Bamboo Music Festival: The Sounds of Nature

If you are familiar with the idea of sustainable living, you must be aware that bamboo the world’s tallest grass is a multi-purpose, readily renewable source.  Bamboo grows freely in the Malaysian state of Sabah. In fact, it is said that 35 species of bamboo belonging to 10 different genres can be found in Sabah.

However, the use of treated bamboo in construction here is still a relatively new concept given the easy availability of low cost timber. In Sabah, this favorite food of panda bears is used mainly to produce melodic wind and percussion instruments like the sompoton(bamboo aerophone), the bungkau (the jaw harp) and the seruling(flute).

To celebrate the versatility of this tall grass in musical expression, a festival known as the Bamboo Music Festival is held at Dewan Tun Hamdan in the small town of Tamparuli in Tuaran district every year. This year, this delightful music festival will be held on Wednesday, 27^th November.

The highlights of the festival include special musical performances by the Kinabalu Bamboo Orchestra and the Taiwanese Bamboo Orchestra. Also on the festival program, is a bamboo music competition featuring local bamboo ensembles along with groups from the Philippines and Indonesia.

Bamboo products and exhibits like a bamboo raft house will also be showcased at the festival along with traditional sports featuring events like rampanau (bamboo stilt-walking) races.

So if you want to learn more about bamboo and experience the melody created by instruments fashioned out of bamboo, do head out to Tamparuli for the truly enchanting Bamboo Music Festival.