Maya
KOTA KINABALU: Recently crowned Sabah Unduk Ngadau, Maya Hejnowska, hopes to publish two books which focus on the musical notation of traditional songs/music and on the creation of traditional music instruments of the Kadazan, Dusun, Murut and Rungus (KDMR) people.
Maya is aiming to complete the documentation of both books before her term as the State Level Unduk Ngadau ends next year in May.
She explained that there is not much information available on the KDMR traditional music notation and traditional musical instruments.
“There is a small corner at the Sabah Museum that showcases the traditional musical instruments of the people. What is shown there is only the tip in the wealth of information available connected to the KDMR people. Something has to be done to document the information that is being passed down orally by the elders residing in rural villages before they are gone forever,” she explained.
As a student in music at Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS), Maya said that she has problems getting the documentation about the topic.
“A lot is documented about the KDMR traditional cuisine, the KDMR culture, the KDMR languages … but when it comes to the KDMR traditional music, there is simply not enough documentation,” she said.
Maya added that she has mentioned her plan to start this project to the State Unduk Ngadau chairperson, Joanna Kitingan and it was received positively.
She also shared that she has been planning on carrying out the documentation for quite some time.
“I already found a traditional musician from Kota Belud who was keen to start the documentation work which includes both written and by video. We also want to collaborate with other musicians so we can study the frequency and sound of a traditional music instrument and how it produces sound.”
She said that they also plan to teach traditional music to interested individuals and the aim of this is to ensure the preservation of the KDMR music and songs.
“In addition to the books, we also hope to conduct an online concert prior to reaching the end of my term as Unduk Ngadau where we will feature the KDMR traditional instruments and music so that those taking up the programme can showcase what they have learnt.”