SIBU: The Iban music industry is now booming with a variety of genres thus demonstrating it is able to hold its own in the musical industry of the country.
Tamin assemblyman Christopher Gira Sambang said, in the last 20 years, the music industry in Sarawak, especially Iban songs, has experienced encouraging development.
“Iban songs that have undergone changes with the passage of time are no less great than other ethnic songs such as Sarawak Malay songs, Bidayuh songs as well as Melanau songs,” he said.
He said this at the closing of a briefing on standard operating procedures (SOPs) for the censorship and evaluation of local and ethnic songs (PPLTE) at the RTM Auditorium here on Friday (March 11).
A total of 30 art activists in the state attended the briefing organised by RTM Sarawak.
Gira said that in the past, Iban songs were seen and heard more to the rhythm of ‘joget’ and ‘keroncong’ but nowadays, there are wide genres of songs that have been produced by artists.
“Our community or society today can also accept various types of song genres such as ballads, rock songs or even slow rock songs.
“This is a positive growth in the community,” he said.
As an elected representative, he said he fully supports the Dayak music industry.
Gira also called on artists including singers, lyricists, song composers and those behind the scene to work together to produce the best songs or masterpieces to raise the status of the music industry in Sarawak.
He said, the art activists who attended the briefing were also aware that the production of a great song allows them to compete with other songs in Malaysia, as well as raise the name of Iban/Dayak songs on the art stage of the country.
Also present were RTM Sarawak broadcasting department director Nasrul Hakim Md Noh, PPLTE chairman Yahya Sulaiman and Sarawak Iban Artists Association president Augustine Merican.
