The Exceptional Fauziah Gambus: Negotiating Novelty, Piety, and Self-Promotion in an Androcentric Malaysian Musical Scene

Abstract

Abstract:This article highlights several performance personas—including novelty and Islamic piety—at work in the career of Fauziah Gambus, a female gambus player in a highly androcentric musical scene. I argue that gendered assumptions and stereotypes have not restricted her but have instead enabled her to gain more popular success and notoriety than many of her Malaysian male counterparts. In unpacking her career, I examine how Fauziah synthesizes a variety of self-promotion strategies to achieve success beyond traditional gambus music channels.Abstract:Artikel ini membincangkan beberapa persona ekspresif—termasuk kebaruan dan ketakwaan Islam—yang relevan dalam kerjaya Fauziah Gambus, pemain gambus perempuan dalam masyarakat muzik yang kebanyakannya termasuk lelaki. Saya berpendapat bahawa andaian dan stereotaip jantina tidak menghadkan Fauziah tetapi sebaliknya membolehkan kejayaan yang lebih popular daripada ramai pemuzik gambus lelaki. Semasa saya meneliti kerjayanya, saya belajar macamana Fauziah menggabungkan pelbagai strategi promosi diri untuk mencapai kejayaan di luar laluan-laluan muzik gambus tradisional.