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By Ashley Sim
KUCHING, Aug 8: Friends of Sarawak Museum (FOSM) extends a warm invitation to anyone interested in learning about Borneo’s boat lutes, listening to the enchanting melodies produced by these ancient instruments, and hearing how researchers and musicians are working to bring these instruments back to life at a talk scheduled to be held at Borneo Cultures Museum (BCM) on Sunday, Aug 20.
The first talk in the new Sarawak Snapshots talk series, ‘The Lost Instruments: Reviving Borneo’s Indigenous Boat Lutes’, organised by FOSM and Sarawak Museum Department, is free and will take place at the BCM auditorium.
This event offers a rare opportunity to witness, listen to, and gain knowledge from Borneo Boat Lute Revival (BBLR) members who are researchers, cultural practitioners, and creatives from various regions of Borneo island.
“In recent years, the ‘sape’ has become the crown jewel of Sarawak’s cultural expression. Classified as a boat lute, it is part of a large family of indigenous instruments including the ancient ‘sape’ Bali, the Iban ‘belikan’, the Lun Bawang ‘tapi’, and the Sabahan ‘sundatang’, among others. And yet these other instruments remain largely unknown, and in danger of being lost forever,” according to a BBLR press handout.
Five representatives from BBLR will share about their work at the public sharing session, with demonstrations by cultural practitioners Ezra Tekola, a renowned ‘sape’ maker and musician in local band ‘At Adau’; Hayree Hashim who is focused on reviving the Iban ‘belikan’; Rining Peter Paris, a Lun Bawang musician and maker specialising in the ‘tapi’ instrument; and Gindung Mc Feddy Simon, a musician, researcher, and instrument maker leading the revival of the ‘sundatang’ lute in Sabah.
Also presenting her research work is Catriona Maddocks, a British born artist who has been based in Kuching since 2009. Simon and Maddocks recently returned from the United Kingdom having carried out research trips to the British Museum in London and the Pitt Rivers Museum at Oxford University, where they reviewed boat lutes within these museums’ collections and worked with the curators to improve and correct their Bornean artefact collections.
“This upcoming talk at Borneo Cultures Museum is part of the Borneo Boat Lute Revival wider mission which aims to explore the roots of these instruments and tell the stories of boat lutes and their traditional custodians from across Borneo island, as well as their potential for contemporary music.”
Furthermore, more talks will be held in the coming months, including one on Sept 17 by Dr Ida Nicolaisen titled ‘Documenting the Visible and Invisible Culture of the Punan Bah – A Fifty-Year Effort’; Dr Jennifer Morris will speak about Charles Hose’s museum collection on Oct 29; Dr Franca Cole will speak about the Niah Caves on Nov 19; and Jayl Langub will speak about the Taman Tepung Tuloi’s double-chambered ‘klirieng’ and its unique history on Dec 3.
Meanwhile, at today’s press conference on FOSM’s new series of monthly talks at BCM, newly-elected chairperson Datu Ose Murang stated that FOSM is delighted to launch this new series of engaging talks by experts in the field of Bornean studies.
“We are looking forward to welcoming old friends and new audiences to learn more about Sarawak’s cultural heritage and the significant role museums play in preserving this knowledge for future generations,” he said.
Those who are interested are encouraged to register for a place on Aug 20 at www.tinyurl.com/lostlutes. — DayakDaily
