Setia

Today I've chosen to share another patriotic song by the name of 'Setia'. Setia means loyal in our national language. The word reminded me of the second principle (which reminds us that we ought to be loyal to the king and our country) of the 'Rukun Negara' that we recited from memory during school assemblies. This royal proclamation was actually instituted 48 years ago, on Hari Kebangsaan 1970. When I was young, there were just words that I blabbered out of my mouth. As I grew older, I slowly understood what the words meant, and was also curious to find out why and how this came about.

How this declaration came about stemmed from a tragic incident known as the 13 May Incident way back in 1969. It was a potential turning point for Malaysia as the ruling party lost the majority of the vote. Celebrations turned to riots, which led to deaths and the nation being declared in a state of emergency. We were torn apart by race and religion and the remnants and results of the eventful day in May is still felt till this day and age. I was definitely not alive when the incident happened, a black mark that will forever stain our history books; but I live in a country that is deeply affected by the outcome of it (i.e. New Economic Policy).

I am alive today though, on the eve of Hari Kebangsaan 2018, feeling proud that our country has gone through so much and yet still holding it together in the face of an unknown future. I also feel responsible to cultivate a sense of patriotism in the next generation, reminding them that not to take anything for granted. We all fought for this as well, in May, nearly half a century later. Heritage stories are meant to be passed on from generation to generation; stories that shaped a nation, formed a culture, and ultimately made us what we are today - Malaysians.

I've decided to take a light-hearted approach to this song, compared to the grand and orchestral arrangement found in the original recording. The genre is a simple bossa nova, which isn't the same as the song I shared yesterday - 'Sejahtera Malaysia', as they both give off a relaxing feel to it. I kept the form of the song, as well as the chord changes as well, to the best of my abilities. The VIb (Ab major) and VIIb (Bb major) chords found in the ending do give off certain hints of the original composer/arranger's intent on making this a grand declaration. I hope you enjoyed my version as well and I really do welcome any types of feedback. :)