The Evolution of Gambus: Traditional to Modern

Abstract

Gambus is supposed to have evolved from an Arabic musical instrument called Oud, which means wood; flexible branches or stalks; often referred to as a piece of wood. The Malay Peninsula, comprised of Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia, and Singapore, is home to the lute-related term gambus. Gambus Hadramauth (Johor Gambus), Hadhrami Gambus (Malaysian Gambus), and Contemporary Gambus are the traditional varieties of Gambus in Malaysia. Gambus, which is renowned for producing music that warms and soothes the spirit, is truly accessible to people of all races and genders. Consequently, the purpose of this study is to follow the evolution of gambus in Malaysia. There are two objectives of the study, which are to study the development of gambus in terms of its physical structure, and then to identify the evolution of gambus from the perspective of its performance practice and repertoire. The research strategy involves qualitative descriptive techniques, in which data is collected through library procedures, analysed depending on the stated problem, and then the findings of the analysis are reported in writing. This study's data comes from scholarly books, theses, and periodicals. According to the findings of the researcher, the performance of gambus is significant to Malays and Muslims; even this musical instrument is viewed as a source of money for performers and producers. In addition, gambus musical instruments are more popular for entertainment purposes and are accepted and relevant to society. Keywords: Gambus, Oud, traditional musical instrument, evolution, achievement.