Hello everyone !! Welcome back to Continental Drift. Hope you’re all doing well. On today’s episode, we’ll be taking you on a journey to Southeast Asia to hear the dulcet tones of Malaysia’s music. This federal constitutional monarchy is divided into two zones: Peninsular Malaysia on Mainland Southeast Asia and East Malaysia on the island of Borneo, which over 34 million people call home. The country has its origins in the Malay kingdoms, with strong influences from Indian and Chinese cultures due to the arrival of traders as early as the first century AD. In 1511, Malacca was conquered by Portugal, after which it was taken by the Dutch in 1641. In 1786, the British Empire established a presence in Malaya, when the Sultan of Kedah leased Penang Island to the British East India Company. In the Second World War, the Japanese Army invaded and occupied Malaya, North Borneo, Sarawak, and Singapore for over three years. After a decade insurgency towards the occupying British Crown, Malaya became an independent member of the Commonwealth of Nations in 1957. 

Traditional Malay music is a rich and varied tradition, given the many influences that have competed in the region. Music spans from music for various theatrical forms such as wayang kulit, bangsawan, and other dance dramas, to folk songs and music for dances, ceremonies, and religions occasions. Many forms of traditional Malay music and performing arts appear to have originated in the Kelantan-Pattani region with influence from India, China, Thailand and Indonesia, and is often based around percussion instruments. All of Peninsular Malaysia's surviving state monarchies have their own court music or nobat, such music is still performed at formal royal events in Kuala Lumpur's Istana Negara.

Malay gamelan (Malay: gamelan Melayu), also known as Joget Gamelan, is a traditional court musical ensemble and dance tradition of the Malay world, particularly associated with the royal courts of Pahang and Terengganu in present-day Malaysia. It forms part of the wider gamelan family of maritime Southeast Asia but developed a distinct repertoire, performance practice and choreographic tradition within the cultural environment of the Malay courts.

Gamelan Sinar Surya: Is a Santa Barbara arts organization that performs and teaches gamelan.

monoloQue is a Malaysian independent and alternative rock band founded in 2004 by Khairil Ridzwan Anuar, widely known as LoQue (former guitarist of the grunge band Butterfingers). The band fuses traditional Malay/Nusantara ethnic instruments and classical sounds with modern electronic beats, synths, and alternative rock.

Indigenous peoples of the Malay Peninsula played in small ensembles known as kertok, performing xylophone music that may have led to the development of what we’ll hear next, dikir barat.

A blend of everything - The Fadzil Ahmad Ensemble: The entire album is amazing!

Malaypop

Now it’s time to get crazy with it. Welcome to the world of M-pop, or pop music made in malaysia. It has its origin in local musical traditions and popular European music styles. Some early musical styles, performers, and songs of kroncong and lagu-lagu rakyat (folk songs) were common to the musical cultures of Malaysia and Indonesia. Starting in the 1920s, local social dance and entertainment music such as asli, inang, joget, dondang sayang, zapin, and masri were adapted by bangsawan troupes to Anglo-American dance band arrangements but retained a local folk character, eventually developing into modern Malay popular music.

Western popular music has continually influenced Malaysian popular music since its early days. In the pre-World War II era, songs based on Anglo-American and Latin American dance music sung in Malay were popular. These songs were accompanied by dance bands that became known as orkes Melayu (Malay orchestra). Many have attributed these orkes Melayu to the development of the popular Dangdut dance genre, which we’ll hear now:

Memoria Daun Pisang

One particular genre influenced by Western guitar bands, called pop yeh-yeh came to the forefront and ruled the Malay music scene from 1965 to 1971. This genre was influenced by the music and fashion of the Beatles and other British rock and roll bands during the 1960s. In fact, the term pop yeh-yeh was taken from the choral refrain of the popular Beatles song "She Loves You" ("she loves you, yeah-yeah-yeah")

Bibir Mesa Jiwa Parah

Among others, Hail Amir introduced hindustani-influenced music to Malaysia in the mid-70s. 

Anatara Matamu Dan Mataku

M. Nasir

He is from Singapore originally but he became big in Malaysia, started doing music in 1978

The Strollers - Do what you gotta do (this is a cover). There is also a Swedish band called that!