Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Met Najwa Mahiaddin

Just met Najwa Mahiaddin, one of Malaysia's most promising folk and soul singers and songwriters. She is the daughter of Deputy PM Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and hails from Muar in Johor.

Sunday, October 18, 2009

Pete Teo - Sifu Of Malaysian Indie Music & Film

Kota Kinabalu-born Pete Teo is a sifu of Malaysian independent music and film.

He is one of the country's 'leaders and visionaries' of culture besides the late Yasmin Ahmad (his dear friend) and Datuk Faridah Merican, the Mothers of National Unity, and film-maker and writer Amir Muhammad.

Here is his brief biography courtesy of Wikipedia.

Pete Teo is a leading English language singer-songwriter in Malaysia.

He is also an acclaimed film composer and music producer as well as an actor in new wave Malaysian cinema.

Teo has released two solo albums Rustic Living For Urbanites (2003) and Television (2006 which he produced) on his label Redbag Music.

Rustic Living For Urbanites won Best Music Video and Best Album Cover at the Malaysian Music Industry Awards 2004.

Television, a folk album filled with reflections on a media saturated world won all 3 categories it was nominated for at the same awards in 2007 - Best Album Cover, Best Music Video and Best English Album.

Teo emerged as the first non-mainstream indie artist to win big in the history of the awards.

Television became the first Malaysian record to be licensed and released in South Korea.

Teo was also the first Malaysian artiste to play at the South By Southwest Music Festival in Austin, the United States in 2007.

In 2008, Teo produced the non-profit, multi-artiste anti-racism anthem Here In My Home.

The star-studded recording of the anthem was titled Malaysian Artistes For Unity.

The project attracted pro bono participation from over 50 Malaysian artistes and media personalities including R&B star Ning Baizura, rocker Awie, comedian Afdlin Shauki, singer-songwriter and TV host Jason Lo, actress Maya Karin, Air Asia CEO Datuk Seri Tony Fernandes and first Malaysian Idol Jaclyn Victor.

The music video for the song, directed by Yasmin and Ho Yuhang premiered at the Malaysian Music Industry Awards 2008 to a nationwide television audience.

The video became one of most viralled videos in the world.

In the same year Teo produced 4 retrospective music videos for legendary Malaysian band The Alleycats.

Teo also played live on South Korean music programmes Love Letter and EBS Space, and at the Tokyo Music Market.

He also composed and wrote the soundtrack of Yasmin's last film Talentime.

Teo has appeared in several independent films most notably James Lee's Call If You Need Me and Ho Yuhang's Rain Dogs.

He was also the music director of Ho Yuhang's film At The End Of Daybreak and acted in French film Stretch directed by Charles De Meaux and starring the late David Carradine.

In 2009, Teo produced 15Malaysia, a collection of 15 short socio-political films made by 15 film-makers including Yasmin.

The films starred prominent politicians such as Khairy Jamaluddin, Datuk Nik Aziz Nik Mat, Tian Chua and Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai.

The cyber films have attracted more than 11 million viewers, and were screened at the Pusan International Film Festival in South Korea.

Saturday, October 17, 2009

Chinese Dialects

Chinese dialects.

1 North Chinese - Beijing dialects, Hakka dialects, Yangzi dialects and Hunan dialects.

2 Cantonese dialects - Hainan, Guangxi, Guangzhou, Jiangmen, Zhongsan, Yangjiang, Qingyuan, Zhanjiang, Shenzhen and Foshan.

3 Fujian dialects – Fuzhou (or North) and Xiamen (Zhangzhou-Quanzhou) [this includes Hainan and Shantou].

Friday, October 16, 2009

Hokkien & Hoklo

Hokkiens or Hoklos are Chinese who speak the Hoklo or Hokkien dialect.

They come from the province of Fujian (or Hokkien in the dialect) in southern China.

They are from the cities of Chuanchou (or Chinchew in their dialect or Quanzhou in Beijing dialect), Amoy (or Xiamen in Beijing dialect) and Changchou (or Changchew in their dialect or Zhangzhou in Beijing dialect).

They are also called the Taiwanese Chinese.

People's Alliance Should Give Up Sabah, Labuan And Sarawak

The people of Sabah, Labuan and Sarawak can never accept Peninsular Malaysian parties.

Thus the People's Alliance should leave Sabah, Labuan and Sarawak.

Sabah, Labuan and Sarawak prefer to set up their very own opposition parties and these can join the People's Alliance later, if there still is a People's Alliance in a year's time.

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Some Penang Historic Trivia

- Kadir Mydin Merican was the first Indian headman in Penang and he was the ancestor of the first lady of Malaysian theatre Datuk Faridah Merican and Malaysia's Jodie Foster Fauziah Ahmad Daud.

- Koh Lay Huan was the first Chinese headman of Penang and he was the ancestor of former Chief Minister Tan Sri Koh Tsu Koon.

- James Richardson Logan, the man who coined the terms 'Malaysia' and 'Indonesia' ran the Penang Gazette, the oldest paper in Malaysia. This paper was later bought over by the Straits Echo run by Mani Saravanamuttu (relative of Johan Saravanamuttu) in 1930.

- His brother Abraham Logan ran the Singapore Free Press which later became New Straits Times.

- James Richardson Logan lived from April 10, 1819 to October 20, 1869. His memorial is outside the George Town City Hall Auditorium. He is described as a writer, lawyer, ecologist, ethnologist and champion of the common man.

- Dr Wu Lian Teh (Ngoh Lian Tuck) was the first Queen's Scholar from Malaysia. He hailed from Penang, studied in Penang Free School and modernised China's public health care system besides fighting plague in China.

- The Malaysian Indian Association, forerunner of the Central Indian Association of Malaysia and later the Malaysian Indian Congress began in Penang. It was founded by Cambridge lawyer P. Nambiar and Methodist Reverend Raju Naidu. Another prominent leader was H. Abdoolcader, ancestor of the late High Court judge Tan Sri Eusoffe Abdoolcader. The older Abdoolcader was the man who made Deepavali a Malaysian public holiday.

- Businessman Chung Keng Kwee was the father of Chung Thye Pin who became famous in Ipoh. Keng Kwee also had a nephew Chung Ah Yong.

- My family has links to Chin Ah Yam who was born in Penang but went to live in Ipoh.

Sunday, October 11, 2009

Penang Mari

Perak Chinese, like myself, have Penang roots.

Malaysian Chinese of Perak state entered Malaysia via George Town, Penang.

Those from Selangor, where Kuala Lumpur is, also entered Malaysia via George Town, Penang.

Likewise those from Perlis, Kedah and Negeri Sembilan.

Those from Johor, Pahang, Terengganu, Kelantan, Sabah, Brunei and Sarawak, 'Singapore mari' (from Singapore).

Friday, October 9, 2009

Congrats Obama

Congrats to Barack Obama on winning the Nobel Prize 2009.

Friday, October 2, 2009

Scouts To Honour Contributions Of Former Minister Tun Sardon Jubir

From Malaysian National News Agency or Bernama.

The contributions of the late Cabinet Minister Tun Sardon Jubir to the Scout Movement will be remembered when Malaysia hosts the 23rd Asia Pacific Regional Scout Conference from October 27 to November 1.

Sardon, the Chief Scout from 1963-1973 contributed much to the Malaysian Scout Movement, particularly in creating the Malay States Federation of Boy Scouts Act 1968, said Sahrizal Sunari, secretary of the Malaysian Scout Federation.

He said the Scout Movement had achieved much when Sardon was head of the Malaysian Scout Federation.

During this time, Malaysia organised the 4th Far East Scout Conference in 1964, a first for Malaysia, and the 1st Malaysian Scout Jamboree in 1966.

Sardon's contributions to the Scout Movement won him several foreign awards including Gold Medals from the South Korean Scout Movement and the Scout Movement of Thailand.

Sahrizal said in recognition of his contributions, the scout camp in Balakong, Kajang, Selangor was named the Sardon Jubir Scout Camp.

The Asia Pacific Scout Movement has 24 members namely Australia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brunei, Cambodia, Taiwan, Fiji, Hong Kong, India, Malaysia, Indonesia, Japan, Kiribati, South Korea, Maldives, Mongolia, Nepal, New Zealand, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Thailand.

Sardon who was born on March 19, 1917 in Sungai Kluang, Rengit, Batu Pahat, Johor held several Cabinet posts from 1957-1973 as Works Minister, Energy, Telecommunications and Posts Minister, Transport Minister and Health Minister.

In 1974, he was appointed Malaysian Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York.

He served as the Yang Dipertua Negeri (State Governor) of Penang from 1975-1981.

Sardon, who passed away in 1986, is the grandfather of 1980s model-cum-actress Amanda Lokman.