Gendang Melayu Sarawak (GMS) – Sarawak Malay Drum, the Dying and Forgotten Tradition

Authors

  • Aaliyawani Ezzerin Sinin Department of Science and Technology, Faculty of Humanities, Management and Science, Universiti Putra Malaysia Bintulu Campus, 97008 Bintulu, Sarawak, Malaysia
  • Sinin Hamdan Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, 94300, Kota Samarahan, Sarawak, Malaysia
  • Khairul A. Mohamad Said Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, 94300, Kota Samarahan, Sarawak, Malaysia
  • Santrol Abdullah Faculty of Education, Language and Communication, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, 94300, Kota Samarahan, Sarawak, Malaysia
  • Ahmad F. Musib Faculty of Human Ecology, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400, Serdang, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia

Keywords:

Gendang Melayu Sarawak (GMS), Harmonics, Overtone, Consonant

Abstract

This work was conducted using the Picoscope signal extraction procedure, which revealed significant insights regarding the belian wood and its application in Gendang Melayu Sarawak (GMS) production. The amplitude of belian wood GMS signal remains constant, allowing it to sustain its timbre for a longer duration compared to durian wood GMS using the same procedure. Considering that the dimensions of the big belian (BB) and big durian (BD) GMS are almost the same, both GMS yield almost the same note, i.e. G1# (51.9 Hz). Considering that the dimensions of both the small belian (SB) and small durian (SD) GMS are almost the same, both GMS yield almost similar note, i.e. F3 (174 Hz) and E3 (164 Hz). Although both BB and BD showed consistent harmonics, BD only displays 2 harmonics. The SB and SD both display consistent harmonics. Both BB and BD showed pleasing tonal qualities. These occurred due to the closeness of the principal overtones to the consonant interval.

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Published

2024-02-06 — Updated on 2024-02-06

Issue

Vol. 19 No. 2 (2024)

Section

Research Article or Brief Communication