Malaysian musicians reimagine Benjamin Britten's "Lost" Malaysian national anthem
In 1957, Benjamin Britten was amongst the composers who were invited to submit their compositions for consideration as the soon-to-be independent Malaya's national anthem. Britten's composition, which he later described as "a curious and I'm afraid rather unsuccessful job", was rejected, and has, for the most part, languished in obscurity since. Now, a group of Malaysian musicians are presenting a reimagining of this piece in an arrangement for viola and piano, and another for string quartet. Musicologist and violist Dr. Andrew Filmer who commissioned these arrangements, described that they did indeed note some areas in the original composition that could have been developed further. These performances will feature re-edits to the music, which he hopes Britten himself would have been pleased with. "We decided to extend what we assume would have been the main chorus for the anthem, which allowed for a more impactful and stronger form of the piece," share...