KUALA LUMPUR, July 27 (Xinhua) -- The sounds of Borneo's rainforest echoed through the heart of Kuala Lumpur as performers from Malaysia's eastern states of Sarawak and Sabah brought indigenous music and culture to the capital during the recent Borneo Native Festival.
In front of Kuala Lumpur's Central Market, performers dressed in traditional indigenous attire stepped onto the stage carrying the sape, a traditional lute from Sarawak and Sabah, and began singing the folk song Tegeleng-geleng.
In the Sarawak Malay dialect, tegeleng-geleng means "to sway" or "to move with the rhythm." Before long, many in the crowd were doing exactly that.
Performers in colorful traditional costumes lined up across the stage. Some wore feathered headpieces while gently moving to the beat. Holding the long wooden sape close to their bodies, they began playing as the opening vocal call rang out across the square.
Their fingers moved quickly across the strings as the sape blended seamlessly with electronic drums, electric guitar and other modern instruments, giving the traditional music a fresh, contemporary sound. Together, the instruments produced a sound that remained rooted in indigenous traditions while embracing contemporary influences.
For Borneo's indigenous communities, the sape is much more than a musical instrument. Passed down through generations, it is closely tied to local traditions and beliefs. It was once commonly played during ceremonies in longhouses, where its music was believed to connect people with their ancestors and the natural world.
According to the Sarawak Tourism Board, local folklore tells of a traditional healer whose wife became seriously ill. One night, he dreamed of carving an instrument from a piece of wood and stringing it with pineapple fibers. After following the instructions from the dream and playing the instrument for his wife, she recovered. The boat-shaped instrument later became known as the sape and gradually spread throughout indigenous communities in Borneo.
Today, the sape is reaching audiences far beyond the rainforest. Thanks to the efforts of local musicians and international events such as the Rainforest World Music Festival in Sarawak, the instrument has become increasingly familiar to audiences in Malaysia and abroad.
One of the performers, Adriana Azril from Johor Bahru, has been learning and performing the sape for nearly three years.
Having studied the violin, she found it relatively easy to pick up the instrument. But unlike many Western instruments, she said, the sape creates "a more natural and peaceful musical atmosphere."
She explained that early versions had only two strings before evolving into three-, four- and six-string instruments, giving musicians greater freedom in melody and harmony. The two-string version retains a more traditional sound, while instruments with more strings offer richer musical expression.
"The best part of performing is seeing the audience sing and dance with us," she said. "That kind of interaction has always been part of Borneo's indigenous music."
For Jin Yu, a visitor from east China's Jiangsu Province, what stood out most was the way traditional and modern music came together.
"There are traditional instruments, electronic music and Western musical elements, and they blend together very naturally," he said. "The songs imitate birds and other sounds from nature, giving them a strong rainforest feel, while the electronic rhythms make the performance even more lively."
Beyond the main stage, visitors also gathered around the booth of the Yayasan Perpaduan Sarawak (YPS), or Sarawak Unity Foundation, where they had the chance to learn about the sape and try playing it themselves.
Founded in 1994, the foundation promotes social unity, cultural diversity and heritage preservation through festivals, youth activities and community programs that encourage exchanges among Sarawak's many ethnic groups.
"Many people talk about unity, but how do we show it?" said Benedict Jimbau, the foundation's communications manager. "Music is one of the most direct ways."
He said the foundation hopes to introduce the unique cultures of Sarawak to more people through music and cultural activities.
Benedict added that Borneo's traditional music has also become more open to cross-cultural collaboration in recent years. The sape has been performed together with the Chinese erhu, bringing together different musical traditions in new ways.
He said he hopes to see more collaborations with Chinese musicians in the future, believing traditional music can help bring people from different cultures closer together. ■
