Save Penang House of Music: A Resource Centre for Malaysian Cultural Heritage

The Issue

On 13 February, 2024, the Penang House of Music (PHoM), a vital cultural hub and resource centre for Malaysia’s rich musical heritage, announced on their social media that after more than 7 years, it would be shutting its doors for good. According to Director, Paul Augustin, the PHoM has been struggling with financial and institutional support since the Covid-19 pandemic (NST Entertainment, 2024).

PHoM’s interactive and meticulous exhibits and digital archives celebrate and acknowledge Penang and Malaysia’s diverse musical history. These materials and displays provide a nuanced glimpse of the nation’s cultural past, and a resource from which younger generations can learn and be inspired. PHoM has been listed on TripAdvisor’s top 10 must-visit in Penang list, meaning that it also has been acknowledged as a location of value for tourism

The PHoM Resource Centre serves as a focal point for musicians, scholars, academicians, students and others of all disciplines who are interested in the history and music of Penang and Malaysia, while also creating a larger national and international network of organisations. PHoM has one of the largest collections of gramophone records from the pre-World War II period in Malaysia and Southeast Asia. Its collections also include vinyls of Malaysian popular music in different languages from the last century, old photographs, posters of performances, and analog recordings that have been donated by cultural enthusiasts from Penang and other parts of Malaysia.

Over the years, PHoM has hosted local, national and international live performances, conferences, talks and workshops about the musical heritage of Penang as well as highlighted musical personalities that have been forgotten. It has provided a space for heritage bearers and local artists to perform, record and document their artistic work, making it a creative "home" for past, present and future musicians to congregate and share their journeys (Goh, 2024).

We urge all who value the conservation of Malaysia’s cultures and heritage to sign this petition. We call on anyone including local authorities and private benefactors alike to step in with financial support that can ensure the survival of PHoM. The closure of PHoM would not only mean the loss of a cultural venue but also a centre for inventorying, documenting and archiving Malaysia’s intangible cultural heritage. According to UNESCO's 2003 Convention for Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage (which Malaysia ratified), museums and archives such as PHoM play crucial roles in safeguarding and providing life-long education in intangible cultural heritage.

°IMPORTANT NOTE° :

Please note that your donations to the petition goes to Change.org to further promote this petition to a wider audience. It is NOT allocated to Penang House of Music. Please contact PHoM directly for donations options.