No.1 Neighbour: Art in Papua New Guinea 1956-2016

82 №1 NEIGHBOUR STORIES Our music doesn’t belong to any era — we want to get it walking on the streets of the 20th century with sunglasses on. 1 tony subam , sanguma Sanguma 2 have always been an inspiration to my musical career, having been a student of Aaron Murray, one of the later members of the band who made significant contributions through his involvement. I recall performing the song ‘Yalikoe’ many times as a percussionist with the school band. Sanguma were legendary — pioneers, who were musically, creatively and artistically in a league of their own, not just in Papua New Guinea, but internationally. The band’s sound and music resulted from a unified, collective spirit. Their passion and energy came from a group of creative visionaries who fused modern instruments with traditional sounds and musical arrangements, and were able to take that sound to the world. They sang in Tok Pisin (pidgin English) and English, as well as in local languages, and used a mix of traditional and contemporary instruments: garamuts (Melanesian log drums), bamboo percussion, electric guitars, synthesisers, panpipes, kuakumba flutes, saxophone and trumpet. When they performed, they wore traditional headdresses and body decoration, as well as clothes featuring indigenous designs. Sanguma formed at a time when Papua New Guinea was undergoing massive change, politically and socially. The members of the band found themselves in a position where they could use the power of music to influence a generation. The coming together of these individuals allowed for messages of hope, heritage and positive change channelled through music, representing and embracing both old and new. Through the years, I have gained a deeper knowledge of Sanguma and their story, a greater understanding of not just their music, but of the challenges they faced as a band — the transformations within the music industry, changes in audiences, and invariably good and bad management decisions, as well as pioneering the way as the first full-time students of the newly established National Arts School music program. Sanguma’s success and greatness was also due to the strength of the members’ individual identities, their great respect for their own culture and traditions, and their passion and belief in music. Music to Sanguma was a means of encouraging, promoting and, most importantly, preserving cultures which were starting to disappear due to the Westernisation of Papua New Guinea. Hearing the Future , a recent book by Denis Crowdy, is a fascinating story examining Sanguma’s origins, travels, successes and challenges and, of course, their music, through the eyes of the author’s close association with former band member, the late Tony Subam. A captivating journey, from the birth of the band at the National Arts School in 1977, it addresses their international tours — to the United States (Honolulu, New Orleans, Denver, New York, Washington, dc , and California) and Canada (Vancouver and Calgary) in the mid 1980s, as well as Australia, New Zealand and Guam — line-up changes, highs and lows, and their considerable influence and legacy. Mike Drumm, a director who filmed the band in concert in Denver in 1986, commented: Their music is so unique; the way they merge the ancient New Guinea tribal folk musics with jazz and contemporary pop structures; well, there really is just no band quite like Sanguma . . . the tribal influences both in the music, how they perform and how they dress are totally indigenous to New Guinea. You won’t find bands from America, Jamaica, or Africa even, performing and sounding quite like Sanguma. In fact, there aren’t even bands in New Guinea that are just like Sanguma. 3 1 Tony Subam, quoted in Denis Crowdy, Hearing the Future: The Music and Magic of the Sanguma Band , University of Hawai’i Press, Honolulu, 2016, p.4. 2 ‘Sanguma’ is a Tok Pisin (pidgin English) word referring to a particular kind of sorcery resulting in death; quoted in Crowdy, p.1. 3 Mike Drumm, quoted in Crowdy, pp.3–4. Sanguma: The Magic Sounds of Papua New Guinea (stills) 1986 / Director: Mike Drumm THE UNIQUE SOUND OF SANGUMA JOHN FAUNT