Composer-researcher Valerie Ross designed the music for the show (Photo: Shahrin Yahya/The Edge)
Someone smitten by space and the matter and energy it contains may be star-struck in a different way after catching Meniti Cakerawala. The multimedia theatre has a stellar line-up of true professionals in their field coming together to scale new heights. Each brings something special to the fore, fired by the desire to produce a show where audiences can get acquainted with celestial bodies.
Leading the roll call is astrophysicist Tan Sri Mazlan Othman, who conceived the concept and script of a storyteller sharing her experiences and knowledge about the science, beauty and romance of the cosmos. Lending their voices to the narration are actor, director and drama teacher Mano Maniam and actor, emcee and voiceover artist Chacko Vadaketh.
Euphoric after the launch of the book Cosmic Connections Langkawi on the island late last year, choreographer and dancer Datuk Ramli Ibrahim suggested it should be staged. With binoculars trained on Mazlan’s work on the subject and the Langkawi National Observatory (LNO), it tells a fascinating story about the universe through science, poetry by National Laureate Muhammad Haji Salleh and art by Jalaini Abu Hassan.
The tome inspired Meniti Cakerawala, which has Sivarajah Natarajan and Leslie Variyan taking charge of lighting and costumes respectively. Composer-researcher Valerie Ross designed the music for the show and wrote 12 new compositions using virtual instruments, including strings, woodwind and bass.
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Ramli is artistic director of this project, while performers from Sutra Foundation will add dance to the mix. Muhammad and veteran journalist Tan Sri Johan Jaaffar will recite poetry, accompanied by music. Photos and videos from the LNO — strategically situated at the equator and affording good views of both the northern and southern skies — will help the audience trace man’s cosmic connections.
Ross says the production is special, perhaps even historical, because “those involved have contributed a lot to the arts over the decades. It’s a real big pool of talent. This is what it means when art-science people get together.”
Translating text and dance into space music is not straightforward and she is happy to have met the challenge. In between the narrations, the dance comes in.
She believes music is very scientific, and a good part of her work merges both subjects. Since 2020, she has been collaborating with a cardiothoracic surgeon from Hospital UiTM to help post-operative cardiac patients in their recovery using music.
They co-produced the website Bespoke Music and Narration, the outcome of translational practice-based research. This site shares research output and resources from the BMN audiovisual collection, comprising original music, narration, multi-language scripts, poetry and photography. These materials are crafted to complement established therapeutic techniques and practices to support the return to health and wellness.
Ross also believes music helps guide movement. When you are walking and hear sounds coming in, your pace picks up. And if you walk with music, the journey seems shorter because you are getting lost in its beat, not thinking of your problems.
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Ross has been doing research with medical personnel to put together audio and video geared towards positive visualisation. “Perhaps you meet people who are quite ill. There’s no point telling them things are okay, because you know it’s not.
“The idea is to have words, and then perhaps sounds, that can help them come to terms with [things] or just say, ‘Yes, I shall live life to the full.’ It’s a bit philosophical. You know, we talk about assisted living. How about assisted music — creating sounds to support wellness?”
Ross has co-authored books that expand on her interest in this area, among them A preliminary study on the effects of music on human brainwaves and Enhancing learning using music to achieve a balanced brain. “I do research into the methodology of doing research for the arts.”
As an educator, she is affiliated with the University of Cambridge and involved in community engagement every year. “This year, I was there and surprised when a lot of people came, wanting to know how to breathe! I also invited qigong experts and master trainers to the event.”
Going back to Meniti Cakerawala, Ross says the creative process has to be dynamic for the veterans to click and work together. “But when it comes to the core expertise, don’t kacau.
“One of the reasons that we worked well is because we are from different fields. So, there is great respect. Hopefully, we have done well in our field, you know. When we sit down and craft, it’s a creative process, but there are certain parts that we leave to each other.
“For instance, I don’t tell Ramli what to do with his dancers and he lets me do what I do with the music. But he knows for a fact that I’m very particular about what I do. So, basically, if people give their best, and you know what they are, it works.”
'Meniti Cakerawala' will run until Dec 8 (8:30pm) at the Auditorium Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur. Tickets are available here.
This article first appeared on Dec 2, 2024 in The Edge Malaysia.
