Sape sweetheart showcases talent at Thailand’s Wonderfruit Fest
KUCHING: Sarawak’s sape sweetheart Alena Murang was in Thailand recently showcasing her talent in the Wonderfruit Festival.
The annual Wonderfruit Fest is a five-day, carbon-neutral event that inspires curiosity and encourages exploration of the unknown while promoting sustainable practices. It was held from December 13 – 15.
According to a press release on Monday, her one-hour set during the festival was backed by guitarists Joshua Maran and Jonathan Wong.
“Sharing a line-up with world renowned bands and DJs, makes me see that our Orang Ulu music really does have a place in contemporary, mainstream spaces,” she said.
Headliners this year included bands from USA — Knower and Kweku Collins, Icelandic songstress Soléy, award-winning French DJs C2C, and German techno brass marching band Muete. The festival drew festivalgoers and artistes from around the world.
It was the last festival for Kuchingite Alena in 2018, who this year performed at the world’s biggest entertainment showcase South by Southwest ( USA), Førde Festival of Traditional and Folk Music ( Norway), United Nations organised forums in Iceland and Norway, Etnosur Festival (Spain), Isola de Tiborina ( Italy), World Music Festival ( Taiwan), HereHear Peninsula Music Festival ( Taiwan), Taoyuan International Indigenous Festival (Taiwan), Indigenous Celebration Festival (Indonesia), and Sarawak Association AGM ( UK), amongst others.
She hopes to continue telling authentic stories of Sarawak and encourages Sarawakians to tell their own stories, create their own content, her mantra: “All stories are borne of a place and a people. To tell these stories are to acknowledge the lives of the people and these spaces.”