Songs must appeal to both locals and tourists: Masidi
Published on: Monday, September 15, 2014
Kota Kinabalu: Conduct a research on what locals and tourists respond positively towards when composing a song and presenting it in front of an audience, said State Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Masidi Manjun."If this can be done, you will see a larger crowd whenever there are concerts or other music events in Kota Kinabalu," he said when officiating the 'Rhythms of Kinabalu' at the JKKN Auditorium, here, Saturday."You have to know what people want while taking into consideration to modernise the local or traditional songs while, at the same time, incorporating a fusion of modern and traditional rhythms into one's performance.
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"Come up with songs that people can relate to and are interested in. Do a research on what's marketable and singable."Masidi added that while it's important to maintain the traditional aspects of Sabah or the Sabahan identity, it's no use if the singer is the only one who likes his or her song."Keep in mind to maintain the uniqueness of Sabah, the Sabah identity, but presented in a way that everyone can relate to and enjoy."Compose songs and sing songs that are not only liked by your self, or by a small group of people, but is capable of drawing in a large group of local fans...and even tourists.
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"Make a song so good that people appreciate it."In relation to this, he said the choice of genre needs to attract people's attention. "Be creative. Ensure the Sabahan element is there, but not to the point that it loses its appeal that it can't reach out to non-Sabahans," he advised.
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Masidi also suggested popular English songs be performed together with traditional instruments. The ability to decide whether an orchestra or a piano should be accompanying the singer is also essential when it comes to having a good performance on stage, explained Masidi. "It's important to know which instrument to use that best complements a performance or one's voice."He pointed out that this also involves patriotic songs."It should not only be able to woo the crowd in terms of melody and lyrics, but ensure that everyone can sing along to it. Wouldn't it be better if people who never took vocal lessons can easily sing along?"The perfect example is the song "Di Sini Lahirnya Sebuah Cinta", the theme song for this year's Merdeka Day celebration, he said."It is of high quality, able to touch us and also able to reach out to people of all races and of all age groups."Meanwhile, he applauded the event's highlight on the variety of ethnic music that are of high quality. A combination of traditional and modern melodies entertained the crowd on Saturday.Among musicians present were Velvet, Dayang Noraini, Jarywine J. Lusin, Den Bisa, Suara Buluh Perindu, Sound of Borneo, Razali Kulintangan, Awang Gambus, Rommie Suling and Orchestra from Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS).Masidi praised the efforts of JKKN Sabah (State's National Department for Culture and Arts) in preserving traditional music and their efforts in presenting it in a modern way.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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