KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 6 — The myriad of traditional musical instruments used in producing the official “Visit Truly Asia-Malaysia” song resonate with the rich Malaysian musical heritage and reflect Malaysia’s multicultural population, said Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture Datuk Mohamaddin Ketapi.

“You will hear the bungkau (aerophone) from Kadazandusun culture, bamboo flute from Malay culture, tabla (percussion) and sitar (stringed instrument) from the Indian culture, and erhu (Chinese violin) from Chinese culture that provide a melodious tune.

“In addition, the use of dikir barat and kompang creates a catchy and upbeat tempo to the song and ends it on a high-spirited note,” he said after launching the Visit Malaysia 2020 (VM2020) official song at Istana Budaya here today.

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Also present were Deputy Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture Muhammad Bakhtiar Wan Chik and the ministry’s secretary-general Datuk Isham Ishak.

The song was composed in two languages by Ramlan Mohd Imam, the Dean of Music Faculty at Akademi Seni dan Warisan Negara, with lyrics written by Normah Kechut in Malay and James PS Boyle in English.

Mohamaddin also encouraged all parties to use the campaign logo and song at any appropriate opportunity to enhance the reach of the promotional effort locally and internationally.

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“I look forward to seeing the VM2020 campaign supported wholeheartedly by all Malaysians. 

“Let us make the success of VM2020 campaign our national mission and duty to the country,” he said. — Bernama