KUALA LUMPUR, (Bernama) – Dikir Barat, Mak Yong, Chinese Opera, Ngajat and Bharathanatyam are among Malaysia’s priceless arts and cultural heritage, each carving a name on the international stage.
All these portray Malaysia as a bustling melting pot of culture and diversity spanning generations. Towards this end, various parties including individuals and government agencies have embraced the cultural diversity as the pillar of national unity, which has been harnessed since the nation achieved its independence on Aug 31, 1957.
Famed Indian classical dance and choreographer, Datuk Ramli Ibrahim and violinist Endang Hyder, who has built a following for her skills in playing Erhu, a Chinese two-stringed violin, are some of the Malaysian celebrities who achieved success through the arts heritage of other races.
In preserving Malaysia’s rich heritage of traditional dances, the name ASWARA or the Akademi Seni Budaya dan Warisan came to mind, which was set up to foster and nurture the nation’s diverse arts and culture.
UNITED THROUGH ARTS
ASWARA Director of Corporate Communications Division, Tujeri Shah Abdul Razak said, students of the academy comprising various races and ethnic groups from the Peninsula, Sabah and Sarawak, can be considered as catalysts of national integration.
Despite the diverse backgrounds, these students are united through their awareness towards their distinctive arts and cultural heritage.
“What I can say is, students who joined ASWARA are from various backgrounds. Besides the diversity in race and religion, their educational backgrounds are also different.
‘’Students from the academy are also from Sabah and Sarawak ethnic groups including Iban and Kadazan. They are united through their awareness and love for arts and cultural heritage of our country,” he told Bernama recently.
Established in 1994, ASWARA is the only institution of higher learning dedicated entirely to the arts under the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture (MOTAC). It provides an environment conducive to learning, practising and academic researching as well as professional counselling services in the arts, culture and national heritage.
It offers several programmes related to cultural arts of various races encompassing music, dance, theatre, creative writing and filming as well as animation and multimedia from certificate to PhD levels.
Tujeri Shah said the academy’s role is not merely limited to providing public exposure especially youths on the nation’s arts and culture, through performance and entertainment alone.
“For example, when ASWARA made Mak Yong and Wayang Kulit as two core subjects for all students to study, they learn both arts performance as well as cultural respect.
“The spirit of unity is also inculcated and reflected in our arts performance. It is our sincere hope that the spirit of unity is cultivated and nurtured among today’s younger generation,” he added.
CROSS-CULTURAL ARTS
ASWARA also exposes students to cross-cultural arts to celebrate the differences among the multi-racial society in Malaysia.
This is the approach adopted by the academy, said Tujeri Shah, especially in its dance performances and the traditional musical instruments used from the diverse races and ethnic groups in Malaysia.
“The majority of ASWARA students are Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) leavers with artistic talents and they are not limited to a particular field as we offer them with a mix of repertoire to stimulate their creativity.
“Besides Mak Yong and Wayang Kulit, we also introduce Indian classical dance as a core subject and what’s interesting is the Malay students are highly skilled in Indian dance including the Bharatanatyam, although they were not given an earlier exposure,” he added.
He said the drums performance which upholds the musical spirit and tempo of the various traditional drum beats also unleashed the talents of ASWARA students.
He noted that ASWARA students also participated in the Program Berjalan Teguh Bersama in conjunction with the launch of the National Month and Fly the Jalur Gemilang 2022 programme by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob recently.
A total of 15 ASWARA students gave a drums performance of various races based on the Keluarga Malaysia concept during the programme, he added.
EMPOWERING NATIONAL CULTURAL ARTS
Tujeri Shah said the nation’s arts and culture that are inherited from past generations should be empowered to avoid being forgotten.
Citing Mak Yong as an example, the oldest cultural heritage of Kelantan, has also been recognised by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) as an Intangible Cultural Heritage, he said, adding that that this precious treasure should be preserved for the future generations.
“As such, at ASWARA, we have documented all traditional artworks and in fact our lecturers are experts and are highly skilled in their respective fields.
“Our children are the next generation and we are passing on a legacy to them and it is through this cultural heritage, we are able to foster harmony and embrace the uniqueness of our diverse culture,” he added.
However, he said there was no doubt that the Movement Control Order (MCO) due to the COVID-19 pandemic two years ago, upended the creative industry as a whole.
As such, he called on the industry players to continue to play their role by being more proactive in efforts to reinvigorate the industry.
“But on an encouraging note, the industry is bouncing back from its doldrums as various programmes have been organised by the government including the Jelajah Aspirasi Keluarga Malaysia (AKM) involving ASWARA students as well.
“The interstate programme including Sabah and Sarawak provided the students with a positive impact and new experiences in promoting and showcasing their arts activities based on the Keluarga Malaysia concept,” he added.
ROLE MODELS FOR YOUNGER GENERATION
Meanwhile, ASWARA student Ahmad Danialomar Khairudin, 19 agreed that the AKM is effective in highlighting the melange of arts and cultures of various races and ethnic groups in Malaysia.
According to the Johor-born student from the Faculty of Music, playing musical instruments with other races would make them role models for the younger generation as they are able to promote racial harmony and unity through their performance.
“For the AKM programme, we gave a rendition of various folk songs of diverse races in Malaysia such as Puteri Santubong from Sarawak and Lemak Manis from Pahang to reflect the uniqueness of the Malaysian community.
“To add vibrancy to our performance, we played various traditional instruments of the Malays, Chinese and Indians such as rebana, kompang, gambus, table and Liuyeqin. This is our way of sharing our knowledge with the community,” said Ahmad Danialomar, who is now in his third semester of the three-year course.
-- Translated by Salbiah Said
-- BERNAMA
