Every Johor Bahru citizen has most likely witnessed the magnificent 24 Festive Drums performance at least once in their lives. The culturally significant art form, which originated in Johor Bahru, is a popular choice to add a cultural flavour to occasions ranging from private ceremonies to large-scale events.
The heritage art recognised as Malaysian National Intangible Cultural Heritage has been embraced across five continents, with over 400 troupes around the world. The closest experience, outside of launch events for the public, would be the 24 Festive Drums Museum at Jalan Tan Hiok Nee that was erected in 2020.
So when a chance to watch a full-blown, 105-minute drum show at the Permaisuri Zarith Sofiah Opera House came through, it was a must go for anyone who wanted to see the entirety of what the 24 Festive Drums was made of.
The show saw a performance by the Orang Orang Drum Theatre, which has participated in international music festival Sziget Festival 2019, Venice Theatre Arts Festival, Venice Open Stage and the Belgium and Germany Dance Festival, Danse en Ville.
A truly world-class, homegrown performance is exactly what is presented in the high-end opera house, overlooking the Tebrau Straits and the causeway to Singapore.
The show was an unforgettable experience at every beat of the music throughout, with an ensemble of masterful percussion play that bound together with the creative lightshow, with a lot of action, heart-rending story and beautiful poetic songs.
“The Memories” was one of the highlights of this performance. This song was inspired by the history of Malaysian Chinese ancestors travelling southward in quest of a way out, hoping to make a new life on a foreign soil. This parallels the Johorean way of life today, which is characterised by a perpetual state of chaotic migration across borders and cities in search of a collective memory.
Meanwhile, the ‘Drunken Drums’ segment saw the audience having an opportunity to perform with the drummers.
While the Orang Orang Drum Theatre’s “LaguKu” theme explored the multifaceted Malaysian identity through a song where it combined vocal expressiveness and physical movement with musical instrument from several cultures to show that the Malaysian identity is neither singular nor limited. Rather, it is layered and intertwined with an unfathomable blend of shared beliefs, cultures, and experiences, much like this performance.
Essentially, the 24 drums in this performance depicted the cycle of 24 festivals in the Chinese agricultural community’s lunar calendar, with each drum symbolising one festival. An entire team completes the cycle of 24 lunar calendar festivities that have guided Chinese farmers in their agricultural work for hundreds of years.
Tan Chai Puan, a cultural activist, poet, and businessman, and the late Tan Hooi Song, a renowned musician, invented the 24 Festive Drums in 1988, and it was formally revealed on 18 November 2006, at the 4th National 24 Festive Drums Extravaganza press conference.
The founding of JB Drums marks the beginning of Johor Bahru’s first professional 24 Festive Drums squad.
‘Drum Up JB!’ will be housed as a permanent performance at R&F’s cutting-edge Permaisuri Zarith Sofiah Opera House. On a monthly basis, there will be two shows. R&F Development, Think City, Iskandar Regional Development Authority, Majlis Bandaraya Johor Bahru, and Malaysia Digital Districts have all contributed to this programme.
Highly commended by the audience in TripAdvisor, you may purchase the tickets to the next show via https://www.cloudjoi.com/shows/drum-up-jb
