Penang once again receives international recognition as National Geographic Music features the vibrant island and its upcoming world music festival. On 6 March, National Geographic promoted the Plenitude Penang World Music Festival in its website together with a brief history of Penang and an introduction to George Town, a UNESCO World Heritage City.

Originally formed by Sergey Erdenko in 1990, Loyko started its musical journey performing Russian Gypsy music. Fifteen years later and after an inclusion of another band member, Loyko’s music has expanded to include Celtic, traditional Romanian and Hungarian tunes, as a result of the band’s non-stop tour all around the world.

The members, Sergey Erdenko, Artur Gorbenko and Mikhail Savichev are virtuoso players, capable of taking music in unpredictable directions, an ongoing evolution the group joyfully embraces and audiences around the world have reveled in. Despite the evolution in Loyko’s music, its original musical influence based on the style of Russian Gypsy remains intact.

NORTHERN JAZZ ENSEMBLE

PRESENTS

“JAZZ WORKS At THE MOVIES”

FEATURING THE NORTHERN JAZZ ENSEMBLE

and special guests appearance by

ANDY SITI

THE GEORGE TOWN SINGERS

THE DE LEON JAZZ EXPERIENCE

RONALD DE LEON

E-mail: northern.jazz@gmail.com

6^th- 8^th April 2012  Fri & Sat 8.30pm, Sun 3.00pm

Stage 1 Penang PAC, Straits Quay, Penang

Experience six decades of  memorable movie themes with a jazz twist packed into 120 mins for pure musical enjoyment. Featuring themes from Pink Panther, Mission Impossible, Singin’ In The Rain, Rocky, Mama Mia and more.

Tickets available at:

Performing Arts Centre Of Penang (penangpac)

3H-3A, Straits Quay, Jln seri Tanjung Pinang,

Tanjung Tokong, 10470 Pulau Pinang.

Tel: 04-899 1722/2711

Fri/Sat: RM 53, RM 43

Sun: RM 43, RM 23

For more info, pls do contact :

Jerome Quah (016-444 8383)

Daniel Ong (012-412 5577)

Marlene Fox ( 016-4911658)

Or PenangPAC

Penang, March 8, 2012 – Ever a supporter of the arts with its artist residency program, Hotel Penaga now turns to music by hosting the showcase of Penang-born songstress Bihzhu, and her debut album ‘Nightingale Tales’.

After wowing her hometown audiences with her sultry vocals at last year’s Penang Island Jazz Festival, Bihzhu returns home for the first leg of her album tour that will span Penang, Kuala Lumpur and Minneapolis in the United States.

“There’s nothing like being home and I’m really excited about this upcoming show at Hotel Penaga. Angela and Hijjas (Hotel Penaga’s owners) have always been a champion of the arts and I couldn’t ask for a more beautiful location to sing my heart out,” said the 28-year-old, whose rapturous performances have also enchanted crowds at Melbourne’s Miss Libertine, Roots Night at Palate Palette and No Black Tie.

Hailed by the premier jazz website allaboutjazz.com as ‘a potential leading light in Penang’s emerging jazz scene’, Bihzhu will set the stage alight with simple, unaffected songwriting and purity of vocalizations that span the appealing blend of confessional pop, jazzy folk and lo-fi torch songs that takes the listener through a journey of emotions which feels so intimate because they are authentic.

BIHZHU LIVE AT HOTEL PENAGA
Date : Saturday, March 10, 2012
Time : 8.00pm
Venue : Hotel Penaga, Corner of Jalan Hutton & Lebuh Clarke, Georgetown
Tickets : RM25 (one drink of beer/wine/juices, hot and cold canapés)
Tel/Info : +6 04 261 1891
Map : www.hotelpenaga.com

Call +604 261 1891 to make your table reservations.

ABOUT HOTEL PENAGA
Hotel Penaga, in the heart of GeorgeTown, Penang, Malaysia, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The hotel was converted from a cluster of 15 pre-war terraces and shophouses, facing Hutton Lane, Transfer Road and Clarke Street, into a heritage boutique hotel that maintains the character of the heritage zone while meeting the highest modern expectations.

The hotel owners (who run the feted artist residency program at Rimbun Dahan in Selangor) were looking for an artist residency space when they found the Penaga site and although it morphed into a hotel, contemporary artists are encouraged to apply for the Garret.

Penang World Music Festival 2012

Organised by the Penang Culture and Tourism Development Office with UCSI Communications Sdn Bhd as the Event Management Consultant, the 3rd edition of the Penang World Music Festival 2012 promised to be an exciting event that would attract world music enthusiasts from all corners of the world.

Various interesting programs had already been lined up for the festival which will be held from March 30 to April 1, 2012 at the Quarry Park, Botanic Gardens in Penang.

Among them are the workshops which will be held in the afternoon, Kidz World workshop and the nightly concerts. The workshops will be held from 2pm to 5pm while the Kidz World workshop will be stage for an hour from 5pm. The Kidz World workshop is meant for children and aim to be a fun-fill educational platform for them to learn about various musical instruments.

A total of 18 bands had been invited to perform at the nightly concert and they will present a unique blend of world beat. These bands are from Australia, Korea, Africa, India as well as local groups and together they are expected to rock the festival with their awesome beat and tempo.

Penang World Music Festival 2012

Venue: Quarry Park, Penang Botanic Garden
Ticket: three-day pass is RM220 each for adult and RM120 each for a child.

Tickets available online at www.ticketxpress.com.my

To kick off the lovely month of February 2012, Gurney Plaza invites everyone to witness, a Real PERANAKAN wedding ceremony on 11 February 2012, 3pm at the New Wing Atrium in conjunction with the Simply
Wedding Showcase 2012.

Come and witness alovely pair saying “I DO” in this memorable occasion. For the first time in Penang, you will beprivileged to be part of a real peranakan wedding to be held at a shopping mall. Let us all join in to wish the best for this couple! Everyone is welcomed!

Date: 11th February 2012
Venue: Gurney Plaza, Ground Floor (New Wing)
Time: 3.00pm

Utara Bikers Club welcomes all bikers from all over Malaysia to join “Jom Jem Penang 2012” from the 10th to 11th February 2012. Over 400 big bikes from Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand are expected to join this programme with the theme “ Brotherhood Beyond Boundaries”

Below are the details of the programme:

Time : From 2pm – 12pm, Friday (10th February 2012)
From : 10am – 12pm, Saturday (11th February 2012)
Dinner and Concert on 11th Feb 2012 with special guest star Mus May.

For the members of the public who are interested to see the bikes, the bikers will be parking their bikes at the Hard Rock Hotel on the 10th of February from 12am onwards. On the 11th February, the bikes can be seen parked along Fort Cornwallis from noon onwards..

For more information call : Mr Sanglee at 014-3022111

Every year on the 14th night (5th Feb 2012) of the Lunar New Year, hundreds of devotees from all over Penang will visit the the Tanjung Tokong Tua Pek Kong Temple for its annual flame watching ritual or “ Chneah Hoay”.

The 14th night is also believed to be Tua Pek Kong’s birthday.During this ceremony, embers in a ceremonial urn are fanned until the flames leaped up. The coming year’s fortune will be foretold from the size and shape of the fire.

On the 15th day (6th Feb 2012), which is the actual day of Tua Pek Kong, families will offer prayers to the deity.

In the mid 18th century, 40 years before the establishment of George Town , Tua Pek Kong or his human form Chang Lee left China with his two brothers . They were heading to Sumatra but their boat was blown to Penang instead.

They lived and settled in Penang and they are believed to be buried near the temple. Therefore, the Tanjung Bungah Tua Pek Kong temple is believed to be original Tua Pek Kong temple.

Fire Watching at Tua Pek Kong, Tanjung Tokong

Venue: Tua Pek Kong Temple, Tanjung Tokong
Date: 5th & 6th of February 2012
Time: 9pm-12.00 midnight

Thaipusam is celebrated during the full moon of the 10th month in the Hindu calendar. It is normally held in the last week of January or the beginning of February, depending on the alignment of the sun, moon and planets.

A pilgrimage procession takes place to bring the statue of Lord Muruga, who represents virtue, youth and power, on a silver chariot led by more then 60 Kavadis adorned with peacock feathers from Little India to the Nattukottai Chettiar Temple atop the hill of Waterfall Road.

On the day before (6th of February) old coconuts are smashed along the roads where the Chariot procession will take place.
During Thaipusam day in Penang (7th of February) ,devotees go through a physical endurance of being skewered and pierced on the back and front of their bodies by hooks with miniature urns as an act of penance.

Majority of the devotees who go through this act are Indians but Chinese, Sikh and other visitors can also be seen taking part in this act of faith which leaves many devotees and observers alike, spiritually transformed.

In celebration, more than 100 beautifully-decorated make-shift stalls, are erected along Waterfall Road road where charitable Chinese and Indian families give out bottled water, fruits, sweet, buns and prepared sweetened and sour rice to devotees.

Thunderous loud music, singing, dancing and the beating of drums of devotional songs by their supporters can be seen and heard far and wide throughout the entire vicinity of the festival.

Upon reaching the temple, devotees will fulfill their vows, offer thanksgiving prayers and penance to Lord Muruga. The chariot is then scheduled for a return trip (8th of February) to start from the temple on the same evening and reach Kovil Veedu before dawn the following day.

This festival of rich culture and deep tradition is an ‘out of this world’ experience which draws a massive crowd of tens of thousands to these streets in Penang yearly. Visitors especially from outside Malaysia are encouraged to experience this unique religious celebration.

Schedule:

6 Feb 2012-6am to 11pm CHETTIAR PUSAM – THAIPUSAM EVE:
Chariot bearing LORD MURUGA leaving KOVIL VEDDU (Little India) to Waterfall TANNERMALAI Temple (7km)

7 Feb 2012 Thaipusam Day:
Devotees start taking PALKUDAM (milk pot), KAVADI

8-9 Feb 2012 – 6PM to 7am:
Chariot move back to home from TANNERMALAI to KOVIL VEDDU (Little India) (7km) reach home the next day.

Thaipusam 2012
Date: 6th to 8th of February 2012
Venue: Little India, Penang General Hospital, Waterfall Road.

Penang Chinese Town Hall (PCTH) will be organizing a Chap Goh Meh Celebration along Jalan Mesjid Kapitan Keling (outside PCTH) on the 4th of February from 9pm – 12 midnight.

From 7.30pm to 9.30pm visitors will be entertained with other cultural performances inside PCTH’s auditorium which includes a Chinese orchestra and a choir with over 100 members.

At 9.30, there will be a dragon and phoenix dance along Jalan Mesjid Kapitan Keling. Hawker stalls would also be set up along Jalan Mesjid Kapitan Keling from 6pm onwards.

For more information please contact : 04-2611343

Date: 4th February 2012
Venue: Streets of Harmony, Jalan Masjid Kapitan Keling
Time: 9pm – 12.00midnight

Top Taiwanese actors from the famous programme Yi Nan Wang (The Unforgettable Memory) will be coming to Penang and performing at the PISA Indoor Stadium on the 28th of January 2012. This a popular mega primetime drama was originally broadcasted in Taiwan from year 2004 to 2006.

For the last three years until today the show was broadcasted on Astro. The show has found many loyal fans from all over Malaysia especially in Penang.

For the first time ever, the group will be visiting Penang. We hope that Penangites will show their support in this international concert and make it a success in the hopes for more international concerts to be held in Penang.

To purchase tickets, Click Here

Taiwanese Film Star – Yi Nan Wang Concert 2012

Date: 28 January 2012
Time: 3:00pm & 7:30pm
Venue: PISA Indoor Stadium, Penang
Ticket: RM181, RM161, RM141, RM121, RM 101 & RM81