Of all the types of oral transmission, those in the form of music appear to be most pervasive in Malay society. Songs and melodies from times of old are sung and resung on a regular basis during festivities such as weddings, celebrations of motherhood and childbirth, rites of passage and at cultural or religious celebrations. They are also utilized in the occasional ceremonial functions in royal weddings, in rites of ascension (or coronation) and royal birthday celebrations; in the form of the more refined court music.
Every region or each of the states may employ different versions of oral transmission but the most popular is in the form of folk-singing or lagu rakyat. The Middle Eastern-influenced ghazal can be heard in the southern Malaysian state of Johor especially is the district of Muar. Poets and singers consisting of often females and sometimes males vocalize popular love poems and riddles in the form of pantun to the accompaniment of a composition and of music made for a six-stringed Arabian lute (see oud), Indian tablas, Western violins, accordion and marracas.
Forms of nursery rhymes and lullabies are also sung at weddings and cultural festivals in the state of Melaka by Malays and the Malay-speaking Peranakan communities. The contents of the songs are mostly to do with advise on love, life and marriage and are affectionately known in Malay as dondang sayang meaning "song of love".
Within each of these folk-songs, messages and stories are told, a kind of informal handing down of wisdom from the old to the young in the form of poetry which may include any of these:
- Pantun - a poem with four stanzas, two of each rhymes with each other
- Syair - a poem also with four stanzas, with all ends rhyming together
- Seloka - a poem, similar to pantun
- Madah - a kind of rhyming speech, a discourse through poetry
- Gurindam - poetry, set to music
FOLK SONGS ( MALAY)
The Malay oral tradition includes a large collection of folksongs. Many of these songs are in the form of stories weaved into poetry or simple rhyme. These folksongs continue to be sung and a sizable number of them are included in the albums of modern-day singers, often with improvisations in terms of melody and more complex musical arrangements to suit a larger accompaniment of musicians as well as singers.
1. RASA SAYANG
"Rasa Sayang" (pronounced [ˈrasa saˈjaŋ], literally "loving feeling") or "Rasa Sayange" (in Indonesia) is a Malay folk song popular in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. The basis of "Rasa Sayang" is similar to Dondang Sayang and other Malay folk songs, which take their form from the pantun, a traditional ethnic Malay poetic form.
Some in Indonesia have claimed that the song originated in the Maluku Islands, but such claims are disputed,as the standard Malay language itself and the tradition of pantun exchange are unknown to the Maluku Islands. Some of the Indonesians and Malaysians have once fought because of this.
2. LENGGANG LENGGANG KANGKUNG
It is very popular with children and adults alike. The topic is about a water spinach which is a favorite dish of the people in Southeast Asian countries…
Kangkung is a semi aquatic plant that grows on the river banks or lakes in many countries in South-east Asia, of which Indonesia is the largest since it consists of 17,000 islands and a population of 240 million. It is called the Ipomoea Aquatica, or Water Spinach and also known as Water Morning Glory, because it has flowers that are similar to the morning glory in shape and color.
The phrase 'Lenggang kangkung' has also the meaning of being leisurely and being idle or walking in a slow and peaceful gait."
Kangkung is a semi aquatic plant that grows on the river banks or lakes in many countries in South-east Asia, of which Indonesia is the largest since it consists of 17,000 islands and a population of 240 million. It is called the Ipomoea Aquatica, or Water Spinach and also known as Water Morning Glory, because it has flowers that are similar to the morning glory in shape and color.
The phrase 'Lenggang kangkung' has also the meaning of being leisurely and being idle or walking in a slow and peaceful gait."
3. BURUNG KAKAK TUA
The song title is ‘Burung Kakak Tua’ which means ‘Cuckatoo’
You can listen to the song here : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLcosk-R5Uo
It’s a really cute song with a nice ring to it. Actually if we translate ‘burung kakak tua’ as in ‘old sister bird’ the song would make more sense, I think.
My version of the translation would be:
Old sister bird, Oh old sister bird
Perching at the window (jendela)
Grandma is now very old
Her teeth only left (tinggal) dua.
* Here, we learn that tinggal can be used for: stay, live, reside; or remained, left.
There’s another kid who actually sang the more hip version during a singing competition:
4. CHAN MALI CHAN
This song is about goats. This malay folk song apparently talks about finding the little lost goat.It is a very popular malay folk song with a very catchy tune. I bet most of us have heard of this song when we were little. It's a very fun song to sing along too. Most children sings together with their friends in school.
5. ANAK ITIK TOKWI
This last song is the story about a little duckling. This is another malay folk song that we often hear our friends singing independent of race when we're in kindergarten and primary school.
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