A music-filled Syawal

MUSIC has been a constant feature throughout this Syawal.

Alamak! Alamak! Alamak! sung in a G major triad announces the most viral Raya song this year, performed wherever children are at open houses, but most often on social media, where Malaysians and non-Malaysians alike have been creative in embellishing the original dances of De Fam, the girl group which has certainly found renewed fame by accurately capturing the zeitgeist.

The song’s lyrics articulate the experience of many households, in which Hari Raya seems to have approached so quickly that it’s too rushed to buy travel tickets or rent a car, the food preparation goes awry, and the WiFi isn’t good enough to watch Instagram stories.

This song was ubiquitous enough to be mentioned by the emcee when I was moderating a book talk hosted by Bank Negara. The veteran banker Datuk Yvonne Chia was sharing lessons from two books that greatly inspired her (Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action by Simon Sinek, and The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom by Don Miguel Ruiz) as she was progressing in her career.

The audience was multi-racial and multi-generational, and younger Bank Negara staffers asked the most pertinent questions about how to truly ingrain better attitudes and habits into their lives, in contrast to the more fleeting trends of TikTok dances.

I was asked to play Alamak Raya Lagi on keyboard at several open houses, but I prefer playing songs I know well. At the open house of the Negri Sembilan Education Department, I played Suasana Hari Raya, released by Anuar Zain and Ellina Razak in 1984. The next evening at the state Raya open house in Port Dickson, the band (instigated by the Mentri Besar) invited me to accompany Seloka Hari Raya by Uji Rashid and Hail Amir (1977) and Satu Hari di Hari Raya by M. Nasir (1982). These Raya songs from a generation ago speak of the same themes of returning to the hometown and eating festive fare, but without the 21st century mayhem.

Musically, these songs are open to reinterpretation and renewal. Many musicians cannot resist inserting jazz harmonies as much as possible, and where there are no live bands, lo-fi renditions of classic Raya songs (available on Spotify) are piped through speakers.

In either case, the music is often too loud. I have mentioned in previous years how important open houses are as a platform for networking, even for deals to be clinched, or job offers to be made, but it certainly helps to have good ears, a strong voice, and a resilient social battery.

“I’m so done with open houses,” lamented a colleague who could not eat rendang for the sixth time in a day.

But then, as time passes, the memories of bountiful open houses persists, and it doesn’t take long to miss the fragrance of fresh satay and the perfect bites of lemang and ketupat – especially the crispy corners. Less missed are the jibes from preying aunties asking the usual questions about marriage, but this Syawal has also seen weddings and anniversaries.

Everyone was late to a wedding in Cheras last weekend, with the torrential downpour leading to flash flood and causing malfunctions at toll gates as hordes were already criss-crossing between open houses. But it was all worth it to see a different side of corporate personalities and academics, being coaxed, in honour of the married couple, into a more extroverted light.

Particularly significant, however, was celebrating my parents’ golden wedding anniversary. Being married for half a century is a remarkable feat, and in my speech I reflected on how, despite many changes over the decades, including the ascension of my father as Yang di-Pertuan Besar and the passing away of my youngest brother, their love has endured and remained and inspiration to not just the immediate family, but to wider relatives and friends as well.

Music and dance often marks such milestones, and I accompanied the Solianos on the piano to perform some jazz standards, including harmonising Something Stupid with Isabella. Last weekend, however, I returned to my classical mode, as I joined my niece Naiema to play Elgar’s Salut d’Amour at a concert organised by the Euroasia Association of Performing Arts hosted by Alliance Française.

For now, I’m excited about another project I’ve just begun to work on. It involves recording the sounds of squash balls banging against the wall and trainers squeaking on court floors, and I hope layers of singing, rap and a string quartet, all provided by Negri Sembilan musicians. Hopefully, like a wildly successful Raya song, it will reach a wide audience and induce people towards greater unity in celebration.

The views expressed here are the writer’s own.