Kelantan is known as the cradle of Malay culture based on the diverse cultural activities practised by Kelantanese. Among the popular cultural practices are Dikir Barat, Wayang Kulit Kelantan, Wayang Kulit Melayu, Mak Yong, Menora, Main Puteri, Wau Bulan(kite-flying), Gasing (top-spinning), Silat, bird-singing competition and handicrafts.
Among the handicraft products that are songket, batik, silverware and mengkuang. The Kandis Recource Centre provides information on the Kelantanese wood carving.
Dikir Barat
Dikir barat is a musical form, native to the Malay Peninsula, that involves singing in groups—often in a competitive setting. Dikir barat may be performed either with percussion instrumental accompaniment, or with no instruments at all. The origins of dikir baratare not clear; it is found in both Thailand and Malaysia, and today the Malaysian government actively promotes it as an important part of Malaysian national culture.Dikir barat is typically performed by groups of ten to fifteen members, though there is no actual set size, even in competitive environments. A group usually sits cross-legged on a platform, sometimes surrounded by the audience. Where the dikir barat is performed competitively, the two competing groups will both be on the stage at the same time.
In a typical dikir barat performance, the group will perform two segments. The first is led by thetok juara, who is often the person in charge of the musical training of the group. This first segment usually contains the more complex musical arrangements, and will likely feature theawok-awok (chorus) singing in unison with the tok juara, as well as responsorial segments of singing, similar to what the tukang karut does with the awok-awok, later in the performance. Though musically more complex than what will follow, the first segment is seen as the "low-key" segment of the performance.
The creative leader of a dikir barat group is the tukang karut. The tukang karut (who is often himself a former tok juara) is expected in his performance to utilize current social and political issues which will be relevant to the audience. His ability to do this helps to uphold the reputation of the dikir barat group. Leading theawok-awok during the second and concluding segment of the performance, the tukang karut sings pantuns—most of which are likely original and improvised on the occasion of the performance, but some which may be known to the audience. (Pantuns are an oral poetry form indigenous to the Malay region, and are not exclusive to the dikir barat.) That the dikir barat uses pantuns does not mean that it is a performance of poetry. Like any poet, the tukang karut is expected to create lyrics that touch upon everyday life, but he can also address social issues, legal matters, politics, government regulations, and human foibles.The tone can be satirical, sarcastic, or simply humorous, but above all it is expected that it be clever. The tukang karut makes up and sings lyrics on the topic of the performance (which may be pre-established or simply the choice of the tukang karut), and the awok-awok sings the same lyrics back to him. During the performance, members of the awok-awok clap and perform rhythmic body movements, which bring energy to the performance.
Historically, dikir barat performances have been all-male. However, in recent years, especially with groups based in urban areas, female performers are beginning to appear.
While most musical instruments are excluded from dikir barat, some groups to employ percussion instruments, including the rebana,maracas, or a shallow gong.
Wayang Kulit Kelantan
Wayang kulit, or shadow puppets, are without a doubt the best known of the Indonesian wayang. Kulit means skin, and refers to the leather construction of the puppets that are carefully chiselled with very fine tools and supported with carefully shaped buffalo horn handles and control rods. The stories are usually drawn from the Hindu epics the Ramayana, the Mahabharata or from the Serat Menak, (a story about the heroism of Amir Hamza).
There is a family of characters in Javanese wayang called Punakawan; they are sometimes referred to as "clown-servants" because they normally are associated with the story's hero, and provide humorous and philosophical interludes. Semar is the father of Gareng (oldest son), Petruk, and Bagong (youngest son). These characters did not originate in the Hindu epics, but were added later, possibly to introduce mystical aspects of Islam into the Hindu-Javanese stories. They provide something akin to a political cabaret, dealing with gossip and contemporary affairs.
The puppet figures themselves vary from place to place. In Central Java the city of Surakarta (Solo) and city of Yogyakarta are most famous and the most commonly imitated style of puppets. Regional styles of shadow puppets can also be found in West Java, Banyumas, Cirebon, Semarang, and East Java. Bali produces more compact and naturalistic figures, and Lombok has figures representing real people. Often modern-world objects as bicycles, automobiles, airplanes and ships will be added for comic effect, but for the most part the traditional puppet designs have changed little in the last 300 years.
Historically, the performance consisted of shadows cast on a cotton screen and an oil lamp. Today, the source of light used in wayang performance in Java is most often a halogen electric light. Some modern forms of wayang such as Wayang Sandosa created in the Art Academy at Surakarta (STSI) has employed spotlights, colored lights and other innovations.
The handwork involved in making a wayang kulit figure that is suitable for a performance takes several weeks, with the artists working together in groups. They start from master models (typically on paper) which are traced out onto skin or parchment, providing the figures with an outline and with indications of any holes that will need to be cut (such as for the mouth or eyes). The figures are then smoothed, usually with a glass bottle, and primed. The structure is inspected and eventually the details are worked through. A further smoothing follows before individual painting, which is undertaken by yet another craftsman. Finally, the movable parts (upper arms, lower arms with hands and the associated sticks for manipulation) mounted on the body, which has a central staff by which it is held. A crew makes up to ten figures at a time, typically completing that number over the course of a week. However, unfortunately there is not strong continuing demand for the top skills of wayang craftspersons and the relatively few experts still skilled at the art sometimes find it difficult to earn a satisfactory income.
The painting of less expensive puppets is handled expediently with a spray technique, using templates, and with a different person handling each color. Less expensive puppets, often sold to children during performances, are sometimes made on cardboard instead of leather.
Mak Yong
Mak yong or mak yung is a traditional form of dance-drama from northern Malaysia, particularly the state of Kelantan. It was banned by the Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party in 1991 because of its animist and Hindu-Buddhist roots which pre-date Islam in the Asian region by far. In 2005 UNESCO declared mak yong a "Masterpiece Of The Oral And Intangible Heritage Of Humanity". The late Cik Ning was a leading mak yong performer in the 1980s.
Mak yong is considered the most authentic and representative of Malay performing arts because it is mostly untouched by external sources. Although most traditional Malay dances were influenced by India, Java and other parts of Southeast Asia, mak yong's singing and musical repertoire are unique. Of the major stories performed in mak yong, most are derived from Kelantan-Pattanimythology. Some of those obtained from outside the Malayan-Thai region have now died out elsewhere such as Anak Raja Gondang, a story originally from the Jataka tales but now almost unknown in India.
A performance begins by paying respect to the spirits (semah kumpung) with an offering. This is followed by dancing, acting and improvised dialogues. Stories were presented in a series of three hour performances over several nights. The lead dancer is called the pak yong and dresses as a king. The cast usually includes a queen in second lead, palace girls and jesters. Traditionally, all performers were female except for the clowns who are always male. A group called Jong Dongdang sings and dances in between chapters and at the story's closing. The mak yong orchestra is small with the main instruments played being the three-stringed spiked lute, drum (gendang) and a pair of gong. It may also include the flute (serunai), keduk drums and small cymbals (kesi).
Today there are less than ten veteran mak yong performers. Although there have been a few attempts to revive the art form, seasoned performers have noted a clear difference between the commercialised mak yong of urban dancers when compared with the movements of rural performers. Not many young people are willing to undergo the rigorous apprenticeship so the art is now on the decline.
Menora
Menora is a type of dance drama of south Thailand origin and practiced mainly in the northern states of Malaysia and southern provinces of Thailand. Menora also known as Nora orLakon Chatri in Thai language.
The basic features of the performance include a lengthy invocation, a dance by the main character, and a play or skit. The invocation is enacted by slow rhythmic movements of legs, arms and fingers. The dramatic repertoire of Menora performance is based on stories of Thai legends and Buddhist Jataka tales, many of which already accultured into Malay society centuries ago.
In the northeastern state of Kelantan and Terengganu, Menora incorporates much use of Malay language and a Mak Yong-style dance movements. While in the northwestern state of Kedah, it is performed in a mixture of Thai and local dialects, but adheres to the invocation-play in a distinctly north Malaysian style and incorporates some elements of Jikey and Mek Mulung.
The musical ensemble consists of a pair of hand cymbals, a pair of small knobbed gongs, a pair of wooden sticks, a barrel-shaped gendang, a reed instrument and a vase-shaped single headed drum.
Wau Bulan
Wau bulan is an intricately designed Malaysian moon-kite (normally with floral motifs) that is traditionally flown by men in the Malaysian state of Kelantan. It is one of Malaysia's national symbols, some others being the kris and hibiscus. The reverse side of the fifty-cent coin of Malaysia (1989 series) features an intricately decorated
There are many types of wau in Malaysia, each with its own specialty. Wau kucing (cat kite) and wau merak (peacock kite) are some of the variants. Wau bulan got its name from the crescent moon-like shape of its lower section (bulan means "moon" in Bahasa Malaysia). Given the right colour, wau bulan apparently resembles a rising crescent moon when flown.
The size of wau bulan is bigger than any other Malaysian traditional kite. The typical size is 2.5 meters in width and 3.5 meters in length. This makes the decorations painted on the kite's body to be visible when it is flown high in the air. To make it more distinctive, wau bulan is normally decorated with large, strong-coloured patterns.
Silat
Silat (Minangkabau: silek) is a collective word for indigenous martial arts from a geo-cultural area of Southeast Asia encompassing most of the Nusantara, as well as the Malay Peninsula and Malay Archipelago. Originally developed in what are now Indonesia, Peninsular Malaysia, South Thailand, and Singapore, it is also traditionally practiced in Brunei, Vietnam and the southern Philippines. There are hundreds of different styles but they tend to focus either on strikes, joint manipulation, throws, bladed weaponry, or some combination there of. Silat is one of the sports included in the Southeast Asian Games and other region-wide competitions. Training halls are overseen by separate national organizations in each of the main countries the art is practiced. These are Ikatan Pencak Silat Indonesia (IPSI) from Indonesia, Persekutuan Silat Kebangsaan Malaysia (PESAKA) from Malaysia, Persekutuan Silat Brunei Darussalam (PERSIB) from Brunei and Persekutuan Silat Singapura (PERSISI) from Singapore. Practitioners are called pesilat.
While the word silat is used by Malay-speakers throughout Southeast Asia, the art is more often called pencak silat in the modern Indonesian language. Systems that were created on the Southeast Asian mainland are grouped in the category of silat Melayu, in reference to the Malay Peninsula. The oldest of these originated in what are now northern Malaysia,Thailand and southern Vietnam. Silat as practiced in Brunei is also grouped in the same category for historic reasons.
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