JBAF resound with thunder of 24 Festive Drums

For the first time, the Southern Challenge for the 24 Festive Drums was held under the umbrella of the 12^th Johor Baru Arts Festival (JBAF).

The jubilant troop from Foon Yew High School JB who
swept all the prizes in all four categories and also
won the coveted Gold Award!

It was standing room only at the Festival Village as supporters and spectators turned up in full force on the evening of the drum competition.

Six drum troops from Johor Baru and one from Malacca took part in the Southern region drum challenge, the winner of which will represent the region in the coming 4^th National championship that will be held concurrently with the 4^th International Invitation competition in 2016.

The participating drum troops, made up of secondary and high school students, were from Foon Yew High School, JB, Foon Yew High School, Kulai, Pei Chun High School, Pontian, SBR Chong Hwa High School, SMJK Pai Chee, Mersing, SMK Taman Desa, Skudai and Pay Fong High School, Malacca.

The drum troop from Foon Yew High School, Kulai,
won the Silver Award

The atmosphere was electric as the drum troops performed their complex and well-choreographed routines to the rhythm of thunderous drums, much to the delight of the enthusiastic audience.

Five judges in the panel gave their individual scores based on the criteria for percussion, formation, creation and arrangement while the prizes were sponsored by property developer, Country Garden Holdings Ltd.

The audience waited with bated breath for the results and the applause was almost as deafening as the drums when it was announced that the troop from Foon Yew High School, JB, swept all the prizes in the categories for Best Percussion, Best Formation, Best Creation and Best Arrangement and was declared the winner of the coveted Gold Award!

The drum troop from SMK Taman Desa, Skudai, made up of
a majority of female drummers, clinched the Bronze Award

The drum troop from Foon Yew High School, Kulai, clinched the Silver Award while the Bonze Award went to the drum troop from SMK Taman Desa, Skudai that happened to be made up of a majority of female drummers.

“I’m pleased that the 24 Festive Drums was included in the JBAF programme and hope that it will help to create greater awareness of this performing art among other races,” said one of the founding members of the art of the 24 Festive Drums, Tan Chai Puan.

Tan, a cultural activist, was proud that the 24 Festive Drums could perform in the main stage for the first time in the 12-year history of the JBAF because JB is the birthplace of the 24 Festive Drums art of drumming.

This year, four regional challenges were being held to identify the best drum troops to represent the Northern, Central, Southern and Eastern regions in the National championship.

Tan said the Southern Challenge was a resounding success and announced that the 4^th International Invitation and National Championship is tentatively scheduled for Sept 16 & 17, 2016.

A version of this was published in The Malaysian Insider on 21 Sept 2015