GEORGE TOWN – The show must go on, not despite, but because of the toll of the pandemic on the music scene in Penang. Founder of Uah Music Culture, Ang Eng Bok, has been striving to put Penang music on the map, but his efforts were fruitless. The ongoing lockdown saw a lot of musicians putting down their instruments, looking for other avenues of income.
In his final attempt to revive the spiralling industry this year, Ang has put up an online music showcase that features acts from Penang and across Southeast Asia.
“Uah Music Festival is a pre-festival showcase that was created because we had to cancel our initial music festival because of Covid-19. We had it all set, it was supposed to happen in November 2020, at AutoCity, Juru.
“The idea of having a music festival started from a series of events that happened in 2019. Then, I hosted several Taiwanese bands to perform in Penang through a music forum named Itu Ori.
"We got linked to tour managers and the Taiwan Label Team. We were introduced to Taiwan and Malaysia music forum in Kuala Lumpur. We went there and spoke about what kind of music shows we have done in Penang, such as Indie PG, a platform for local songwriters and musicians to perform their music and more.
“One of the label managers got interested and suggested that we do a city-to-city cross interaction which will involve George Town and Taichung. We planned it in such a way that it's a state government project with tourism efforts infused into the project.
"When our bands perform in Taichung, there will be a booth to introduce Penang to the people there and vice versa. The Penang State Government agreed to it, so we packed our bags and performed in Taichung to a crowd of more than 10,000 people.
“This poses a problem. When the Taiwanese come to Penang, there is no place for them to play as there are no music festivals in Penang. That was when I decided to create the Uah Music Festival. But as we all know, it cannot happen because of Covid-19.
“In the meantime, Taichung hosted another music festival, but this time, it was online. Four Penang bands sent in their videos. We decided to also organise an online show in Penang. It is a pre-festival showcase as a run-up to the real thing which we still hope to have.
“Unfortunately, we will have to renegotiate with the Penang government because the financial situation in the state is different now. But we want to put up the local bands and musicians on the stage first.
Ang said that the arts scene in Penang has been on survival mode for too long. With this pre-festival, he wants it to serve as a glimmer of hope to musicians and allow them to pick up their instruments again.
“Even before the pandemic, the music scene in Penang is already not sustainable as the market is too small. Musicians will usually relocate to KL or immigrate to Singapore or Taiwan. I already lost two bandmates because they moved to look for greener pastures. The same problem happens with other local bands,” Ang added.
His efforts to move this project is also riddled with financial concerns. The estimated full cost of the online Uah Music Festival is RM40,000 but they are trying to run it at only RM17,000 via support from the state government and grants they have applied for.
Through this festival initiative, he also hopes to raise funds Penang Theatre Arts Solidarity (Pentas) a newly formed association to consolidate the voices of those in Penang’s arts scene.
Uah Music Festival is a non-ticketed virtual music festival on Facebook Live, happening on December 19 from 3pm onwards. It will feature with acts from six countries, namely Malaysia, Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, Thailand, and the Philippines, with 23 line-ups stemming from pop to rock and everything in between. – The Vibes, December 17, 2020
