh (shaman), known as Tok Puteri, performs the ceremony so that spirits may enter his body and enable him to communicate with the spirits inhabiting the sick person and thereby discover the root of the problem and how to solve it. This process is accomplished by the use of music, sung monologue and dialogue, trance dance and the chanting of special prayers. The bomoh is assisted by a rebab player, the Tok Minduk, who sings in dialogue with the bomoh as he plays. Once the bomoh has been possessed by spirits, the Tok Minduk is able to speak with those spirits through the physical being of the bomoh. Tok Minduk, then, is the only direct link the bomoh has for communication between the spirit and the human world. Five other musicians accompany the rebab player: they play two gendang (anak and ibu), one pair of canang, one pair of kesi and two tetawak. In earlier times the ensemble consisted of one redap (frame drum), one rebab and one batil (an upturned brass bowl hit with sticks). The music of both the rebab and percussion instruments helps to maintain contact with the spirit world through the bomoh, who remains in trance throughout much of the ceremony. The trance dance is characterized by extreme body movements: they include swaying of the hips, quick arm and leg movements, and whirling of the head. A performance may last several days.

Several other performances are associated with possession rituals. In olek mayang, from Pahang, a circle of men chant continuously as one of them, gripping an areca-nut shoot, goes into a trance. In another Pahang dance, tari labi-labi, the turtle spirit enters the dancer. In kuda kepang, a possession dance particularly popular in Johore, the male dancers carry wooden replicas of horses. Its accompanying instruments include an angklung (bamboo idiophone), to which are usually added two gendang, two mong and two suspended gongs. For silat medan (a stylized imitation of fighting) and bergayong ota-ota (a dance involving elements of self-defence), the accompanying instruments are a serunai, gendang and tawak-tawak.

(iii) Theatre music.

Ma'yong is a folk theatre genre that includes stylized dance, solo and choral singing and drama. In the village areas of Kelantan, on peninsular Malaysia's east coast, it is still performed as part of the ritual healing ceremony known as main puteri. Around 1910 the ma'yong was taken into the court of the Kelantanese Sultanate, where it flourished for 10 to 15 years. When it lost its royal patronage, performers returned to their village homes and only occasionally gathered together for a performance. By the middle of the 20th century there were few performers active. Fortunately, a revival has proved possible, and today performances are given by a troupe known as Seri Temenggong (named after one of the devoted court patrons of the earlier part of the century) and other organized groups on the east coast. Several actresses, usually two male comedians and four male musicians are required. The instrumental ensemble consists of one rebab (tiga tali – ‘three strings’), two gendang (anak and ibu) and tetawak. A performance, which usually lasts for several consecutive nights, begins with a special ritual ceremony called Buka panggung (‘opening of the stage’). This ceremony is followed by the entrance of the actresses to the musical accompaniment of a tune (lagu) known as lagu Pa'yong turum (the entry tune for the leading character, Pa'yong). The first major piece of each performance is the Menghadap rebab (‘salutation to the rebab’), which opens with a solo passage played on the rebab. The singing and dancing are executed in a squatting or sitting position as the actresses face the rebab. The Menghadap rebab is the most elaborate and perhaps the most beautiful of pieces in the ma'yong repertory. Several other dance pieces precede the actual story. The audience is told of the setting and situation. Although the basic plot is known by all performers, and certain spoken passages known as ucap are fixed, the dialogue is for the most part improvised. From the musical repertory, which numbers some 30 tunes, the performers can draw on certain pieces that can be classified as tunes for specific role-types, for walking or travelling situations, for conveying messages, for lullabies, for lamenting and for other activities. Musical pieces are performed within the framework of a cyclical unit (gong-unit, or gongan), which is marked by the gongs. Within the cycle the two gendang provide interlocking rhythmic patterns, while the rebab and singer perform a melody in a highly ornamented, melismatic style that suggests a strong relationship to Middle Eastern vocal practice. The chorus adds to the generally heterophonic style. Dances are performed for important events in the story, and in one of these, the tari ragam, a serunai replaces the rebab, and a pair of canang are added.

The shadow-puppet theatre, wayang kulit, is a form of entertainment particularly popular in the northern states. The dalang (puppeteer) uses conversational and dramatic tones of voice and song joining with the instrumental music as an integral part of the action. Wayang kulit in Malaysia is found in four distinct forms: wayang kulit Kelantan (also known as wayang Siam), wayang kulit Melayu (also known as wayang Jawa), wayang gedek and the Javanese wayang kulit purwa. Wayang kulit Kerantan is the indigenous Malay form and is the most popular. The root stories are based on the Rāmāyana epic, but more popular are Malay folk tales and stories of current and local interest, in local dialects mixed with standard Malay.

The musical ensemble consists of two serunai, three pairs of drums (geduk, gendang and gedumbak, each in large and small sizes), one pair of canang, one set of kesi and two tetawak hanging gongs (fig.6). The entries and exits of characters must be accompanied by music, but the instruments remain silent when the dalang is speaking, except to emphasize a comment, quick action or punch-line of a joke. The musical repertory numbers some 30 pieces, including pieces for specific character-types and actions.

Like the music for ma'yong, wayang kulit music is also cast within the framework of cyclical gong units that define the musical form, played by the tetawak, canang and kesi. The drum's rhythmic patterns normally define a specific piece and are played by a particular combination of gedumbak, gendang and geduk. The highly ornamented melodies are sung by the dalang or are played on the serunai.

Wayang kulit Melayu (which is almost extinct) is performed by Malay peoples but carries strong Javanese influence. At one time it was performed mainly in the Kelantan court. The stories are based on the Mahābhārata and Panji tales. The musical ensemble consists of rebab dua tali, a gong-chime of six canang, one pair of kesi, one mong, two large, hanging, bossed gongs and two gendang.

Wayang gedek, with strong influence from the nang talung of south Thailand, is performed by Thai and Malay peoples in Kedah and Perlis using the local dialect, sometimes mixed with the southern Thai dialect (see Thailand, §II, 4). The Javanese wayang kulit purwa is performed only in the southern state of Johore by peoples of Javanese descent (for further discussion see Indonesia, §IV and South-east Asia, §6(ii)).

The folk theatre known as mek mulung, found only in the northern state of Kedah, features a repertory of Malay folk tales (some similar to those of the ma'yong) told through dialogue, song, dance and instrumental music. A troupe consists entirely of male actors who take on male and female roles. The musical ensemble features rebana in various sizes: two rebana ibu (gendang ibu), one rebana penganak and one rebana peningkah (small size). There is also one medium-size hanging, bossed gong, one serunai and several pairs of bamboo clappers (cerek). The gong and cerek serve as markers of specific colotomic units in the music, while the four rebana are played in an interlocking style. The serunai provides moderately ornamented melodies. A repertory of standard musical pieces accompanies actions such as travelling and giving news. Many pieces are sung in responsorial style with instrumental accompaniment; the musicians also serve as the chorus when needed.

Randai was originally the folk dance-theatre of Minangkabau peoples living in the southern state of Negeri Sembilan, but it is known throughout Malaysia. The stories are folk tales, originally from the kaba storytelling tradition, which relate the adventures of local heroes. Stories are enacted in dialogue and song in a circle formation with the use of the stylized dance movements of silat (martial arts). Both men and women take part in a performance.

The opening and closing procession of the actors and musicians is accompanied by a maximum of five musicians: three play the caklempong pacik (set of five small, hand-held knobbed gongs struck on the knob with a stick), one drummer plays the katindiek (double-headed barrel drum) or adok (single-headed frame drum), and one musician plays the serunai or the pupuik aerophones. One set of two caklempong pacik gongs, called dasar (‘fundamental’), plays the main melodic motif that is repeated throughout a given piece, while the second set of two gongs, called peningkah (‘time beater’), and a single gong are played in an interlocking style to produce harmonic and rhythmic accompaniment. All caklempong pacik pieces begin with staggered entrances. The drum repeats a rhythmic pattern while the serunai duplicates and ornaments the main melody. There are two types of repertory: melodies for happy and peaceful occasions and melodies for melancholy or sad situations.

Between the acts of a randai, a larger caklempong (also called taklempong, celempong or telempong) ensemble plays music for general entertainment. This ensemble consists of three or four gong-chimes: one or two gereteh (a set of 15 small knobbed gongs), one saua (a set of eight gongs) and one tingkah (another set of eight gongs). The gereteh plays the main melody and the saua plays the counter melody, while the tingkah provides the harmonic and rhythmic accompaniment. The gongs are now tuned diatonically. In a traditional caklempong ensemble a double-headed barrel drum (gendang), serunai and pupuik gadang (reed aerophone with cone-shaped bell) or bangsi (duct flute) are added. In modern ensembles the gong-chimes may be accompanied by guitars, electric bass, Western drums, accordion, mandolin, synthesizer and other instruments.

Some musical genres combine elements from indigenous folk and classical traditions with Western, Arabic, Indian and Chinese elements. One of the most famous of the syncretic music-theatre forms is bangsawan (also known as Malay opera), which first appeared in the 19th century as large cities with multi-ethnic communities began to develop throughout peninsular Malaysia. Believed to have originated in Persia and carried by Indian sources to the Malay peninsula by the 1880s, it was adapted to suit local tastes and called bangsawan (‘nobility’), after its stories and characters that focussed on the Malay nobility. As commercial theatre supported by entrepreneurs, bangsawan was found in Malaysia, Singapore, Sumatra, Java and Borneo by the early 20th century. Performed on a proscenium stage with elaborate sets and backdrops, each production consisted of one or more stories enacted with dialogue, song and dance, and supplemented by additional song-and-dance routines (‘extra turns’) performed in front of the closed stage curtain during scene changes.

The bangsawan orchestra, music, dance and stories were highly eclectic, featuring elements of local Malay and various foreign art forms. Throughout the first half of the 20th century, stories and music of Malay, Arabic, Chinese, Indian and Western origin were adapted and performed with stage sets and costumes to reflect the specific national origin of the story. The ‘extra turns’ featured soloists and a chorus performing waltzes, fox-trots and rumbas, along with Malay lagu asli (‘original songs’) and local inang, joget and zapin dances.

Three kinds of ensemble were used in early 20th-century bangsawan: a Western ensemble of violin, trumpet, trombone, saxophone, flute, clarinet, piano, guitars, drum kit, maracas and other Western percussion, which accompanied Western and Middle Eastern stories; a local ronggeng dance ensemble of violin (biola), accordion, rebana and gong, which accompanied Malay and Javanese stories; and an ensemble of harmonium and tablā that accompanied Hindustani stories. Theme songs were composed for particular stories, and new stories required new repertory; both Western and local musical forms were used.

Bangsawan performances now tend to feature mainly Malay stories, with emphasis on regional musical forms such as lagu asli and keroncong. A standard repertory of pieces is drawn upon to reflect the mood of an episode in a given story. In general the characteristic rhythmic pattern of a piece is repeated, while the melody is most often cast in a major or minor key or in a tonal pattern evoking Middle Eastern modes. Strophic forms are common in most bangsawan pieces together with local poetic forms (pantun and syair), while major and minor harmonies support the melodic line. Although bangsawan was the first type of popular music in the Malay peninsula, it is now considered as a traditional music-theatre form.

Early in the 20th century the music-theatre form boria was found throughout the state of Penang, but it is now limited to specific localities and is usually performed during the annual Penang Festival, for state-held expositions and national-day celebrations. Since the 1950s both men and women have performed, with the men enacting a story or comic episode of local interest, using improvised dialogue, and the women serving as the chorus and dancers. A given performance usually consists of two stories that are thematically related. Each story takes the form of a comic sketch followed by a number of song-and-dance selections. The actors and chorus can consist of 30 to 40 performers. Formerly the band consisted of violin, gambus, marwas (small double-headed drum), tablā, accordion, gendang, cymbals and harmonica. Other Western instruments are now added, including electric guitars, drum kit, tambourines and electric keyboard. The music can range from the cha cha cha or rumba to soul, styles of rock and other forms of popular music.

The folk forms rodat and hadrah, performed at weddings and other celebrations, have their origins in the singing of zikir (texts in praise of the Prophet Muhammad), although secular verses and popular Malay and Hindustani songs are usually added. Rodat occurs mainly in Trengganu (east coast), while hadrah is found in Perlis and Kedah (west coast). In rodat a group of drummers (pengadi), seated on the floor of the performing area, play rhythmic patterns on the tar (frame drum with jingles), while a line of male singers (pelenggok) sit in front of the drummers and sing verses of zikir or pop songs, moving their arms and bodies in dance-like gestures. Simultaneously, a line of female dancer-singers (inang) dance in between the rows of drummers and male singers. The singing is responsorial between the two choruses or between solo and chorus. A similar all-male form, found in Kelantan, is called rebana kercing, after the frame drum of the same name.

Hadrah was originally very similar to rodat but is now performed by an all-male group. Recently, local historical dramas have been enacted with popular Malay and Hindustani songs performed between the dramatic episodes. Hadrah is accompanied by a small ensemble of rebana drums and a violin.

(iv) Dance music.

There are court dances, solo and group dances, dances associated with rice cultivation, dances showing Arab and Portuguese influence and dances that are still evolving. The tari asyik, a dance formerly performed for entertainment and ceremonial events at the Kelantan court, was accompanied by some 12 to 16 musicians. The music ensemble, at its largest, consisted of one canang (gong-chime of seven or eight small knobbed gongs), mong, two tetawak (hanging knobbed gongs), three sets of gendang asyik (small single-headed drums), two gendang (anak and ibu), two geduk, gambang buluh (bamboo xylophone), gambang besi (metallophone with iron keys), gendang besar (single-headed cylindrical drum), kesi cymbals, rebab tiga tali and serunai ibu. Sometimes the kertuk kelapa was added. Although dancers and musicians still remember some of the repertory, it is rarely performed today.

Based on the Panji tales, joget gamelan, formerly a court dance genre, is now performed at universities and by groups under government sponsorship (see also §1(i) above).

The tarinai (terinai) folk dance of Kedah and Perlis is performed in villages and for special occasions in the courts of the sultanates. In its village setting, tarinai is performed at weddings, especially during the inai ceremony (henna-staining of the hands and feet of the bride), but it is also performed at state and other festive occasions for entertainment. Both men and women may dance, but only men play the musical instruments. The small ensemble, formerly called gendang keling (‘Indian drums’) but now referred to as gendang tarinai, consists of one serunai, two gendang keling (double-headed barrel drums), struck with the hands and a rattan beater, and two hanging bossed gongs of high and low pitch. The gongs mark the colotomic units that basically follow the rhythmic patterns played on the two gendang. The serunai provides a moderately ornamented melodic line.

Zapin is of Arabic origin. Formerly danced by groups of men, it is now danced by both sexes. Both Arabic and Malay styles of this folkdance are found in the villages of Johore, while a somewhat different national style is known throughout the country. The traditional ensemble for the Arabic style is violin or gambus and several marwas drums. The Malay style is accompanied by gambus or violin and marwas with the addition of dok (single-headed, cone-shaped drum) and the accordion. At the national level a flute may be added, with rebana replacing the other drums and a bossed hanging gong. A typical zapin rhythmic pattern (ex.1) identifies this musical genre, while the musical form follows the sections of the dance with an opening taksim (improvised introduction), followed by the main piece (a two- or three-part structure) and wainab (‘closing’), featuring a loud, contrasting rhythmic pattern called kopak.

The ronggeng is a mixed social dance involving the singing of pantun (four-line verses), traditionally accompanied by violin (biola), accordion, rebana and gong. In pre-World War II Malaya and Singapore, ronggeng was featured in the urban dance halls, and it is still performed in Malaysia for weddings and other social occasions. Possibly evolving in the 17th century through Portuguese influence, the music for ronggeng mixes Western harmony and instruments with Chinese scales and melodies and Malay- and Middle Eastern-derived rhythmic patterns, modal structures and instruments. Several types of pieces are used to accompany the ronggeng dance, including lagu asli, inang and joget, which feature strophic forms and the singing of a melodic line with great use of tremolo, portamento and rubato. Each type is distinguished by particular melodic and rhythmic patterns. The use of the melodic and cadential pattern known as patahan lagu, duple metre, slow tempo and a specific rhythmic pattern (ex.2), identifies lagu asli. Inang requires a fast tempo, quadruple metre and the rhythmic pattern featured in ex.3. Joget also features a fast tempo and a four-beat rhythmic pattern incorporating a triplet figure (ex.4). A feature of joget melodies is the shift in the internal stress, producing an alternation of 2/4 and 6/8 metres. This highly syncretic music is performed by pop bands and symphony orchestras with the melody accompanied by homophonic texture and functional harmony.

(v) Social popular music.

Various music ensembles for formal and informal social occasions are found in both rural and urban areas, performing music genres that combine Malay, Chinese, Indian, Arabic and Western elements. The traditional genres such as keroncong, ghazal, dondang sayang, dikir barat and the dance pieces for ronggeng are widely heard on radio, television and through the sale of cassettes and CDs.

Keroncong is popular throughout the country. Originating from Betawi (Jakarta, Indonesia) in the 16th century, by the 1920s keroncong was found in the Malay peninsula and performed as an ‘extra turn’ in bangsawan. The current style developed in the 1930s. A typical ensemble from this period consisted of a singer, violin and flute playing the main melody, with the accompaniment of steel-string guitar, ukelele (cuk), banjo (cak), three-string cello and four-string double bass; an accordion might also be added. Throughout its history the particular style of keroncong has dictated the instrumentation: Hawaiian keroncong requires Hawaiian guitar, while rumba or tango keroncong uses the instrumentation of a jazz band. Today, synthesizer often replaces the violin or one of the rhythm instruments. The traditional repertory consists of three main styles: keroncong asli (the original Javanese keroncong), keroncong stambul (formerly played in Indonesian stambul comedy and in bangsawan) and the keroncong langgam (all keroncong not in the other two idioms). The Malaysian keroncong is basically in the langgam style with song texts on Malaysian themes and newly composed melodies by Malaysian composers. Keroncong are diatonic and in strophic form. The main melody is sung with portamento, ornamentation and rubato and creates heterophonic texture with the flute and violin parts. The cak and cuk are played in an interlocking style and provide specific chords in a given sequence for the three main keroncong types. The pizzicato rhythm of the cello supports the harmonies of the cak and cuk, while the double bass provides the root pitches of the chords (see also Indonesia §VIII, 1(ii)).

In the dondang sayang (‘song of love or affection’) one performer sings a four-line pantun and a second singer answers with another pantun. The pantuns are created spontaneously; the subject-matter may focus on love, wisdom, courtesy, jokes, advice, food etc. An entertaining and convivial atmosphere is created in the performance through the cajoling and teasing repartee. Dondang sayang is performed at weddings and other social occasions by Malays and by Chinese of Straits descent in Malaysia and Singapore. In Malacca it is always performed at the Pesta Mandi Safar (festival in the second month of the Muslim calendar) and in Penang during Chap Goh Meh (the 15th day after the Chinese New Year). The traditional instrumental accompaniment is violin, two rebana and one hanging bossed gong. Accordion or harmonium, guitar and tambourine may also be added. A single melody undergoes variation and ornamentation by individual singers and the violin or other melody instruments. Strophic form is used, and diatonic harmony supports the melodic line while the singer and melody instrument maintain a heterophonic relationship. One rebana repeats the basic eight-beat lagu asli rhythmic pattern (see ex.2 above) while the second rebana provides an interlocking part.

Another type of social popular music is ghazal, found especially in the southern state of Johore. The ghazal is a love poem, originating in the Middle East and also prevalent in north India; it is thought to have been brought to Malaya via Riau-Lingga (Indonesia) by Indian traders in the 19th century. The ensemble that accompanies the singing of the pantun that comprise ghazal consists of harmonium, gambus, violin, guitar, tablā, maracas and tambourine. Combining elements from Malay, Indian, Arabic and Western music styles, this syncretic genre features a melodic line performed heterophonically by a singer and one or more melody instruments, to which a Western harmonic base is added. The rhythmic patterns are from Hindustani music or from Malay lagu asli and joget traditions (see also India, §IV; Singapore, §2).

Dikir barat is a favourite form of entertainment, possibly derived from the chanting of zikir (religious texts). It originated among the Malays of the northern state of Kelantan and southern Thailand and is usually sung by two competing teams of vocalists (formerly all male, but now both male and female), who sing newly composed secular texts of topical interest, often comic in nature. Dikir barat is also broadcast on television to increase public awareness of social issues. A given team consists of the awok-awok, a chorus of 10 to 15 singers singing in unison; tok juara, the lead singer who also rehearses the group; and the tukang karut, the second solo singer, who spontaneously composes and sings song texts. The tok juara begins the performance by chanting a pantun in free rhythm (like zikir), while the chorus repeats the verse and melody in metre, interjecting syncopated shouts and making dance-like movements of the hands, arms and upper torso while sitting on the floor. The tok juara and chorus alternate, singing new or repeated song texts. After the final chorus the tukang karut takes the lead, spontaneously creating several lines of text and singing in a responsorial style with the chorus. The vocal parts are accompanied by a small ensemble consisting of two rebana (large and small), tetawak, a pair of canang and a set of maracas. The rebana and maracas establish a rhythmic pattern repeated throughout a piece, while the canang and tetawak mark short colotomic units (usually two or four beats long). Hand-clapping by the chorus reinforces the final beat of the colotomic unit.

(vi) Vocal genres.

A major type of vocal music among the Malays is zikir, the singing of religious texts, which may take the form of a prayer to invoke God's blessing, a request for pardon, an expression of obedience to the will of God, or devotion and greetings to the various prophets. Zikir is performed unaccompanied by a solo singer or a chorus in unison. Sometimes simple rhythmic accompaniment may be provided by a number of frame drums, including the kompang and hadrah, or a form of rebana. The singing style is mainly syllabic with only moderate melisma and ornamentation of the melodic line. Some zikir are through-composed, whereas others are in two- or three-part forms. Regional styles are known by various names, including kompang in the south of the peninsula and elsewhere hadrah, marhaban (always unaccompanied) and zikir rebana. In Kelantan the singing of zikir accompanied by rhythmic patterns on large, hanging rebana is called rebana besar, while the singing of zikir by a group of men in a responsorial style and without instrumental accompaniment as they wave small fans in rhythmical motion is called dikir laba. Other types of vocal music in the Malay community include a repertory of folk songs, including songs to accompany the planting of rice and other work events and children's songs. These repertories as well as the regional styles of zikir remain largely undocumented.

2. The ‘orang asli’.

Three main groups of orang asli live in the peninsula: the Senoi, subdivided into Semai, Temiar and three smaller groups; the Negritos; and the aboriginal Malays. Dancing is common among all of them, and they play a variety of musical instruments, many made from bamboo. They have songs about their environment, their daily activities and their ancestors, some traditional, others improvised for the occasion.

Senoi music derives much of its inspiration from the Senoi belief in the existence of a world of spirits behind the material form of the jungle surroundings. These spirits give them their songs during dreams and may possess a singer during a special trance-dance ceremony. Music is played on a variety of occasions, including healing ceremonies, during mourning, to mark events in the agricultural cycle, to welcome guests or to send someone on a long journey, to celebrate the building of a new house or other important event in the community, or simply for entertainment purposes. The community gathers together for a singing session or trance-dance during the night hours. At one end of the dancing floor the women play tuned bamboo stamping tubes (goh, ding galung) consisting of a bamboo segment with one end closed by the node (fig.7). Played in pairs, these produce intervals often of a 4th or 5th when their closed ends are struck on a wooden board, pole or on the bamboo floor. As the women beat a rhythmic pattern a solo singer begins, and gradually the chorus (who are also often the instrumental performers) joins in, the overlapping solo and chorus phrases producing a rudimentary type of polyphony. Often the singers are joined by circling dancers whose movements may lead to a trance. The bamboo stamping tubes are sometimes supplemented by a drum and gong, usually obtained from Malays. An indigenous drum is made from a hollow tree-trunk with the skin of a small animal for its head. Other Senoi instruments include the genggong (metal jew's harp), ranggong (jew's harp made of the rib of a palm leaf), pergam, keranting or kereb (bamboo tube zither), siloy and pensol (flutes). Both the genggong and ranggong, played by men, consist of a frame and tongue in one piece and are played by jerking a string attached to the frame or by plucking the end of the frame itself. In its simplest form, the tube zither, played by women, consists of a bamboo segment with three to four narrow parallel strips or ‘strings’ cut lengthwise from the cortex of the bamboo and attached at both ends, but raised from the tube by two tuning wedges that act as bridges for each ‘string’. A more sophisticated version, called krem, has rattan, fibre or wire strings attached to the tube. Both side-blown flutes and end-blown nose flutes are played; the nose flute (pensol) usually has three stops, the mouth flutes more. The Senoi also play a bamboo duct flute and a small side-blown flute (tuol) with a single fingerhole.

The Negritos also have traditional and improvised songs, dances accompanied by songs and a variety of instruments. Their manner of communal singing is similar to that of the Senoi, and their dances resemble those of the Temiar; the more distinctive ones described by earlier writers seem now to be obsolete. The dancing is accompanied by stamping tubes to which are sometimes added percussion sticks and the nose flute. Negritos also play the zither, jew's harp and mouth flute.

Music is less integrated into the lives of the aboriginal Malay tribes, although this used not to be the case. An interesting song of the Besisi, the Besisi Trumba, records the tribe's history and old tribal boundaries, and may suggest a reason for the strings of place names in the songs of other tribes such as the Perak Senoi and Negritos. The Besisi formerly danced and sang all night to celebrate the rice harvest; another group, the Mantra, devoted themselves to singing, dancing and instrumental music during the month of January. Their most important instrument was the drum, which was found only in the homes of tribal chiefs and was to some extent regarded as their insignia of office. The drums now differ little from those of the Malays, though formerly they were made from a tree-trunk with mouse-deer skins and with tuning wedges to tighten the strings. Like the other groups, aboriginal Malays play bamboo stamping tubes, jew's harps, mouth and nose flutes and bamboo duct flutes. Some also play violins acquired on bartering expeditions or skilfully carved with a parang (knife).

The Semelai, a small tribe for whom music is important, sing unaccompanied songs usually consisting of a solo section followed by a chorus. In one men's song, frog sounds establish the rhythm. The Semelai play a simple type of oboe, an end-blown bamboo tube with grass wedged into the tube as a reed.

3. Chinese, Indian and Thai communities.

The Chinese immigrants built schools and formed societies to preserve their own culture, and music continues to play an important part in their religious rites and for social occasions. Traditional percussion instruments are used in funeral processions, for which a Western-style band may also play marches. In the temples, chants, slit-drums, gongs and bells are all part of the general mosaic of sound. The practice of performing operas and puppet theatre during important religious festivals on stages erected near the temples is still found, and some associations and other private organizations sponsor troupes performing opera and puppet theatre.

The Chinese opera and glove-puppet theatre (po-te-hi) have been very popular in the Malaysian Chinese community since the late 19th century. By the early 20th century the Chinese had their own troupes and ensembles in Malaysia, performing opera in Teochew (Chaozhou), Cantonese and Hokkien dialects and the glove-puppet theatre in Hokkien. Several types of stories are enacted. The performance of a single story takes several nights to complete. In both opera and puppet theatre a prologue is performed, featuring special dramatic episodes and ritual events to honour the gods who, it is hoped, will bestow clever sons, long life and prosperity upon those attending the performance. After the prologue the main story is performed with instrumental music and singing. The orchestra accompanying these performances is of a ‘military’ and a ‘civil’ type: the military ensemble features barrel drums of various sizes (struck with wooden sticks), wood blocks, clappers, cymbals and flat gongs, while the civil ensemble includes bowed lutes (yehu and erhu), plucked lutes (yueqin) and the suona oboe, which is used to announce the arrival of the gods or the emperor or to signify danger in a given scene. In the Cantonese opera the suona also appears in the military ensemble. In the Teochew opera the yangqin dulcimer is found. Specific types of vocal and instrumental melodies and percussion music carry specific dramatic functions in a performance. Special times of the year, particularly the seventh month of the Chinese lunar calendar (Phor Tor), see a great number of performances of opera and puppet theatre; to meet this demand, especially in the large cities throughout the west coast of the country, performers come from south Thailand, Singapore and Hong Kong. To attract young people to the opera, the Hokkien troupes in particular include popular Chinese and Western songs accompanied by bands of electric guitars before the main performance, and the duration of the opera performance itself is shortened. The Cantonese troupes in Kuala Lumpur also perform operas in English and in Malay.

Chinese itinerant minstrels, once common, have almost disappeared. Mandarin light music has been popularized by Chinese films, but the popularity of Western art music also owes much to the Chinese community. Of the many young Chinese who learn European instruments, a number retain interest in their own culture, and there are modern Chinese orchestras (huayuetuan) in many schools and private organizations throughout the country, supported by various Chinese associations and Buddhist societies. The huayuetuan dates from the 1930s in China and was firmly established in the Malaysian Chinese community by the 1960s. These orchestras can encompass 50 or more players and include Chinese instruments that are modified in size and construction and use equal-tempered tuning. In Malaysia the repertory consists of pieces derived from China that mix the melodies, scales and heterophonic texture of Chinese music with Western harmony, arrangements of Malay folk melodies, and newly composed pieces by Malaysian Chinese composers.

Before World War II much of the Indian population was transient, but this situation has changed. The larger towns have instrumental and dance teachers and are regularly visited by Indian performers, Karnatak music being particularly popular. There is little instrumental music in the temples; during festivals the music heard in their grounds is frequently taken from Tamil films, either recorded or played by small ensembles.

Music is also heard near Thai temples during festivals, if only as part of a nang talung (shadow-puppet performance) or a rambong dance. Dances performed on such occasions are accompanied by a small instrumental ensemble of mixed Malay and Thai instruments. The most interesting performance of the Thai community is menora. This theatrical genre, a combination of instrumental music, dancing, singing, mime and slapstick comedy, is performed by men and women near Buddhist shrines and temples and at important celebrations in the states of Kedah, Penang and Kelantan. Performances occur for general entertainment or for specific ritual purposes, each type characterized by specific traits and performance structure, but with musical pieces and ensembles in common. In Kedah and Penang the repertory consists of instrumental music as well as melodies set to texts based on Thai poetry and poetic forms. The basic menora ensemble found on the west coast of Malaysia includes two klong (the Malay geduk barrel drum), two tab (the Malay gedumbak goblet drum), mong (two small bossed gongs set horizontally in a box), cing (a pair of finger cymbals), krek (bamboo clappers, also called khrap or trek) and the pi oboe, which uses a reed made of four to eight layers of dried palm leaf. In Kedah and Penang the pi is sometimes replaced by the saw u or saw duang bowed lutes or by an electric keyboard; a set of bongo drums is also sometimes added. In Kelantan, so many elements from ma'yong and wayang kulit have been absorbed into menora that the genre is often referred to as menora-ma'yong. Here Malay rebab, serunai and a set of double-headed gendang drums are added to the Thai ensemble, while vocal pieces from ma'yong as well as instrumental music from wayang kulit are added to the traditional menora repertory.

1. Instrumental traditions.

4. Art music.

In the search for a national Malaysian identity, composers have attempted to create music that reflects the aesthetic ideals of a multi-cultural society in a South-east Asian setting. In the two decades following independence in 1957, art music was created by Malaysian composers trained in Western music theory and composition techniques. Composers such as Gus Steyn, Alfonso Soliano and Johari Salleh combined elements of Malay, Chinese and Indian music, at the same time using Western harmony and the instruments of the symphony orchestra in a style called muzik serioso (‘serious music’).

At the end of the 20th century the situation had reversed: local genres, forms and tonalities had become the foundation of new composition, with influences from Western and from other South-east Asian sources. There appear to be several approaches to the creation of new music. Among these is an exploration of sounds familiar to Malaysia and more generally South-east Asia, through the combining of instruments from Western and several Eastern traditions in a single ensemble. Local instruments are often used in non-traditional ways, as in the composition Karma (1991) by Valerie Ross.

Another approach involves the use of Asian, and especially South-east Asian, aesthetics and philosophy as a basis for the structure and performance of a piece. The concept of cyclical gong units as the basis of musical form governs several passages in the music drama Maria Zaiton (1996–7) by Razak Abdul Aziz, although the instrumentation does not include gongs. While compositions are usually notated by composers, elements of indeterminacy are often introduced (particularly in the works of Ross and Aziz), where the performer is allowed to make choices or to extemporize within given parameters set by the composer.

Some composers have held closely to Western forms as the basis of their compositions. The Sarawak composer John Yong Lah Boh has used the language of atonality and the form of the symphonic poem, for example Mystery of the South China Sea; Julia Chong, also from Sarawak, has combined local musical elements within Western forms such as the concerto, symphony and ballet suite (e.g. Concerto Kuching for Piano and Orchestra (1992), Symphony Bergambina (1975) and the ballet suite Manora (1982)). A few composers have remained within the realm of traditional music, working within an existing South-east Asian musical genre. The size of the small Malay gamelan has been increased by doubling some of the existing instruments. New compositions for Malay gamelan utilize large formal structures, encompass vocal music and can include adaptations of other Javanese and Balinese gamelan styles.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

general

W.W. Skeat: Malay Magic (London, 1900/R)

R.O. Winsteadt: ‘The Perak Royal Musical Instruments’, Journal of the Malayan Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, xii (1929), 451–3

I.H.N. Evans: The Negritos of Malaya (Cambridge, 1937)

W. Linehan: ‘The Nobat and the Orang Kalau of Perak’, Journal of the Malayan Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, xxiv/3 (1951), 60–68

C.C. Brown: ‘Sejarah Melayu or “Malay Annals”: a Translation of Raffles MS 18’, Journal of the Malayan Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, xxv/2–3 (1952)

P.D.R. Williams-Hunt: An Introduction to the Malayan Aborigines (Kuala Lumpur, 1952)

J.A.R. Blacking: ‘Musical Instruments of the Malayan Aborigines’, Federation Museums Journal, new ser., i–ii (1954–5), 35–52

T.N. Jiwa, R.B.Shah and H.M. Sheppard: ‘The Kedah and Perak Nobat’, Malaya in History, vii/2 (1962) 7–11

S. Wavell: The Naga King's Daughter (London, 1964)

R.K. Dentan: The Semai, a Non-Violent People of Malaya (New York, 1968)

M.T. Osman: ‘Some Observations on the Socio-cultural Context of Traditional Malay Music’, Tenggara, v (1969), 121–8

M.T. Osman, ed.: Traditional Drama and Music of Southeast Asia: Kuala Lumpur 1969

D.A. bin Mohamed: ‘The Ghazal in Arabic Literature and in Malay Music’, Malaysia in History, xiv/1 (1971), 24–31

M. Sheppard: Taman Indera, a Royal Pleasure Ground (Kuala Lumpur, 1972)

W.P. Malm: ‘Music in Kelantan, Malaysia, and Some of its Cultural Implications’, Studies in Malaysian Oral and Musical Traditions (Ann Arbor, 1974), 1–46

M. Couillard and others: ‘Jah Hut Musical Culture and Content’, Contributions to Southeast Asian Ethnography, ed. A.R. Walker (1982), 35–55

P. Matusky: ‘An Introduction to the Major Instruments, and Forms of Traditional Malay Music’, AsM, xvi (1985), 121–82

P. Thomas: Like Tigers Around a Piece of Meat: the Baba Style of dondang sayang (Singapore, 1986)

Tan Sooi Beng: ‘The Performing Arts in Malaysia: State and Society’, AsM, xxi (1989–90), 137–71

Tan Sooi Beng: ‘Popular Music in Multi-Ethnic Malaysia: Diversity despite Control’, Intercultural Music: London 1990, 143–64

C. Laderman: Taming the Winds of Desire: Psychology, Medicine and Aesthetics in Malay Shamanistic Performance (Berkeley, 1991)

M. Roseman: Healing Sounds from the Malaysian Rainforest (Berkeley, 1991)

Ku Zam Zam: ‘Nobat: Music in Service of the King – the Symbol of Power and Status in Traditional Malay Society’, Tinta kenangan, ed. N.S. Karim (Kuala Lumpur, 1993)

V. Ross: ‘The Craft of Karma – for Chamber Ensemble’, Tirai panggung, ii (1994), 62–78

A. Sweeney: Malay Word Music: a Celebration of Oral Creativity (Kuala Lumpur, 1994)

P. Matusky and Tan Sooi Beng: Muzik Malaysia: tradisi klasik, rakyat dan sinkretik [Music of Malaysia: Classical, Folk and Syncretic Traditions] (Penang, 1997)

theatre and dance

F.A. Swettenham: ‘The Jôget’, Malay Sketches (London, 1896), 44–52

J. Cuisinier: Danses magiques de Kelantan (Paris, 1936)

A. Rentse: ‘The Kelantan Shadow Play (Wayang Kulit)’, Journal of the Malayan Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, xiv (1936), 284–301

J. Cuisinier: Le théâtre d'ombres à Kelantan (Paris, 1957)

M. Sheppard: ‘Joget Gamelan Trengganu’, Journal of the Malaysian Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, xl (1967), 149–52

M. Sheppard: ‘Ma’yong, the Malay Dance-Drama’, Tenggara, v (1969), 107–13

A.J. Gunawardana: ‘Theatre in Malaysia’, Drama Review, xv/3 (1971), 102–7 [interview with M.K. Yassin on the Malay Bangsawan]

W.P. Malm: ‘Malaysian Ma’yong Theatre’, Drama Review, xv/3 (1971), 108–14

P.L. Amin Sweeney: Malay Shadow Puppets: the Wayang Siam of Kelantan (London, 1972)

P.L. Amin Sweeney: The Ramayana and the Malay Shadow-Play (Kuala Lumpur, 1972)

M. Sheppard: ‘Manora in Kelantan’, Journal of the Malaysian Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, xlvi (1973), 161–70

P.L. Amin Sweeney: ‘Professional Malay Story-telling: Some Questions of Style and Presentation’, Studies in Malaysian Oral and Musical Traditions (Ann Arbor, 1974), 47–99

G.-S. Yousof: The Kelantan Mak Yong Dance-Theatre: a Study of Performance Structure (diss., U. of Hawaii, 1976)

M. D'Cruz: Joget Gamelan: a Study of Its Contemporary Practice (thesis, Universiti Sains Malaysia, 1979)

P. Matusky: Music in the Malay Shadow Puppet Theater (diss., U. of Michigan, 1980)

Tan Sooi Beng: ‘Chinese Opera in Malaysia: Changes and Survival’, Review of Southeast Asian Studies, x (1980), 29–45

G.-S. Yousof: ‘Mak Yong: the Ancient Malay Dance-Theatre’, Asian Studies, xx (1982), 108–21

P. Matusky: ‘Musical Instruments and Musicians of the Malay Shadow Puppet Theater’, JAMIS, viii (1982), 38–68

Tan Sooi Beng: ‘An Introduction to the Chinese Glove Puppet Theatre’, Journal of the Malaysian Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, lvii (1984), 40–55

Tan Sooi Beng: ‘From Popular to Traditional Theatre: the bangsawan of Malaysia’, EthM, xxxiii (1989), 229–44

G.-S. Yousof: Panggung Semar: Aspects of Traditional Malay Theatre (Kuala Lumpur, 1992)

P. Matusky: Malaysian Shadow Play and Music: Continuity of an Oral Tradition (Kuala Lumpur, 1993/R)

M.A.M. Nor: Zapin: Folk Dance of the Malay World (Singapore, 1993)

Tan Sooi Beng: Bangsawan: a Social and Stylistic History of the Malay Opera (Singapore, 1993/R)

P. Matusky: ‘Music of the Mak Yong Theatre of Malaysia: a Fusion of Southeast Asian Malay and Middle Eastern Islamic Elements’, To the Four Corners: a Festschrift in Honour of Rose Brandel (Warren, MI, 1994), 25–53

Malaysia

II. Sabah

Formerly called North Borneo, Sabah has been a state of Malaysia since 1963. Its principal coastal populations include Malays, many of whom stem from nearby Brunei, as well as various peoples of Philippine descent (e.g. Bajau, Suluk, Ilanun, Obian) who are often designated collectively as ‘Bajau’. Most of these coastal peoples are Muslim. A substantial number of Chinese, constituting more than 20% of the total population, also tend to live in cities and areas closer to the coast. The inland plains, hilly hinterlands and mountainous interior of the state are inhabited by many distinct but linguistically-related peoples, who are grouped broadly into the Dusun/Kadazan of the north and east and the Murut of the southern highlands (see fig.1 above). The term ‘Murut’ embraces two groups: the Kelabitic Murut, whose dialects are nearly mutually intelligible, and the Idahan or Sabah Murut, who speak a different language. These inland peoples until relatively recently maintained indigenous belief systems involving the propitiation of an array of local spirits, though many of these communities have adopted Christianity or (to a lesser extent) Islam. Due to the virtual absence of material addressing the musical practices of Sabah's Chinese communities, emphasis in the following sections will be given to Malay, Bajau, Dusun/Kadazan and Murut populations.

While Qur’anic recitation has exerted some influence on scales and musical practices, especially in the coastal regions, the musical styles of the peoples of Sabah nevertheless share some general similarities. Many groups have instruments and songs in common, and, as is the case elsewhere in the South-east Asian archipelago, basic tonal patterns are usually founded on a pentatonic scale with nearly equal intervals, or on a heptatonic scale with unequal intervals from which other pentatonic scales derive. Both non-equidistant and nearly-equidistant scales may be present on different sets of instruments in the same ensemble. The range used in the non-equidistant scales may exceed an octave, with the pitches of the upper register often differing slightly from those of the lower one. Similar tuning tendencies are evident in various traditions of nearby Sarawak (see §III below) and east Kalimantan (see Indonesia, §VII, 1).

Archival recordings are housed in the British Library National Sound Archives and the Archives of Traditional Music at Indiana University, Bloomington.

2. Vocal performance.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Malaysia, §II: Sabah.

1. Instrumental traditions.

Most instruments produced by the Dusun/Kadazan and Murut peoples of the interior are made of wood, bamboo or palm; metal instruments are imported from the coast. An idiophone commonly known among both Dusun/Kadazan and Murut populations as bungkau, turiding, uriding or other variants is a jew’s harp carved from a type of palm stem. Its lamella, weighted with beeswax, is vibrated by tapping or plucking the base plate. The bungkau is generally played for personal enjoyment, but it also serves other purposes, which vary from community to community. In certain Dusun/Kadazan regions, for instance, the bungkau might be used as part of post-harvest activities, as an imitation of gong music for dancing, as a means by which to call edible lizards, or (in the past) as a marker of warriors’ departure to or return from battle. Some groups also use the bungkau to simulate song or verse.

Other non-metal idiophones used by inland populations include the Dusun/Kadazan togunggak (Sabah Murut: tagunggak) and the Sabah Murut lansaran. The togunggak consists of a large number of tuned bamboos, each carried and struck by one person. Well-suited to mass participation, this instrument is associated with harvest processions, wedding ceremonies and other festive occasions. Togunggak can also be used as dance accompaniment in the absence of gongs. Like the jew’s harp, the Murut tagunggak was played in conjunction with head-hunting ceremonies in an earlier era. The lansaran is a type of Murut dance floor, which springs vertically about 30 cm or more when activated by dancers (who also sing) and produces regular crashes as it hits its base supports. The rhythm of the crashes and the tempo of the song sometimes move slowly out of phase, which is surprising in view of the physical difficulty of breathing in a rhythm different from that produced by the floor.

Large, vertically hanging gongs are imported by coastal peoples for use by both coastal and interior populations of Sabah. Particularly among the inland communities, these instruments can constitute a major category of hereditary wealth. The tawag (or tawak) is a heavy, bossed gong with a wide, inward sloping rim and a deep tone. A similar gong, called sanang by the Dusun/Kadazan or canang by the Malays, has a narrower rim and higher pitch. A third type of gong, identified as tagung in Dusun/Kadazan regions, is a large, light, knobbed gong, the narrow rim of which turns in only slightly, if at all. In the coastal communities, these gongs usually serve a supporting role in various heterogeneous ensembles. Among inland peoples, however, hanging gongs combine to form the rhythmic, melodic and timbral core of ensembles commonly known as magaggong or sopogan dangan in Dusun/Kadazan settings. Such hanging gong ensembles vary in size and composition according to performance context and performing community; ensembles closer to the coast are generally smaller than those toward the interior. A Dusun/Kadazan group of the low-lying plains might combine six or seven gongs, while another community further inland might assemble seven or eight. A Murut ensemble in the mountainous highlands might include a dozen gongs or more. In performance, the higher-pitched gongs sound interlocking melodies, while one or more sonorous tawag produce deep, pulsating tones, articulated and damped by grasping the boss of the gong. One player, often (but not always) a man, is charged with rendering a specific pattern on a single gong, which is struck with a padded mallet. Since each gong differs in pitch, sound quality and volume, a composite timbral-melodic line results from the combination of the discrete rhythmic patterns, producing a rich texture. Ensembles of hanging gongs most often accompany dances, such as the sumazau of the Dusun/Kadazan. In the past this dance was associated with warfare and agricultural ceremonies, but it has since become a recreational or otherwise celebratory activity. In some villages, however, the sound of a hanging gong ensemble is reserved for special ritual occasions. While all gong music incidentally advertises public gatherings through its resonant sound, the tawag is also used specifically as a signalling device in certain situations.

The kulintangan (see Kulintang) gong-chime is an instrument common to the coast and coastal plain areas of Sabah, where it is played by Bajau, Brunei Malay and Dusun/Kadazan peoples. This instrument, which was evidently introduced to Sabah via the Philippines and Brunei from the 18th century onwards, consists of a wooden frame containing a row of small, horizontally-suspended, bossed gongs. These gongs (which usually number six or seven on the east coast and eight or nine on the west) rest on two parallel cords for resonance and are struck with sticks made of soft, lightweight wood. Tunings vary, but there is a general tendency towards non-equidistant, anhemitonic pentatonic scales. The kulintangan is the focal instrument in ensembles that also commonly include one or more drums and a number of large, vertically-hanging gongs. A single hanging gong typically reiterates one of several standard rhythmic patterns to begin a performance. The kulintangan follows, joined by the drums and the pulsating of several tawag. As the tempo increases, the kulintangan player develops a right-hand melody from the lower to the higher end of the instrument. When the melody approaches the upper register, tension often builds through repeated striking of the highest-pitched gongs. Meanwhile, the left hand embellishes the melody with lower pitches, which also rise gradually to the upper register. In some styles, the higher and lower melodic threads eventually come to resonate in close proximity in the upper range of the instrument, which constitutes the climax of the performance. Kulintangan ensembles can be heard at weddings and other celebrations and can also be used on ritual occasions in some communities. Among the Bajau, women are noted players of the kulintangan.

The gabang, played by both men and women, is a wooden or bamboo xylophone of Philippine origin, used especially by coastal Bajau peoples and (to a lesser degree) Dusun/Kadazan populations. Most of these instruments have nine, ten, or in some regions as many as 17 keys, which rest over an open soundbox and are struck with padded sticks. The gabang is played solo or in ensemble with hanging gongs, or in some Dusun/Kadazan communities, with wooden slit-gongs (kantung). It is the principal accompanying instrument both for the popular Bajau song and dance form, daling-daling, and for epic singing, where it is sounded mostly in octaves with occasional pitch variation and rhythmic embellishment. Tempo and rhythm differ according to the story, and various forms of both equidistant and non-equidistant scales are featured; there are striking tonal shifts from one scale to another between dramatic episodes. Aside from its role as song and dance accompaniment, the xylophone may be played as a personal pastime. Much of the music for gabang is of Philippine, Chinese or Western origin, and the tuning of the instrument resembles the diatonic scale.

Assorted single- and double-headed drums are used by both coastal and inland populations of Sabah. Many of these instruments are called gendang, or are known by a similar term. Exceptions here include frame drums such as the kompang and the rebana with metal jingles, both of which are common in coastal Muslim areas. Gendang of the Bajau and Malay communities of the coastal regions are usually double-headed and barrel-shaped. The heads of most of these drums are attached to hoops that encircle the ends of the instrument and are bound to each other with rattan lacings running the length of the drum. These lacings can be tightened or loosened to tune the instrument. Such drums normally constitute part of the coastal kulintangan ensembles. Single-headed drums are generally more common in the inland regions. Whether single- or double-headed, the skins of these inland instruments are usually bound to the wooden body of the drum with rattan, with wedges driven between the binding and the drum body to facilitate tuning. Ritual hanging-gong ensembles of inland communities typically include single-headed drums, while double-headed instruments might appear in recreational ensembles such as kulintangan. Throughout Sabah, drumheads are usually made of goat skin, deer skin or cowhide, depending on the region and group of people using the instrument. Also depending on the community, as well as the repertory being performed, drums can be played by either men or women.

Chordophones of the interior areas include the Dusun/Kadazan tongkungon, the Sabah Murut gulintan and the Dusun/Kadazan sundatang. The tongkungon and gulintan are plucked tube zithers, each made from a large segment of bamboo. From the cortex of this bamboo, strips are cut longitudinally, with the ends remaining attached to the tube. These strips are then raised to form ‘strings’ that are tuned by inserting bridges at each end. The number of strings, typically from five to eight, is usually determined by the number of instruments in the local hanging-gong ensemble. Indeed, several limited melodic lines can be sustained on the tongkungon, effecting an imitation of gong music. Some instruments, however, have fewer strings, which are made of steel, attached to pegs and tuned to a non-equidistant scale. The sundatang, which in some ways resembles the Kayan sapé' of Sarawak (see §III, 3 below), is a plucked lute with a heterogeneous neck and two or three fibre or metal strings. Frets, placed under one string only, are affixed with beeswax and are moveable to allow for changes in tonality.

String instruments characteristic of Malay and Bajau coastal regions include the gambus and biola. The gambus is a plucked lute typically associated with Muslim communities throughout the South-east Asian archipelago. Some of these instruments are clearly of Middle-Eastern origin or descent, while others have been so substantially adjusted to correspond to local aesthetics and availability of materials that they appear only remotely related to Middle-Eastern prototypes. These instruments are bowl lutes, usually with three or four metal strings (or courses) that are plucked with a plectrum. Much of the gambus repertory is intended to accompany Malay dances such as joget or zapin (see §I, 1(iv) above). A chordophone common especially among the Bajau is the biola, a bowed three-string box lute, the exact shape of which varies from community to community; one biola might resemble a violin, while another might look more like a banjo. The instrument is held upright, with the end of the soundbox on the floor and the neck pointing toward the player. The biola is associated with major social events, where it is usually played by women to accompany singing.

Aerophones of Sabah include the suling, an end-blown flute played by various groups; the turali (turahi, tuahi), a nose flute most common among Dusun/Kadazan peoples; the Dusun/Kadazan sompoton (fig.8), a mouth organ resembling the Kayan keledi of Sarawak and Indonesian Borneo and related instruments from the South-east Asian mainland. The suling is made from a stopped bamboo pipe with five or six fingerholes, while the Dusun/Kadazan nose flute, turali, is blown with one nostril plugged and produces four pitches. Both flutes are played for personal entertainment, although the turali, which is generally evocative of sadness, can be played privately as a type of mourning in some communities. In such cases, the melody imitates that of women’s funerary wailing. Such links between melodies of flutes and melodies of mourning are not uncommon on the island of Borneo. The sompoton consists of a dried, long-necked gourd into which have been inserted eight bamboo pipes arranged in two parallel ranks of four. Into the ends of seven of these tubes (one tube is mute) are inserted small polod palm reeds, which vibrate inside the gourd when the player blows into the neck of the instrument. Pitch on the sompoton is controlled by fingerholes on the sides of the pipes and by stopping the exposed ends of the shorter pipes with the fingers. This instrument is capable of producing a polyphonic texture with melody and drone-like parts. Most aerophones of Sabah can be played by either men or women.

Especially in Sabah’s interior areas, the practice of most of the instrumental traditions outlined above has diminished considerably over the second half of the 20th century. The only clear exception is the kulintangan, but this tradition has also undergone a degree of modification. Indeed, a European snare drum has been known to replace the gendang in some kulintangan ensembles. Practice of other local instruments has largely been eclipsed by the popularity of the guitar among most younger people, and audio tapes have come to replace live music in many instances.

Malaysia, §II: Sabah.

2. Vocal performance.

The vocal repertories of the Dusun/Kadazan and Murut peoples of Sabah are extensive and varied. Sung and chanted ritual verses and prayers, lullabies, epic narratives and songs about people, places and events are among the principal vocal performance types. On account of the diversity of repertories and traditions, two specific communities will be highlighted here: the Lotud subgroup of the Dusun/Kadazan people and the Lun Dayeh, who are usually grouped as Kelabitic Murut. Within the indigenous belief system of the Lotud, sung and chanted verses of the monumbui rinait prayer insure the social and spiritual well-being of the community. These verses are performed by female ritual specialists, while men accompany them on gongs and drums. The monumbui rinait is cast in what is understood to be an archaic ritual language, much of which the priestesses themselves can neither translate nor clarify. Other song types of the Lotud include tinjau, binono, lingo and bandak. Tinjau and binono are ritual song genres, known and sung only by old men. Lingo are recreational songs such as lullabies, which are recognized for their melodic and textual clarity. The bandak repertory, however, is packed with symbolism and allusion, crafted artistically and spontaneously as the singer improvises on a basic descending melodic line. This type of song may be directed toward a particular individual, who sometimes responds with another bandak, thus initiating a song exchange that may continue for some time.

The Lun Dayeh use the term ‘buek’ to refer to the whole body of sung and chanted repertory. Buek can be divided into numerous named subcategories encompassing various types of epic singing, other historic or mythological narratives and shorter songs about people and specific situations, as well as ritual or ceremonial forms. Mumuh, arin and dadai Upai Semaring (‘Song of Upai Semaring’) are three types of epic tales, the performance of which may span more than eight hours and be spread over several days. These performances can be distinguished by differences in principal characters and melody, as well as by the gender of the singers in some instances. Women are the primary performers of mumuh and arin, while men are the typical singers of dadai Upai Semaring. Other types of buek include an array of shorter forms, some of which may be partly sung and partly narrated. Topics of these smaller-scale songs generally include the exploits or praise of mortal folk heroes, migration stories and serious or humorous accounts of people, places and situations. In the past, singers of the ukui variety of buek extemporized on the bravery of men who had just returned from a successful headhunt. Lun Dayeh buek, like the monumbui rinait prayers of the Lotud, are rendered in a specialized language that is laden with rhymes, metaphors and archaic or otherwise unusual vocabulary.

Regarding musical style, much of the Dusun/Kadazan and Murut vocal repertory is performed by a soloist, supported by a chorus that often provides a drone-like melodic anchor with occasional pitch variation, a style reminiscent of that of the Dusun/Kadazan sompoton mouth organ. Some forms, such as the songs for lansaran dancing in Sabah Murut communities, may be sung in unison by alternating male and female choruses. Cadence points in Dusun/Kadazan and Murut vocal performance are generally marked by a drop in pitch to an implied tonic, often the same pitch as the drone (if present).

Some prominent types of vocal performance among coastal peoples include Qur’anic recitation, songs for Malay joget and zapin dancing, pantun quatrain exchange, epic singing (especially among the Bajau) and songs for the berunsai and daling-daling dances. Qur’anic recitation is practised by the various Muslim communities in Malaysia. While it shows tonal inflection and timbral variation typical of Middle-Eastern vocal styles, it nevertheless retains indigenous elements, such as the use of a wider pentatonic range at cadence points. Joget and zapin are dance forms characteristic of most Malay communities throughout the South-east Asian archipelago. Joget, while rooted in a relatively fast-paced Malay folk form, has developed into a type of popular dance, likewise accompanied by pop music in Malay and other local languages. Zapin, on the other hand, is a dance form remaining strongly associated with the Muslim Malay community. The songs for zapin are typically accompanied by a small ensemble, with the gambus or sometimes violin or accordion as the lead instrument. Most zapin songs are structured as a series of quatrains in question-and-response fashion, interspersed with short instrumental interludes. This song form, generally known as pantun, also appears among non-Malay peoples, where it is rendered in other local languages, accompanied by different instruments and may not be associated with dance (e.g. pantun singing among the Bajau). In this case, quatrains are exchanged between a male and female vocalist to the accompaniment of the biola. Among the Bajau, the words of pantun verses are largely improvised and commonly address topics of love, everyday affairs, important events and, more recently, current social issues.

Verse exchanges between men and women, either singly or in groups, are characteristic of a number of Bajau music and dance forms, including berunsai and daling-daling. In performance of berunsai, a group of male dancers stomps rhythmically around a group of female dancers whom they engage in sung dialogue. Each line of song is performed to the same, narrow-range melody and is rendered in a variety of Bajau language that is barely intelligible to members of the younger generation. While berunsai singing is unaccompanied, songs for the daling-daling couple dance are usually performed together with gabang, with verses exchanged in dialogic fashion. The verses of these songs are largely improvised to tunes that are well-known in Bajau communities and often suggest the influence of Western tuning and musical styles. Aside from its role in daling-daling dancing, the gabang is also used to accompany Bajau epic singing. This repertory, in contrast to the daling-daling songs, contains declamatory passages where a rapid flow of words is greatly valued, and slow passages, rich in inflection and ornamentation, showing the influence of Muslim vocal aesthetics.

As is the case with many of the instrumental traditions highlighted earlier, much of the vocal repertory outlined here has become a remnant of a bygone era, existing primarily in the memories of the elderly members of the communities. This is particularly true of the longer narrative forms but also holds for some of the shorter genres. Some Dusun/Kadazan songs are now accompanied by Western instruments, constituting a separate song category: sinding. Western or Malay melodies are also borrowed for many Dusun/Kadazan songs, in which instance they are called by the Malay term ‘lagu’, even though they might be performed in Dusun/Kadazan languages. It is important to recognize that in addition to the continued cultivation of older village- or group-specific song forms, there exists a significant local market for various styles of rock and pop music in Malay, Dusun/Kadazan, Murut and Bajau languages.

Malaysia, §II: Sabah.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

and other resources

GEWM, iv (‘Borneo: Sabah, Sarawak, Brunei and Kalimantan’, P. Matusky)

I.H.N. Evans: ‘A Brass Drum from Borneo’, Man, xviii (1918), 19–29

J.H. Alman: ‘If You Can’t Sing, You Can Beat a Gong’, Sabah Society Journal, i/1 (1961), 29–41

Murut Music of North Borneo, Folkways F-4459 (1961)

T.R. Williams: ‘Form, Function and Cultural History of a Borneo Instrument’, Oceania, xxxii (1961–2), 178–86

R. Liew: ‘Music and Musical Instruments in Sabah’, Journal of the Sabah College Borneo Society, iii (1962), 10–17

J.H. Alman: An Introduction to the Music of Sabah (1964)

J.P. Ongkili: ‘The Traditional Music of Sabah’, Traditional Drama and Music of Southeast Asia: Kuala Lumpur 1969, 327–32

J. Bastin: ‘Brass Kettledrums in Sabah’, Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, xxxiv (1971), 132–8

E.M. Frame: ‘A Preliminary Survey of Several Major Musical Instruments and Form Types of Sabah, Malaysia’, Borneo Research Bulletin, vii/1 (1975), 16–24

E.M. Frame: ‘Major Musical Forms in Sabah’, Journal of the Malaysian Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, xlix (1976), 156–63

Borneo, Musiques Traditionelles, coll. G. Wen, PlayaSound PS 33506 (1979)

E.M. Frame: ‘The Musical Instruments of Sabah, Malaysia’, EthM, xxvi (1982), 247–74

J. Pugh-Kitingan: ‘Instruments and Instrumental Music of the Tambunan Kadazan/Dusun’,Sabah Museum and Archives Journal, i/2 (1988), 24–61

B.J.L. Sellato: Hornbill and Dragon: Kalimantan, Sarawak, Sabah, Brunei (Jakarta, 1989)

I. Skog: North Borneo Gongs and the Javanese Gamelan: Studies in Southeast Asian Gong Traditions (Stockholm, 1993)

For further bibliography see §III below and Indonesia, §VII, 1.

Malaysia

III. Sarawak

Located on the northern coast of Borneo, Sarawak includes many ethnic groups (late 19th- and early 20th-century sources mention an even greater variety than exists now); generalization about the area's music is thus difficult. Although the music of Sarawak shows some connection with the music of Java and Bali (e.g. the use of gong sets) and with the music of mainland South-east Asia (similar chordophones and mouth organs), its origins remain obscure. This article discusses the music of the largest ethnic groups in the region. (See also §II, and Indonesia, §VII, 1.)

1. Bidayuh.

2. Iban.

3. Kayan and Kenyah.

4. Other ethnic groups.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. Bidayuh.

Bidayuh (‘Land Dayak’ in early literature) villages each usually have a set of vertically hung gongs that are highly valued for their religious and economic significance. They are played at gawai (festivals of any kind, including recurrent religious and occasional healing ceremonies) and at receptions for important visitors. A gong set consists of three ketawak (large, thick, bossed gongs), two puum (large flat gongs), one bendai (small bossed gong) and three sanang (smaller bossed gongs); such complete sets, however, are rarely found. Various villagers own the individual gongs and derive their status from this ownership; when a person dies, the gongs belonging to his family may not be played during the mourning period. A local legend has it that Bidayuh gongs were originally obtained from Java; it is known that they were imported from Brunei and China and are now purchased from makers in Kuching, the capital of Sarawak. A complete instrumental ensemble also includes two kandang (drums) about 1·8 metres high played by one performer, and a dumbak (small drum).

Bidayuh music varies in complexity from simple rhythmic patterns to fairly complex three- and four-strand combinations. Gong music is always in duple time, though syncopation is frequent and sometimes obscures the basic stress. As with almost all instrumental music in Sarawak, there is little dynamic variation. Gong pieces characteristically begin with a rhythmic pattern on kandang, then an ostinato (most commonly two alternating notes a 3rd or 4th apart) on two of the sanang; the next instrument to enter is a single, bass-range gong; finally, after the rhythm has been established, the most varied melodic line begins in the lower-middle range. Syncopation is not confined to this central melodic line but may occur at any level. Exact imitation of one part by another occurs rarely, if at all. There seems to be no standardization of tuning in gong music. One set of gongs had the pitches shown in ex.5, which may be regarded as typical, although the same tuning would probably not be duplicated precisely in any other set. Gongs are made and acquired separately rather than as sets.

Played principally for entertainment (though not for dancing), Bidayuh five-hole flutes (mouth flutes) are also used in rituals to recall the spirit of a girl who has fainted or been in a trance. The flute used for these purposes is the banci, a large flute. A smaller flute, the encio, is played by young men as a preliminary to courting: if the girls respond favourably, the ayun (traditional dialogue love-song) follows, unaccompanied by the flute, a type of courtship ritual that also occurs elsewhere in South-east Asia, for instance among the hill tribes of northern Thailand. Extemporization is common in Bidayuh flute music, especially in village playing. There is no regular stress in this recitative-like style; the melody wanders throughout the flute's range (one and a half to two octaves depending on the size of the flute and the player's skill) in a slow tempo, with little repetition of motifs or phrases. Bidayuh flute music often lasts for hours; when played for entertainment, it is a kind of background music, but when it is played as part of a religious ceremony, it commands the listeners' full attention. Although solo playing is more common, ensembles of flutes do exist; as no attempt is made to tune the instruments to the same pitch, ‘unison’ playing, when it occurs, may produce as many pitches as there are players.

Junggotan (jew's harps) are also used both for entertainment and courting. Their range is usually less than a 4th, and no fixed series of notes can be measured. Step-wise progressions, with sliding between the notes, occur the most frequently, as does duple time (though triple time does occur occasionally). Tempos are faster and rhythms more strongly accented than in flute playing. Another Bidayuh idiophone is a set of tuned bamboo rods that are beaten to imitate the music of gongs. The range is more limited than that of the gongs, as bass notes are absent. These peruncong (in some areas keruncong) are played by groups returning home after planting paddy. As in gong music, an ostinato begins in the higher part of the range, followed by a varied melodic line below. The ostinato is usually metronomically regular; the main melody, though more varied than the ostinato, is never as complex as the main melody in gong music.Ex.6 shows the tuning for a typical set of peruncong.

String instruments are rare among the Bidayuh; fiddles are no longer found, but a plucked chordophone, the tinten, does exist.

2. Iban.

Among the Iban (‘Sea Dayaks’ in early literature), a ceremonial gong set includes the large bossed setawak, the bendai and an enkerumong (gong-chime) of about eight bossed gongs, each less than 30 cm wide, set horizontally in a frame. The gendang panjai (entertainment ensemble; fig.9) includes one enkerumong, a bendai, a setawak and two dumbak (drums), while the gendang raya (religious ensemble) has two setawak, three bendai and no drums. Iban customs and taboos are similar to those of the Bidayuh. Compared to the gong music of the Bidayuh, Iban gong music is generally more complex, with more syncopation and more common use of sequences. The upper (ostinato) part in some gong pieces (see ex.7) does not remain at the same pitch but creates a feeling of tension by rising steadily and gradually, often with rhythmic syncopation. The engkerurai (mouth organ), made of bamboo pipes and a gourd wind chamber (similar instruments occur in China, Laos and among the hill tribes of Thailand and Myanmar), is used among the Iban for men's dance music. It is difficult both to make and to play; it has a reedy tone, produces two- and three-part harmonies and is played in a lively rhythmic style. Iban flutes vary in length from 45 cm to 75 cm; kesuling (mouth flutes) are more common than sangui (nose flutes) and, along with the ruding (jew's harp), are courting instruments. Iban flute and jew's harp music does not differ basically from that of the Bidayuh, though the greater variety of ornamentation and rhythmic structure in Iban music may perhaps indicate a greater degree of technical resource.

Chordophones, many now rare or extinct, include the guitar-like belikan (fig.10) with two to four strings, each having a sympathetically resonating string tuned with it. The engkerabab (two-string fiddle) has a series of low bridges on the neck. The bowed merebab (coconut-shell fiddle) has one string; there are also one- and two-string fiddles with cylindrical soundboxes that closely resemble fiddles in mainland South-east Asia. Bowed string music, much rarer than flute music, resembles it to some extent; metre is not strict, and solo improvisation is common. Plucked chordophones are usually played in strongly marked duple time, with the lower strings providing a drone bass; melodies for these instruments include frequent repetition of motifs and phrases. The Iban have a satong (cylindrical bamboo tube zither) and an engkeratong (five-string harp); the latter, which is less often found, consists of a wooden rectangle with two vertical, carved rods within the hollow, between which the strings are stretched and pass around a third vertical rod placed in the centre. Another chordophone, the busui (fig.11), consists of a bow placed on a wooden disc, which in turn rests on a bowl; sound is produced by tapping the bow-string.

Names for song types vary among the area's administrative divisions; the words ‘pengap’ or ‘timang’ denote ceremonial or religious songs, sugi and sabak are songs for curing and mourning respectively; the word ‘pantun’ is sometimes used as a general word for song; it also means stanza. Typical songs have a narrow range (approximately a major 3rd) with occasional falsetto notes a 5th or 6th above this basic range in men's singing. The singer slides from note to note, and even on long notes the pitch does not remain constant. Ornamentation similar to Western turns and mordents is common. Usually there is no regular beat, and phrase lengths vary considerably, depending on the demands of the text. Words are never drawn out melismatically but are set syllabically; if there are more notes to follow before the next word, humming or the syllable ‘er’ is employed. This technique is also practised with sustained notes; the word is pronounced completely and quickly, and the note is then sustained on ‘m’, ‘n’, ‘ng’ or ‘er’. Tessitura in Iban singing is generally low; in solo singing both men and women use a nasal tone.

3. Kayan and Kenyah.

The Kayan and Kenyah have similar musical traditions. Both use gongs in ceremonies; the complete gong set resembles that of the Bidayuh, though the names of the gongs and the customs attached to them are different. They also play a nine-bar xylophone not found among other groups, a practice dating from the mid-20th century. Their bamboo nose flutes (Kayan: selingut ba) have one hole beneath and five above and are played by women in some communities. Another women's instrument, the bamboo jew's harp (Kenyah: uding), has a more limited range than the Iban jew's harp. One of the most popular instruments of these people is the thumb-plucked lute (Kayan: sapé'; fig.12). Usually played by men only, the sapé¹ has three or four wire strings and 10 to 13 low frets on the neck and across the face of the instrument, placed under the bottom string only. The two upper strings, commonly tuned to the tonic and dominant or subdominant, provide a pedal or ostinato for the melody. On contemporary instruments, the frets are movable and are usually arranged to produce two to three octaves of an anhemitonic or semitone unit. Sometimes a semitone unit in a lower register will be coupled with an anhemitonic unit in an upper one. Many pieces now employ an entirely anhemitonic tuning, the pitches of which are found in the Western major scale. Missionary influence and the Western guitar's popularity may have caused this tuning to be adopted. Sapé' music is strongly accented and is usually in duple metre. New sapé' tunes are still being composed, of whichex.8 is typical. The Kayan and Kenyah have only one drum (Kayan: tuvung), a cone 3·6 metres high with an opening 90 cm wide at one end, covered with a deer- or goatskin membrane, and an opening 45 cm wide at the other end. These huge drums are apparently no longer made, although they still hang in the longhouses of many villages. They are used primarily for signalling but also figure prominently in the rituals of some non-Christian communities. Tuned bamboo idiophones (Kayan: tangbut), similar to the Bidayuh peruncong, are played during paddy planting. There are no substantial differences between the Kayan, Kenyah and Bidayuh styles of playing; treble ostinatos are characteristic of all. The Kayan and Kenyah tube zither (Kenyah: lutung) is similar to the Iban satong and usually has six bamboo strings tuned by bridges placed along the cylinder. The Kayan and Kenyah people also play a mouth organ called Keledi or keredi by the Kayan, and kediré' by most Kenyah; an entertainment instrument, it is similar in structure and style of playing to the Iban engkerurai. Bamboo percussion, tube zithers and mouth organs are rarely heard today. Singing styles, apart from solo songs, are more varied than those of the Bidayuh and include dialogue songs in which the solo singer has a complex, unaccented melody with a range of a 5th or 6th and many grace notes and ornamented melismatic passages.

4. Other ethnic groups.

The Kelabit and Lun Bawang have flute bands that combine up to 24 flutes with a drum; the flutes all play the same melody in approximate octaves, a type of playing (closely resembling school recorder bands in Western countries) that probably developed in the early 20th century. Bands of this size are not common, and their formation necessarily involves organized class teaching rather than the former one-to-one teaching relationship. In some Kelabit songs, the vocal line breaks briefly into two-part harmony. The Punan are locally famous for their dramatic recital of sung stories; they, too, play the bamboo tube zither but do not have gongs or drums.

Melanau music is similar to Iban music, with gong sets and religious chants. One unusual instrument is the genang (large upright drum) used by the Melanau at healing ceremonies. Their most common type of flute, the nose flute, is a courting instrument played in a soft, slow style. Instruments played exclusively by women are the bamboo tube zither (commonly found), and the jew's harp (rare). Bamboo mouth organs similar to the Iban engkerurai are used for men's dance music. The Melanau do not, however, make bamboo idiophones like those of other tribes for use at rice-planting time.

In Sarawak, Malay music differs markedly from the music of the indigenous groups because of Muslim influence. The vocal range used by the Malays is considerably greater (one and a half octaves is fairly common), and although sliding between notes is frequent, pitches are held steady more often than in other Sarawak vocal music. A type of simple two-part vocal harmony exists in which the voices show some independence, though in melodic singing they progress for the most part in parallel 4ths. Although many Malay songs are not in any strict metre, phrasing is more regular and definitive than in the music of other local communities. A few songs have 16-beat phrases, but in most cases extra time is allowed during florid melismatic passages. Moreover, even where a four-beat rhythmic pattern is firmly established, rests occurring at the ends of phrases are usually cut short. The Sarawak Malay use tara (bossed gongs), 30 cm in diameter, and mengeris (single-headed drums), shaped like flattened spheres. Drums are sometimes used to accompany singing. The bedok, a mosque drum found also in West Malaysia, was imported into Sarawak in the 20th century; however, the dumbak, a drum long associated with certain local Sarawakian ensembles, is also used at mosques. Among Malay instruments in the Sarawak Museum are large war drums, apparently no longer played, and gambus (plucked, unfretted lutes) made of hardwood.

A significant portion of Sarawak's population is Chinese. Their music is similar to the music of Chinese groups in other South-east Asian countries, the most common public manifestation being lively popular operas professionally performed at celebrations.

Many of Sarawak's older music traditions are no longer practised or have lost much of their popularity. However, new traditions have emerged in a musical environment that continues to be dynamic. There is thus a great need for ethnomusicological research in the area; this effort has been helped by RTM (Radio Television Malaysia) Sarawak, which broadcasts indigenous music and encourages field recordings. In 1954 W.R. Geddes produced an ethnographic film on the Land Dayaks (Bidayuh), a copy of which is held in the Sarawak Museum at Kuching.