POURING his heart and soul into documenting and preserving Malaysia’s intangible cultural and artistic heritage is no small feat, but for Paul Augustin, it is a labour of love he deeply treasures.
Driven by passion rather than the pursuit of fame or fortune, Augustin received another prestigious accolade – the Adiguru ASWARA Award – conferred by the National Academy of Arts, Culture and Heritage (ASWARA) in Kuala Lumpur on Sunday. This recognition celebrates his outstanding contributions to the archiving, digitisation, and documentation of Malaysian music.
This accolade adds another feather to the 65-year-old Penangite’s cap, complementing his Gamechanger Award at the 17th Boh Cameronian Arts Awards in 2020 and the 2024 Hai-O Arts and Culture Lifetime Achievement Award earlier this year.
“It is indeed an honour to know that the work I do is recognised and appreciated, especially by the academic world. Receiving such a prestigious award at the 19th Aswara Convocation Ceremony serves to underline the importance of documenting and preserving the nation’s intangible culture, arts and music heritage,” Augustin told Buletin Mutiara during an interview.
“With the passage of time, a huge part of Malaysian music, arts and cultural heritage if not preserved will be lost, and, a lot of what will be written in the future of this part of Malaysia’s past, will be based very much on just hearsay, with not much substantiated or justified facts.”
Reflecting on his journey, he added: “Much of what I’ve done over the past 20 years or I’m doing has never been mapped out and planned. This incredible journey has not been easy with a lot of twists and turns with one thing leading to another. Documenting and preserving our intangible cultural and arts heritage is actually derived from my own passion for history and music. I strongly believe that the intangible is what makes a house a home. While buildings and houses can be destroyed and rebuilt, lives and homes cannot.
“As in the words of my young learned colleague, Jocelyn Marcia Ng, by documenting and preserving the intangible, we give meaning and value to the tangible.
“Such is the importance of music and the arts that through the many years and decades, it has played a prominent role in influencing fashion, hairstyles, and dance, and has been used prominently in advertising, promotions and social activities. Music and the arts are powerful mediums for promoting patriotism and also as motivational and propaganda tools. It influences the way that people walk, talk and even think.
“Much of what I do in the documentation and preservation sense is because of the importance of finding and maintaining actual facts and keeping memories and legacies alive. With the recent passing of many in the industry – many of whom I had the privilege to know and meet personally, I somehow feel a sense of responsibility to make sure that the future generation remembers, recognises and appreciates the contributions of the older generation towards of our nation’s music and arts heritage.”
Even as a schoolboy at St Xavier’s Institution, Augustin demonstrated a deep interest in music. Upon leaving school, he dived into the music world doing gigs as a soloist, duet, trio and bassist in bands all over Malaysia and even a couple of short stints in Canberra, Australia in the mid-1980s. He has also written and recorded his compositions, and, produced three albums.
Augustin’s professional journey in the event management industry began in 1993 as a freelance coordinator working in events such as the Jose Feliciano Malaysian tour, Pesta Pulau Pinang and Bigfoot, the Monster Truck tour.
In January 1995, he joined Mahir Events (Managers of Stadium Shah Alam) starting as an Assistant Event Manager before evolving through a number of posts in various management capacities until his eventual departure as the Group Events Manager in December 1996 to set up an Events & Venue Management Company – The Capricorn Connection (TCC).
With the setting up of The Capricorn Connection, Augustin was involved in many different types of events ranging from sports to conventions to carnivals and concerts. His involvement in Festivals began in 2001 with the “International Culture and Arts Festival for People with Disabilities” and in 2002, The Capricorn Connection was contracted to manage and coordinate “Carl’s Sunrise Jazz Festival” followed by “Philips International Jazz Festival” and the “International Kuching Jazz Festival” in 2003.
Back in 1996, Augustin conceptualised the idea of a Festival on an island and eight years later in 2004 together with his TCC business partner, Ms Chin Choo Yuen, they realised that dream by starting “The Penang Island Jazz Festival”. Augustin is a founder member of the Asian Jazz Festival Organisation (AJFO) and has acted as an advisor for a number of events and festivals, including JSPA Johor Arts Festival, KK Jazz Festival and KL Music Fest.
In his capacity of Festival Director, Augustin has been invited to participate as a panelist/participant for music industry meetings in a number of countries which include Singapore, Korea, Thailand, China, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Norway, England, Wales, Finland, Spain, Luxembourg and also a judge for the “Jarasum International Jazz Festival Concours Competition” in Korea for a few years and was also appointed to the artist selection jury for the prestigious jazzahead overseas night in Bremen, Germany in 2014.
His strong network connections in the music festival industry enabled him to create opportunities for a number of local Malaysian musicians to perform in international festivals in South Africa, Finland, South Korea, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore.
Together with James Lochhead, Augustin was the co-principal researcher and co-curator of The Penang Musical Heritage Project that produced two exhibitions on the history of popular music in Penang (2010 and 2013), published a book “Just For The Love Of It, Penang’s Popular Music 1930s – 1960s” (2015) and created “The Penang House of Music” which was a venue that housed a Gallery, Black Box and a Resource Centre in 2016 till March 2024.
In June 2022, Augustin and a committee comprising practitioners and academics organised The 1st “Echoes, Shadows & Footprints – Sustainability, Mobility and Nationalism in Malaysian Performing Arts & Culture” Symposium.
Augustin’s passion for documenting and preserving Malaysia’s music heritage has led him to amass a large and wide collection of materials and documents on Malaysian arts and music heritage enabling him to not only document them for posterity but also produce articles for magazines and co-produce research documentaries on personalities such as Alleycats and Jimmy Boyle.
Augustin has been recognised as an “unofficial custodian” for Malaysian music and has been invited to present talks and sharing sessions on local and international platforms on subjects relating to the history of music and arts of Malaysia and the region.
Most recently, in November 2024, the Ministry of Communications appointed Augustin to a pro-tem committee tasked with providing input and proposals to improve Malaysia’s music industry through collaboration with industry stakeholders.
The Adiguru ASWARA Award is undoubtedly a cherished milestone for Augustin, who remains committed to inspiring future generations through music, culture, and the arts.
“It refuels my ebbing strength, rejuvenates me and inspires me to continue – gives me hope and strength. It makes me think that what I’m doing is right even when all the chips are down,” Augustin concluded.
Story by K.H. Ong
Pix courtesy of Paul Augustin