KUCHING, March 22 — Datuk Zainal Abidin, Sarawakian Belle Sisoski and the legendary Kitaro will be among top musicians to perform at the 27th edition of the internationally renowned Rainforest World Music Festival (RWMF) in June this year.
State Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts Minister Datuk Seri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah said he expects over 20,000 ethnic music fans from all over the world to throng the Sarawak Cultural Village (SCV) where the RWMF will be held from June 28 to 30.
He said RWMF will see 20 acts made up of 68 international musicians from 15 countries across six continents perform together with 63 Malaysian artists.
“This promises an unparalleled blend of musical genres from the tapestry of world music,” he said at the launch of RWMF here.
He said representing Malaysia on stage will be Alena Murang, The Borneo Collective, Tuni Sundatang, Nisa Addina, Zarul@OurBodySound, Salammusik, The Colour of Sound’s Malaysia, and Adrian G.
“The local musical talent headlining this year from Peninsular Malaysia is Datuk Zainal Abidin, known for his hit song Hijau.
“It was one of the first few songs in the country to be categorised under the genre of World Music, when the concept was still relatively new in Malaysia,” he said.
He said Belle Sisoski, one of Sarawak’s prominent figures in the arts scene, will also spice up the festival. The 18-year-old Sarawakian won second place with her song Stop Your Games in the 2022/2023 Commonwealth Song Contest out of 20,000 song entries received from around the world.
Kitaro, a Grammy and Golden Globe award-winning legendary artiste, is renowned for his ground-breaking electronic-instrumental music and it will be his first appearance at the festival.
“Kitaro is often regarded as one of the most prominent musical acts of new-age music. He plays about 50 instruments and has a vast collection of traditional instruments from all over the world,” he said.
He said from Cuba is the Havana Social Club that will give a fresh twist on tradition.
He said the other international acts will include Alright Mela Meets Santoo from Pakistan and France; Bourbon Lassi from Australia; Imarhan from Algeria and France; Krakatau Ethno from Indonesia; and Tribal Tide from Singapore.
He said the sale of tickets priced at RM635 for adults for a three-day package, RM235 per day for early birds, pre-sale at RM283 and door sale at RM333 will start next month.
He said this year’s ticket prices have increased by less than 20 per cent, adding that it is much cheaper than the price of tickets for the Taylor Swift show in Singapore recently.
