SIBU: The Borneo Tribal Music Festival (BTMF) which is held for two days from tomorrow (Sept 23) until Sunday (Sept 24) will feature traditional music performances as an impetus to enliven and promote the town to outsiders, says Clarence Ting Ing Horh.
The Sibu Municipal Council chairman said Sibu needs an injection of input as well as energy and music is the best energy to energise people.
“I think Sibu needs more music because the word that people always associate with Sibu is that we are always dull, but we have a lot of musicians, and that is why this sort of music event is very good for Sibu.
“I hope that all the local musicians will take this impetus so that one day we can say there is one very hot (singers) in YouTube from Sibu,” he said when officiating at the Borneo Ethnic Music Exchange Conference (BEMEC), one of the BTMF programmes here today.
Ting said that in order to turn Sibu into a city it not only depends on the size but also on the population.
“If local people cannot go for entertainment, how do you expect us in Sibu to attract visitors and that is why music is very crucial to a part of growing up in this town and part of the process of turning it into a city,” he stressed.
He said SMC has the infrastructure and SMC would want to make it affordable so that the local people here could enjoy such facilities and programmes.
Meanwhile, La Vie Event & Management managing director who is also the organising chairman, Wilfred Gan said the event aimed to promote local traditional music and boost the local tourism industry.
Also present was the Ministry of Tourism, Creative Industry, and Performing Art permanent secretary, Hi Chang Kee.
