Four Sarawakians receive Baram Sape Master awards in London

MIRI: Four Sarawakians, who were the top four finalists of the Baram Sape Master ( BSM) competition in Kuala Lumpur last year, received the prestigious BSM awards in London last weekend.

The four – Robin Jalong Lusat, Matius Erang, Emang Ibau and Alex Apoi – wowed the audience with their sape-playing skills during a performance at the Borneo Hornbill Festival in Tuke Hall, Regent’s University Inner Circle in London on Saturday.

Robin was the champion at the BSM finale staged in Tunku Abdul Rahman Auditorium at Malaysia Tourism Centre (MaTIC) in Kuala Lumpur on Oct 23 last year – where Matius, Emang and Alex placed respective first, second and third runner-up.

Robin and Matius are both from Long Mengkaba, while Emang and Alex are from Long Bemang and Long San, respectively.

They received their BSM awards from United Kingdom educational consultant Prof Kanes Rajah at a ceremony in London last Saturday, witnessed by Sarawak Association United Kingdom deputy president Jason Desmond, BSM London head of delegation Temenggung Elizabeth Deng, Datin Mujan Jok who represented Datuk Lihan Jok, BSM board member cum BSM London 2017 supervisor Jok Eng Jok, Telang Usan community leaders and members of the Tinggang Madang dance troupe.

According to Elizabeth, BSM London 2017 is an effort to bring sape – the identifiable musical instrument of the Orang Ulu – to an international arena.

“The London show was a great start; we hope to be able to perform in other countries in the future.

“This (BSM London 2017) means a lot, especially to the Orang Ulu, as it not only serves as a platform to showcase our talents but also helps in our efforts to maintain and preserve the identity of sape music – a precious heritage of the community,” she told The Borneo Post here.

Meanwhile, Jok regarded sape as ‘ the community binder’, in view of its role in uniting and entertaining ‘ the entire Baram community’.

The BSM was first held in Long Lama in 2014 involving 24 instrumentalists, followed by the second session in 2015 involving 16 teams, from which six were selected to perform at the grand finale in Kuala Lumpur.

The third series was held here in September last year, involving 25 solo sape players – 10 of them were brought to Kuala Lumpur and from this lot, the top five participants were brought to London.

For Robin, the chance to perform in London was ‘ truly a historic moment’.

“It was my first time performing overseas – it’s an experience that I will never forget for as long as I live,” said the 34-year- old, who has been playing sape since his primary school years.

Robin also took the opportunity to thank the BSM Council Board for giving the opportunity to the younger generation to highlight their talents in sape-playing.

“This opportunity to perform in London has encouraged me to perform in other countries as well. I’m also looking forward to promoting sape in Korea,” he added.

For Robin, he is more comfortable in retaining the original tunes of the sape, despite many of the younger instrumentalists preferring to combine traditional music with modern and contemporary rhythms.

About 400 people were involved in the Borneo Hornbill Festival 2017 in London.