May 13 In Our Minds

By Kathy Rowland There aren’t many creative works which explore the riot that broke out on May 13, 1969 in Malaysia. Ibrahim Hussein’s 13 May immediately springs to mind, as do Datuk Noordin Hassan’s play Bukan Lalang Di Tiup Angin and Lloyd Fernando’s novel, Green Is The Colour. Of course, that’s not all there is. […]

Pendekar Bujang Gemuk

By Nizam Zakaria Seorang sutradara yang saya kenali, Yasmin Ahmad (alah, Yasmin yang buat iklan Petronas dan filem Rabun yang kena potong bagai nak rak kat TV3 tu ler!) telah menghantar SMS kepada saya sejurus selepas beliau selesai menonton tayangan perdana filem Buli. Min memberitahu kepada saya dengan bersungguh-sungguh bahawa inilah filem Bahasa Malaysia paling […]

Ada Apa Dengan Apathy?

By Fahmi Fadzil The Taman Medan community arts project by Five Arts Centre recently won the IMG Most Outstanding Educational or Community Development Project Award at the Boh Cameronian Arts Awards 2003. Fahmi Fadzil, who was involved in the ‘Ada Apa?’ arts project, also by Five Arts Centre, compares the two different projects. Mark Teh […]

Extremism That Threatens Our Freedom

By Artisproactiv On page 42 of the Tuesday March 16, 2004, edition of The Star, you will find a small black and white ad in the lower right corner. It is a picture of a smiling couple doing ballroom dancing; a motion blur effect has been applied to give the picture an appearance of movement. […]

Malaysia Tacky Asia

By Antares With another general election around the corner, it was inevitable that the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Tourism would seize the opportunity to present a glorious feel-good concert showcasing a veritable ethnomusicological rainbow – emblematic of a harmonious and prosperous national destiny. As to be expected, when a public relations agenda takes precedence […]

The Weight of an Award (11-03-2004)

By Zedeck Siew The following is a listless meander through the awards in search of meaning. You already know how futile an exercise like this is: how much weight can an awards night, by its very nature glitzy and frivolous and blatantly self-congratulatory, have? So anyway: the Boh Cameronian Arts Awards, surely one of the […]

The Unifying Forces of Adeline Wong

By Saidah Rastam It’s tough being a composer of orchestral works. You only acquire skill by hearing how your music sounds when played by an orchestra, but you only get your music played by an orchestra when you’ve acquired skill. This, together with intense competition, far too few commissions and a generally impecunious existence, makes […]

Be Grateful!

By Sonia Randhawa While the role of tragedy could be seen as investing the sublime with a human face, the role of comedy, particularly stand-up comedy, is much closer to home. The comic holds up a mirror in which we recognise ourselves. Including the worst aspects of ourselves – the racial stereotyping, the passive acceptance […]

The Professional Prizewinner

By Saidah Rastam This is a fairy tale. This is, for me, the ultimate success story. Chong Kee-Yong, 33, grew up in a palm oil plantation in Kluang, Johor. His mother and father were and are farmers. His father wanted him to study economics.  Chong ‘escaped’ from home, and to the Malaysian Institute of Art […]

Fanfare for the Common Man

By Saidah Rastam ‘Serious’ Malaysian orchestral music composition has been limited. Until now. Maybe there has been an increase in educated composers, trained in orchestral arranging. Maybe it’s the results of ventures by institutions such as Akademi Seni Kebangsaan and the International College of Music and by noble musicians who have been passing down their […]

I’ve Got Polyrhythm

By Cassandra Chong Cassandra Chong is a very enthusiastic student at the International College of Music (ICOM). Last week she attended a three-day workshop by the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra, facilitated by the charming composer Fraser Trainer, who is the Creative Director of the London Sinfonietta, and has done composition workshops for schools in Norway, Finland, […]

The Public Ineffectual

By Rey Buono Rey Buono has taught theatre for over 30 years in USA and Singapore, and presently in Malaysia. He had co-directed The Merchant of Venice with Jo Kukathas, and directed Gross Indecency and The Baltimore Waltz (which was also censored in parts by DBKL) for The Instant Café Theatre. In this article, first […]
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