Monday, September 27, 2010

The FT Anthem

Currently there is a hot issue brewing with regards to the Federal Territory Ministry wanting to change the FT "state" anthem "Maju & Sejahtera"... I wrote the lyrics.. here's a report on today's The Star newspaper:


THE announcement that the Federal Territories and Urban Wellbeing Ministry was planning to change the Federal Territories anthem — Maju dan Sejahtera (Progressive and Prosperous) — to a more upbeat song to suit the current generation appears to have received an unfavourable response from the entertainment industry.

Singers, Musicians and Composers Association of Malaysia (Papita) president Datuk M. Daud said national or state anthems should not be changed as and when it suited someone’s fancy.

“One must first study the impact of a such a change on the people as they would have to learn the new song. If they must change something, then change the tempo like what was done for the Negaraku. But, even then, many still prefer the original version because of its nostalgic value,’’ he said.

"I am against any move to meddle with national or state anthems. There must be some respect for sacred institutions"- JOE CHELLIAH

Performers and Artiste Rights (M) Sdn Bhd (Prism) general manager Ong Peng Shu said it was not a good idea to change anthems every now and then. “Unless they come up with something that is really good, I don’t see the need for it,’’ he said.

Music Council of Malaysia (MMC) general manager Izzee Sulaiman suggested the ministry stick to the current anthem and music arrangement.

“Any move to make a song commercial also makes it seasonal. National and state anthems are not meant to be seasonal but everlasting,’’ Izzee said.

“The government should concentrate on making the country up-tempo instead of changing the FT anthem,’’ Malaysian Association for Music Education (MAME) president Joe Chelliah said.

“I am against any move to meddle with anthems. There must be some respect for both physical and non-physical sacred institutions,’’ he added.

Malaysian Association of Live Entertainment Performances (Malep) president Datuk Roslan Zainun said: “It’s not a good idea. If there is a need to change the tempo, the ministry should consult the experts — people who know music.

Maju dan Sejahtera lyricist Sheikh Faisal Sheikh Mansor said: “I feel that any anthem should be slow. A relatively slow anthem allows one to really appreciate the words of the song.”

“The anthem should be given some time so people can relate to the lyrics. An anthem is not something you change just to suit the younger generation,’’ he said.

The FT anthem was was gazetted and launched by the former Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin Tuanku Syed Putra Jamalullail at Dataran Merdeka on Aug 20, 2006.

The anthem was composed by Datuk Wah Idris, the man behind the current version of the Negaraku and the Commonwealth Games 1998 theme song — Standing in the Eyes of the World.

Friday, September 24, 2010

Happy Family


Here are Mr Shake, Mrs Shake, Master Shake, and Miss Shake... :)

Monday, September 20, 2010

7th Anniversary @ Traders Hotel, KL

Since our 7th wedding anniversary on the 8th day of the 9th Month of the 10th year of the new millennium was too special to be missed, we booked the Traders Hotel overnight for our anniversary celebration.

Disebabkan we never leave home without the kids, terpaksala kena angkut sume sekali... hehe actually one of the reasons we chose the location pun sebab Rayyan dah lama gian nak tidur kat Traders Hotel and look at the huge Twin Towers through the window.

Another reason, was of course, it was the same view (albeit from a different location and altitude) me and Ja had when I officially proposed to her...

Dinner at Traders was superb... the buka puasa was sponsored by Ja. The room and everything else by me.. hehe..

Tengah2 celebration dinner tu me and Rayyan had to run to Masjid India naik LRT sebab nak kena hantar kuih raya malam tu jugak. Nak buat camana.. bisnes kena jalan jugak.. lagi2 dah 2 hari je nak raya masa tu... Ja and Rayhana sambung makan.. kejap je sebab Rayhana merengek tgk kitorang keluar...

Balik from Masjid India, we waited for Felishia & Afnan to come to our room and babysit the kids while me & Ja thought of going to the Skybar on the 33rd floor kot... bad decision... no seats, alcohol smell too strong, the environment killed the mood... (aku dah tua ke ni? hehe).. so in the end we decided to go to one of Traders Hotel lounges (6th floor)... we had good 2 hours of alone time while sipping my Earl Grey and her coffee... before at 11 something when Felishia called us suruh balik bilik sebab my dad asked her to come back nak bawak diorang gi tengok lembu kena sembelih all the way kat Rawang and nak amik daging for the rendang we were supposed to cook the next day...

So balikla bilik by 11.30pm. Lepas Felishia & Afnan balik, we ordered room service... mushroom soup and spaghetti for Rayyan and Rayhana, so that at least we could sahur with the same dish tgh malam tu... altho Traders Hotel room service runs 24 hours.. (first time aku dengar ada hotel offers 24 hr room service).

These photos were from my Blackberry... takde gambar bilik.. hehe gambar bilik ada dalam camera.. nanti I upload.. and more of our photos ada dalam Felishia's camera..

Here's me & Rayyan at the Gobo-Gobo Restaurant for buka puasa...


Rayhana & Ja...


Rayhana posing sambil ber-dessert...


ooopp jap.. iPhone time...


back in the room... room service at midnight..


Rayhana & food... bagai irama dan lagu...


Rayyan.. his usual pose masa sahur at 5am...


this is the view sambil baring atas katil... right before they switch off the lights on the twin towers later that night...



Thursday, September 02, 2010

08.09.10

A nice date to be looking forward to....


InsyaAllah it's going to be the 7th on 08.09.10

alhamdulillah....