Someone sent me this video clip. Turns out that our national anthem is the exact copy (sans the lyrics) of a French song, La Rosalie. The song became Mamula Moon in the Seychelles and a sultan from Perak who was in Seychelles heard the song during a band concert on the island. When the Sultan of Perak (the same one?) was attending the installation of King Edward VII in 1901, he was asked what his state anthem was and not having one but not wanting to appear backward, he hummed Mamula Moon! Now that's what I call resourceful. This was an incredulous piece of history. I asked my son if he knew the origins of our national anthem and he answered correctly, saying "I study sejarah you know!"
I guess in those days copyright and pirating were unknown issues. But didn't they tell us during our school days that the song was written by a Malaysian?
<iframe width="425" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/JPcNnHEsFM0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Now how am I going to sing Negaraku without thinking of Mamula Moon and the walk on the beach?
