KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's renowned percussion group Hands Percussion is staging a new performance, Drumhouse: Honouring A Cultural Heritage, at the Petaling Jaya Performing Arts Centre (PJPAC) from now until Dec 11.
The new show comes at the heels of the ensemble's successful Kaleidoscope 6 "Thunder" - Hands International Drumming Festival in October, held in conjunction with its 25th anniversary.
Southeast Asia is home to varied cultures and traditions, languages and dialects and although the people are different, they share many similarities and likes.
In Malaysia, the Muhibbah style is how we describe the spirit of togetherness and the members of Hands define their togetherness with music.
For Drumhouse, the long-standing group is experimenting to present a blend of contemporary 24 Festive Drumming, Teochew and Gamelan styles.
Zamzuriah Zahari, an expert of Mak Yong and Mek Mulung art, brings in the classic Kelantanese style to mix with characteristics of Teochew opera.
The performance of Gamelan, vocals and Chinese musical instruments elaborates on the changes of life in Southeast Asia.
The traditional strains of the erhu, guzheng, flute and cello by ITA Ensemble serves to add more chemistry into Hands' performance during the concerts.
Also highlighted is the North Sumatran Gordang Sambilan and Balinese Reyong to honour our cultural heritage, as well as to narrate our stories of friendship, hard work and survival.
Aside from dancer, singer, composer and traditional Malay arts advocate Zamzuriah and the Hands Percussion performers from Team 1 and 2, there will be a long list of other guest performers contributing to this exciting concert.
They include singer Jeff Chua, cellist Chong Eugene, guitarist Gideon Alu8khan Chen, ITA Ensemble's Howz, Lim Wei Siong, Lim Lin and Sara Heng, as well as Malay traditional percussionists Matdin Hussin and Asri Sharizan.
Directed by Hands artistic director and founder Bernard Goh, Drumhouse features arrangements by music director Ng Siu Yee, choreography by Dr Tan Chai Chen, and collaborative compositions between principal percussionist Jimmy Ch'ng and Indonesian ethnomusicologist Wayan Sudirana.
In addition, all of the performers will be clad in fashionable costumes designed by Behati creative director Kel Wen. This show truly showcases a cultural crossover with deep integration.
Drumhouse is honoured to be one of the supporting arts, culture and heritage organisations for Arts for All Seasons (ArtsFAS) under Yayasan Hasanah this year.
Through this thrilling show, Hands Percussion hopes to uphold the passion of drum music, continue to explore the possibility of diversity and creatives and to discover the rich Southeast Asian culture in depth in order to add more "colourful values" in the world of music.
Tonight's show is happening at 8pm with 3pm shows available over the weekend.
Tickets to the show, set to take place at the Stage 1 Theatre in PJPAC at 1 Utama Shopping Centre in Bandar Utama, are priced at RM68, RM128, RM188 and RM248 and can be purchased via the ticket booking hotline: 012-779 8009.
Visit https://onetix.com.my/events/drumhouse-honouring-a-cultural-heritage/102 or www.facebook.com/handspercussion for more details.