Wondering what defines popular Malay music or muzik? When it comes to music, every country has a unique rendition and instruments that they use to create beats that’ll keep the locals pumping. In Malaysia, we have traditional Malay music, western pop, folk music, hip hop, ballads, rock, hard rock, and jazz, among the most popular genres. Some of the best in the local music scene will be discussed in this post today, so keep reading below!
There’s no denying that music is a great way to communicate with the people around us. Sometimes, they carry a lot of meaning, reflecting what we feel now. With that said, many consider this as another medium of communication. So if you want to connect with the locals in an entirely new way, there’s nothing more that we can recommend than to learn the music of the country you’re visiting. Let’s get to know about the Malay music below.
Malay Traditional Music
Long ago, music from the Middle East, Chinese, and Indians influenced the music of Malaysia. Even before that, further down history, folk songs were famous, known as lagu-lagu rakyat. After the 1920s, dance music was used for social events. Some of the dance songs then were asli, inang, dondang sayang, zapin, and joget.
Traditional Malay music requires musical instruments like gendang, seruling, serunai, kompang, and gamelan. The locals make use of the Seruling and Serunai to add magestic and relaxing notes that are somewhat similar to the sound of flutes. Percussion instruments were also utilized to add more body to the music in the form of Gendang, Kompang, and Gamelan.
Malay Pop Music
The first ever pop music in Malaysia is tudung periok (Pot Lid) by Momo Latiff in the 1930s. Then came the golden age of pop, yeh- yeh! That’s right, and that’s what it was famously known as. It was the time of the Beatles and British rock music that became massive hits and influenced Malay music.
Want to learn more about music-related Malay words? Read our guide today!
Malay Orchestra
Does Malaysia have an orchestra? This is a big yes! Malaysia is home to the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra, the MPO. It is based in Kuala Lumpur, and it is one of the best orchestras in Asia and is highly praised for its excellence. The orchestra can be found in the Petronas Philharmonic Hall because it is supported and funded by Petronas, a well-known gas company.
Philharmonic is a Greek word that means friend of harmony or love of harmony, and it seems like an appropriate name for this particular orchestra. The latest at MPO is the music from Sweden of ABBA. There is presently a lot of excitement revolving around this, not just because ABBA has a record of over 400 million albums sold but also the quality and variety of the music that will be performed. Very exciting!
Most Popular Malay Music
Singers that have won numerous awards and are carried in the hearts of the Malay people are:
Joe Flizzow
- Satu Malaam Di Temasek – One night in Temasek
- Apa Khabar – How are you?
- Sampai Jadi – Until so
- Kongsi – Share
- Alhamdulillah II – Praise be to God (Arabic Language)
- Orang Lain – Other People
Elizabeth Tan
- Payung – Umbrella
- Knock knock
- Semua Sudah – All done
- Setia – Faithful
Faizal Tahir
- Gemuruh – Nervous
- Santai – Relax
- Negaraku – My Country
- Syahadah – Creed
- Dirgahayu – Long Lasting
- Sampai Syurga – Until Heaven
Siti Nurhaliza
- Purnama Merindu – Missing full moon
- Bukan Cinta Biasa – No ordinary Love
- Seluruh Cinta – All Love
- Nirmala – Pure
- Cindai – Silk
- Wajah Kekasih – Lover’s Face
Ning Baizura
- Beribu Sesalan – Thousands of Regrets
- Awan Yang Terpilu – Clouds That Are Tricky
- Selagi Ada – As long as there is
- Dugaanku – My guess
- Pasti – Definitely
- Curinga – Swindle
- Bukan Wanita Sempurna – Not a Perfect Woman
Sheila Majid
- Sinaran – Radiation
- Dia – He
- Ku Mohon – I’m begging you
- Pengemis Muda – Young Beggar
- Cinta Jangan Kau Pergi – Love Don’t You Go
- Hitam Putih Kehidupan – The Black and White of Life
Ziana Zain
- Putus Terpaksa – Forced Termination
- Terlerai Kasih – Dissolved in love
- Kemelut Di Muara Kasih – Trouble at Muara Kasih
- Setia Ke Akhir Hayat – Loyal To The End Of Life
- Korban Cinta – Victim of Love
As you can see, women’s vocals influence a lot of Malaysia’s music.
Popular Malay Music For Today’s Playlist
These are some must-listen-to songs in the world of Popular Malay music. Check them out!
- Tergantung Sepi (Depends Quiet) by Haqiem Rusli
- Amalina (Practice) by Santesh
- Jampi (Spell) by Hael Husaini
- Bayang (Shadow) by Khai Bahar
- Perasaanku (My Feelings) by Feiya Julia
- Cinta Sampai (Love Until) Mati by Kangen Band
- Resah Kerinduan (Restless Longing) by Tajul & Afieq Shazwan
- Layu Di Hujung (Withered at the ends) by Afieq Shazwan
- Kelentang Kelentong (*making a noise on a tin*) by Hael Husaini
Learn Malay With Ling
As a music lover, you may enjoy different genres from different countries. Whether traditional Malay or Malaysian pop music, you may groove to any. But if you are interested in the lyrics, titles, and songwriter, you may need to learn Malay.
Malay is known as one of the easiest languages to learn in Asia. If you don’t believe it – try learning with Ling. The app will make language learning a piece of the cake! It is filled with games and free lessons that’ll help you improve your pronunciation, reading, and writing skills. If your learning language is based on English, you are in luck. Latin is the script used in Malay, making it easy to start reading and writing.
So what are you waiting for? You can download the app through Apple Store or Play Store and start learning Malay like a pro today! Happy learning, my friends!
