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Puteri Gunung Ledang

Puteri Gunung Ledang (PGL) tells the tale of the eponymous Princess of Mt. Ledang whose beauty is said to be unmatched.

Puteri Gunung Ledang

Tiara Jacquelina in Puteri Gunung Ledang the Movie.

Her legend and renown soon caught the attention of the then ruler of Malacca Sultan Mahmud Shah.

The Sultan, who upon hearing of the princess who lived at the peak of Gunung Ledang, sent a small group of men to trudge up the mountain to send her his marriage proposal.

After seven days of a challenging climb, the men reached the summit of Gunung Ledang and came upon an old and bent woman (invariably called Nek Kebayan in traditional Malay literature, and not unlike the haggard Witch of Western folklore).

The men explained the purpose of their visit to the old lady, but they were cautioned and given a forewarning: to be as truthful and honest of their intentions when meeting the princess.

Before the men could enquire the meaning behind her words, Nek Kebayan vanished before their very eyes. Where she stood, a mystical path appeared that led the men to an enchanting garden where they met the beautiful princess.

Upon meeting her, the men conveyed the Sultan’s marriage proposal but the princess demanded that the Sultan prepare a dowry that included a bridge of gold and silver from the summit of Gunung Ledang to Malacca; seven trays of mosquito hearts and seven trays of hearts of mites; a vessel of water from dried areca nuts; a vessel of virgin maiden tears; and a bowl of the Sultan’s son’s blood.

The princess would wed the Sultan only if her demands were met.

In the Sultan’s haste to satisfy his lust and desire, he set about fulfilling the list of dowry until he reached the final demand – a bowl of his son’s blood.

As the Sultan prepared to plunge his keris into his child’s body, the princess appeared before him out of thin air to stop him from doing so.

She condemned the Sultan on his willingness to kill his son to fulfill his selfish desires and expressed her dismay; she could never marry such a man.

It can be surmised that the purpose of the princess’ demands were twofold. It served as a hindrance to, as well as a test of character for potential suitors, and the Sultan failed the test.

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Tourism Malaysia

Malaysian Diversity

October 25, 2011 at 12:00 pm

One of the many reasons why Malaysia is such a unique country is because of the existence of cultural diversity formed by the country’s people of different races. These unique cultural practises gives a more in-depth insight for tourists and locals to get to know more about the other races found here in Malaysia. To celebrate Malaysia’s rich cultural diversity, Dewan Filharmonik Petronas is proud to present ‘Malaysian Diversity’ on 28th October 2011. This concert will see Mohd Yazid Zakaria taking his place as the conductor of Orkestra Tradisional Malaysia and will feature guest singers such as Jaclyn Victor and Iqwal Hafiz as well as the Orang Asli group, Bahbola.

Yazid Zakaria will be conducting the Orkestra Tradisional Malaysia at Dewan Filharmonik Petronas on 28th October 2011

Mohd Yazid Zakaria was formerly a musician and composer for the Petronas Performing Arts Group (PPAG) and has been with the group since 1993. Today, he is currently attached to Istana Budaya as the conductor for Orkestra Tradisional Malaysia. He has represented the country to many international music festivals such as the Malaysian Jazz Festival in 1993 and the ASEAN Symphony Band in Bangkok in 1994. His work that was featured in Musical Theatre Indraputra has earned him a Cameronian Arts Award in the Best Original Composition category in 2002. He has also been selected to be the music director for musicals like Puteri Gunung Ledang, Hanuman, Mahsuri and Semerah Padi.

Performances are scheduled to start at 8.30 pm on 28th October 2011. Tickets are priced at RM 58 for all seats. Early birds will be entitled to purchase these tickets at RM 48 (limited to the first 100 tickets sold). Patrons who are attending the function are required to be in smart casual dress code. For more information, please log on to the website here.

Photo (c) Orkestra Tradisional Malaysia

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