'Malam Terang Bulan' will make you weep

DID you know that the national anthem, “Negaraku” began as a love song?

We did not either, but that's what the upcoming Malam Terang Bulan testifies to be. And we'll find out for sure on November 20-22 November at Dewan Filharmonik Petronas (DFP).

During afternoon tea at Restoran Rebung Dato Chef Ismail earlier in the week, members of the press had the chance to mingle with the artists behind the very, very special performance as well as learn about the shows history.

As we struggle to stay engaged in the internet era, weighed down by unseen waves of text and visuals floating in the air, Malam Terang Bulan will rely on a medium which has remained potent for at least 42,000 years: music.

Dubbed an “orchestral concert with narration”, the performance is keen to showcase the Malaysian public how a love song evolved into Malaya’s national anthem.

Malam Terang Bulan premiered last year as an invite-only, one-off performance. It received a standing ovation as well as outstanding reviews from its special guests — it’s long list of fans include Jo Kukathas, Isabella Soliano and Puteri Juneita Johari.

Directed by renowned composer Saidah Rastam (still an utterly beautiful and captivating woman after all these years), the performance is an amalgamation of Saidah’s own fixation on music and her years of research into Malaysia’s musical history.

Malam Terang Bulan Will Make You Cry

Malam Terang Bulan comes at an interesting juncture in the country’s history.

As a nation, we’ve had one heck of a tragic year — the rakyat grows increasingly perturbed as political gaffes reach an all-time high while sudden, drastic price hikes continue strangling the nation. But don’t let that sway your connection to your land, reminded Saidah.

“Everybody has their own relationship with their country, which is different from their relationship with their politicians,” she began, seated with the rest of her collaborators.

“Sometimes we don’t want to have this relationship and we rebel against it, but through music you rediscover it again.”

They find it again, and they weep. If what we’ve been hearing from past attendees is anything to go by, expect this to do an Inside Out on your steely facades. From grown men to Datin Paduka Marina Mahathir, nobody is spared by the power of Malam Terang Bulan.

“We were all moved to tears,” states Marina on the flyer.

And we sort of understand, we think; if Malam Terang Bulan does indeed turn out to be any degree of wonderful, we expect it to do a number on the average Malaysian psyche.

Our politics may have made us an international joke we’ve gladly partaken in, but imagine feeling love again for a land in plight, desperately in need of its children to band together and start caring again. We already feel like crying, to be honest.

Malam Terang Bulan Is Based On Vital Reading

At the core of the entire performance is Saidah’s tome on Malayan music, Rosalie and Other Love Songs.

The book is worth its weight in gold, we swear: Saidah’s research on Malaya’s rich musical heritage is carefully put together and laid compellingly over 302 pages, complete with rare photos of the golden era.

The book was picked up by strategic government fund Khazanah Nasional Berhad which saw value in its writings, and forms part of a preservation project on Malayan music, recordings, manuscripts and oral history. It was also handed out to audiences at last year’s Malam Terang Bulan.

Rosalie has created a lot of buzz online since it was first released, and was even deemed by Tunku ‘Abidin Muhriz for The Borneo Post as the “single most important volume so far written on Malaysian musical history”.

Seventeen songs curated from the Merdeka era will be performed by the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra (MPO) and its younger brethren, the Malaysian Philharmonic Youth Orchestra (MPYO). These songs come from the composers who shaped Malaysian music in its golden era — expect to hear the works from P. Ramlee, Alfonso Soliano, Benjamin Britten, Saiful Bahri and Zubir Said — and you can read more about them in Rosalie.

Malam Terang Bulan Can Teach You Things

In terms of performance there will be vocals (good news, mainstream audiences!) courtesy of pop singer Dayang Nurfaizah and choreographer Zamzuriah Zahari. Dayang, who had members of the Malay media clamoring after her during the press conference, admitted that thanks to the show, she learned something precious.

“Sebelum ini, Dayang pun tak tahu history “Negaraku”. Ini satu cerita yang Dayang ingin kongsikan dengan peminat-peminat Dayang — as a Malaysian, kita kena tahu mana datangnya national anthem kita,” she spoke chirpily.

On narration duty are Zahim Albakri and Chacko Vadaketh but don’t expect a standard voice-over: both acclaimed performers will be stepping on and off the stage in between songs enacting scenes which will help us understand the “Negaraku” story.

An acclaimed Malaysian theatre figure, Zahim was stunned by a recent discovery.

“A year before,” Zahim began, “I was doing research for Five Arts Centre‘s 2 Minute Solos and looked into the “Negaraku” and how it became our national anthem.”

“At the age of 52, I found out online that my grandfather, Haji Mustapha Albakri, was on the national anthem committee.”

Zahim claimed that the piece is akin to “live documentary” which contains bits of theatre featuring Chacko and himself as different characters.

“I don’t usually tell people you have to go and see something but it’s a very special piece. Last year, people were moved.”

At the conference, Chacko — one of rare Malaysian actors who operate on the international circuit — tempted with promises of beautiful music and beautiful people. He seemed very sure of his offer.

Chacko proudly asked members of the media, “You’ve got the MPO and MPYO playing together with Dayang and Zamzuriah singing, accompanied by Mei Lin Hii on the piano… Who could ask for anything more?”

Also on the Malam Terang Bulan team are conductor Ahmad Muriz Che Rose, vocalist Evelyn Feroza Fernandez, music director Faizal ‘Lok U’ Uzir and singer Musly Ramly.

Producer Zainariah Johari was adamant that potential viewers take the chance and snap up tickets while they’re still available. We have a feeling she knows what she’s talking about; Zainariah is known for some top-notch work with names like Majid Majidi and Oliver Stone.

“When Saidah called me sometime ago telling me that she was looking for someone suitable to work with on Malam Terang Bulan, I volunteered myself,” she laughed, reminiscing.

“I’m not saying this just because I’m involved in it, but this is one performance you really do not want to miss.”

Something tells us that Zainariah wasn’t merely promoting as we looked around the room and saw everybody involved in Malam Terang Bulan.

This is a passion project initiated by brilliant, middle-class Malaysians who bloomed during Malaysia’s halcyon days, for today’s wearier, warier folk. At the end of the day, Saidah and her band of wizards simply hope to remind the rakyat of their land’s potential, especially of what it is (and always was) capable of nurturing.

“After over two years of research on Malaysian music,” exclaimed Saidah at one point, “I found that some of the most beautiful music in the world exists in Malaysia.”

We don’t doubt her claim. See you at Dewan Filharmonik Petronas in two weeks!

Khazanah Nasional proudly presents Malam Terang Bulan, taking place at 8:30pm from 20 – 21 November and at 5:00pm on 22 November at Dewan Filharmonik Petronas. Tickets are priced at RM200, RM160, RM120 and RM80 and can be obtained through MPO or by visiting their box office!