Shaped like a boat and strummed like a guitar, the sape is more than just a musical instrument – it is the soul of the Orang Ulu community in Borneo, capable of producing haunting melodies once woven into healing rituals and communal celebrations.

Today, this traditional lute-like instrument has transcended its ceremonial roots, emerging as a symbol of cultural pride and national heritage.

While it remains most widely recognised in Sarawak, the instrument is steadily making its way across the country and beyond. Musician-turned-entrepreneur Anderson Kalang said the sape is enjoying a surge of interest, embraced by Malays, Indians and Chinese alike as part of Malaysia’s shared cultural identity.

Kalang, who is from Kelabit tribe of Sarawak, not only teaches the traditional instrument but sells them. The co-founder of Sape’Star said when he and his business partner started their academy, they discovered that the sape was not only appreciated by the Bornean community.

“Nowadays, those who buy and play the sape are no longer restricted to the Orang Ulu. I have students who are Chinese, Indian and Malay, based in the peninsula,” he told Bernama recently.

Many of his students were women, and he noted that those with no formal music background often learn faster than trained guitarists: “It might take some time to ‘unlearn’ the guitar, since the technique and methodology are completely different,” he explained.

However, Kalang – who also sells the instrument at his base in Kuala Lumpur – said demand currently exceeds supply.

“In a year, about 120 units can be sold,” he shared, highlighting the instrument’s popularity in Malaysia and Indonesia, with prices ranging from RM500 to RM2,000 depending on the size – “adult medium”, “medium” or “kids”.

He noted that sape makers often do it as a side business, and there is also a shortage of raw materials. As a result, sape makers are often unable to cope with demand: the number of instruments they create is often just enough for the market in Sarawak itself.

Kalang said he and his business partner had long dreamed of introducing the instrument in public schools, perhaps even as part of the national curriculum. Such an effort, he added, would allow Malaysian children of all backgrounds to connect with the sape as a shared heritage.

While progress on this is “quite challenging”, he shared that they do receive inquiries from international schools.

Ultimately, the growing appreciation of the sape in the peninsula carries a deeper meaning: that Malaysians, regardless of race or background, are increasingly embracing Sarawak’s heritage as their own.

For Kalang, every strum of the sape is a reminder that the instrument, born in the longhouses of Borneo, now belongs to one and all. “This is not just about preserving the past – it is about making sure the sape has a future, and that future is for every Malaysian to share.”

Follow Anderson Kalang on Instagram.