Have you heard of Singapore’s national anthem? When you hear it for the primary time, you will certainly be surprised. Singapore used British as its national language, but Indonesian was utilized in the lyrics of its national anthem.
The creator of the song “Majulah Singapura” is Indonesian, his name is Zubir Said. You could also be surprised once you hear this song, the lyrics sound like Indonesian. The Indonesian language is derived from the Malay language, and Singapore remains to be included within the Malay group.
Zubir Said was born on July 22, 1907 in Bukittinggi, West Sumatra. He was a Singaporean composer from the Minangkabau highlands of Indonesia who composed Singapore’s national anthem.
Zubir, a self-taught musician, also worked as a music arranger and lyricist for Cathay-Keris Film Production for 12 years, composing many songs for the corporate’s Malay movies.
Zubir studied at a Dutch school from 1914 to 1921 and was a well known artist and composer in his time. His love for music brought him to Singapore, where he joined the Wayang Bangsawan City Opera. His profession took off and in 1938 he proposed to a roar Javanese singer, Tarminah Kario Wikromo.
Zubir’s talents were very talked-about. He was a photographer, amongst others Malay MP newspaper and in 1949 he was elected head of Shaw Brothers Malay Film Production. Through this role, he began composing music for Malay-language movies.
In 1958, the Singapore City Council asked him to compose a song. Zubir wrote the song “Majulah Singapura”. Only later did it turn into the city-state’s national anthem.
Zubir wrote over 1,500 songs, lower than 10% of which were ever recorded. He also won quite a few international awards before his death in 1987. Zubir died on the age of 80 in Singapore from liver disease, which he had suffered for several years. He was buried in Pusara Aman, Singapore.
The Singapore government praised Pak Zubir highly. In front of Istana Kampung Gelam Malay, considered one of the national parks in Singapore, there’s a statue of Zubir Said. After his death, the Singapore Cultural Foundation established the Zubir Said Music Scholarship in his honor.
Source: good
Image source: difficult times
