DATUN JULUD VARIATIONS for solo guitar, by Dusan Bogdanovic

In 2019, Hong Tee commissioned me to write a piece for her project Tropical Impressions, based on new compositions inspired by Malaysian music. After some time spent researching, I discovered Datun Julud, a beautiful dance associated with the hornbill, the national bird of Sarawak.

The music of Datun Julud is traditionally performed on the sape, a traditional lute of the Orang Ulu communities of central Borneo. Rather than attempting to imitate the sound or technique of the instrument, I have retained the pentatonic scale that is essential to this musical tradition and expanded the compositional vocabulary through the use of harmonics, arpeggiated chords, and contrapuntal imitation—techniques that are not characteristic of the sape.

Dedicated to and performed by Hong Tee.