Poetry Recital, Dikir Barat Style

By Tengku Faezah Tengku Yusof KUALA LUMPUR, June 8 (Bernama) -- It has always been the aspiration of prolific writer and poet Dr Lim Swee Tin to take modern Malay poetry to another level by having it recited in the rhythmic style of a typical dikir barat performance. To make it a reality, he recently collaborated with a local arts academy to produce a compact disc (CD) of songs combining poetry and dikir barat, and even co-authored a reference book on the traditional Malay art form. “All these are part of efforts to uphold both art forms and prevent them from fading into oblivion,“ Lim, recipient of the SEA Write (Southeast Asian Write) award in 2000, told Bernama. Dikir barat is a form of Malay choral singing that originated in the Malay Peninsula. In a typical dikir barat performance, the performers would sit cross-legged and chant, clap and sway to the rhythmic beats provided by a percussion ensemble. The Kelantan-born Lim, who writes mainly in Malay and was a former Malay literature lecturer at Universiti Putra Malaysia, said he had been harbouring the desire to marry poetry with dikir barat for many years. It only came to fruition after he met Arjunasukma academy – which specialises in dikir barat – founder Mohd Sulhie Yusuf several times. Zaman“ (Dikir Barat: The People's Entertainment Art – Untouched by the Passage of Time) that was launched last October. The book outlines the history of dikir barat and its development over the years from one er Their first collaboration was a 100-page book titled “Dikir Barat: Seni Hiburan Rakyat – Tak Lerai Diasak a to another, as well as the infusion of modern elements into the art form to enable it to remain relevant. BOOK, CD COLLABORATION The joint effort by Lim and Mohd Sulfie, a well-known personality within the dikir barat circle, has paid off as their publication was named Best Arts and Creativity Book at the National Book Awards ceremony on May 2, organised by the National Book Development Foundation. It was the first time a book on dikir barat had been published and it was well received by the academia and arts patrons who had read and reviewed its contents, according to Lim. Encouraged by the response to their book, Lim and Mohd Sulfie felt that they should continue with their collaboration and produce a dikir barat CD to support the book. The CD, titled “Langkah Berikutnya – Gurindam Nafisah”, was launched in April and it features 10 songs that use poetic verses as the pulse of the dikir barat renditions. POETRY-DIKIR BARAT FUSION Incorporating elements of modern poetry into the traditional dikir barat was not an easy task. “The verses of a poem are different from the lyrics of dikir barat songs. Poetry, as we all know, is rather abstract. So, we were forced rework the verses a bit to make it easier (for the people) to understand," explained Lim. Pointing to one of the songs in the CD titled “Kabus Pagi”, he said the original poem that was used in the song carried spiritual and religious elements. “The poem was probably more suitable for a nasyid song and it was difficult for us to adapt it into the form of a dikir barat. Finally, we got the permission of the poet concerned to make some changes to the verses without altering the poem's original meaning," he said. Lim plans to introduce the CD to schools and institutions of higher learning, as well as hold events in Malaysia and even overseas to showcase the CD's dikir barat presentations. “We're trying to make a foray into Singapore, southern Thailand and, if we get the opportunity, Brunei and several other countries,“ he said. SONG EXPRESSES MEANING OF LIFE Dikir barat groups usually borrow the tunes of popular songs, including Hindi numbers, for their performances. In the case of Lim and Mohd Sulfie, they have composed their own melodies to accompany the poems, which convey useful messages to the people but without compromising their entertainment quotient. And, in keeping with the times and to attract the interest of the younger generation, the element of romance is evident too in their compositions. For instance, the CD's lead song “Gurindam Nafisah“ tells the love story of a fisherman and a girl named Nafisah. Nafisah cannot accept the fact that the man she loves has chosen to return to his village and eke out a living as a fisherman even though he holds a university degree. “Through the narration of a story like this, we are able to convey the message that youths and graduates who have an interest in the field of agriculture and entrepreneurship should make use of the knowledge they had gained at university to start their own venture. “This way, they don't have to be so dependent on the prevailing job market and can create their own job (or business) opportunity through their own efforts and get to earn a lucrative income,“ said Lim. “Gurindam Nafisah“ carries the underlying message that youths can do their bit to spur economic growth by striving to generate their own income sources. Dikir barat performances, in other words, do not only serve as an entertainment tool but also help create awareness on economic and social issues among the public. KELANTAN DIALECT In the past, dikir barat used to be presented in the Kelantanese dialect which not all Malaysians understood but over the years, there has been a shift to using standard Bahasa Malaysia for the lyrics. “These days, there are not many issues over the language but there still are some (commonly used) expressions that only the Kelantanese might understand, “ added Lim. He, however, felt that the language constraint was not really a problem as the public would sooner or later be able to catch the meaning of the lyrics because dikir barat was an art form that helped inject wisdom into the people. “There was a time when dikir barat was regarded as the most effective medium to disseminate government policies (to the public). Through this art, the information was interpreted in a way that was easy for the people to digest, “ he added. -- BERNAMA