paren nyawi's blog: The musical instrument from Central Borneo:SAPE ,SAMPET ,SAMPEH ,SAPEH OR SAMPEK.

ORIGINAL "SAPE "FROM BORNEO is PLAIN..

Mathew Ngau, a well-known Kenyah-Dayak Sape musician

LEFT:Modern sape made by Uchau Bilong - Kuching
RIGHT: Older sape from Kalimantan

more SAPE images

Sape, sampet, sampeh, sapeh or Sampek.
The sape is a traditional lute of many of the Orang Ulu or "upriver people" or , who live in the longhouses that line the rivers of Central Borneo. Sapes are carved from a single bole of wood, with many modern instruments reaching over a metre in length

Initially the sape was a fairly limited instrument with two strings and only three frets. Its use was restricted to a form of ritualistic music to induce trance. In the last century, the sape gradually became a social instrument to accompany dances or as a form of entertainment.

Today, three, four or five-string instruments are used, with a range of more than three octaves.

Technically, the sape is a relatively simple instrument, with one string carrying the melody and the accompanying strings as rhythmic drones. In practice, the music is quite complex, with many ornamentations and thematic variations. There are two common modes, one for the men's longhouse dance and the other for the woman's longhouse dance. There also is a third rarely used mode. Sape music is usually inspired by dreams and there are over 35 traditional pieces with many variations. The overall repertoire is slowly increasing.
Sapes are still being made in Borneo, and modern innovations like electric sapes are common.

Area: Sarawak and Kalimantan, Borneo
Country: Malaysia / Indonesia
Region: Asia
Type: boat lute

SAMPEK player ( KALIMANTAN)
'Sampek'.which is made from various wood.
The sound from 'sampek' is soothing and very nice to hear.

SAPE DAYAK.(FERRY SAPE).FROM KAPUAS HULU KALBAR

Warisan Sarawak & Sape..

SAPE PLAYERs DURING BORNEO HORNBILL FESTIVAL 2011 by WARISAN SARAWAK KL
AT MATIC TOURISM CENTRE KL(23 JULY 2011)

SAPE PERFORMANCE during
NTV7 Breakfast Show Promo(15/7/2011)@Borneo Honbill Festival 2011

SAPE PLAYER during Exotic Sarawak Festival Launch (8 Nov 11).
.by DOUBLE TREE HILTON KL & WARISAN SARAWAK.
(CLICK TO MY PREVIOUS POST)

Sape at Magical Borneo @Malaysiaku Street Festival 2013 LINK ...( Bangkung Row, Bangsar KL ) ...Brandon Daby (Mr Borneo Ethnic Borneo Hornbill Festival 2013.

Borneo Music Festival acknowledges Hezekiah Asim as our Icon for his mastery of many traditional Borneo musical instruments, especially Sape. He extends his skills and knowledge having conducted classes to teach the younger generations to play. His collaborations with various artistes inspires many to carry the tradition.