Details

Latitude

-4.21771

Longitude

152.2575

Start Date

1993-03-01

End Date

1993-03-01

Tape#1: Musical Journey and Experiences of Andrew Midian. Side A & B: Andrew Midian was born in 1965 and comes from Molot Village, Molot Island of Duke of York Islands in East New Britain Province. He grew up in a musical family where his father was a teacher/paster of the United Church from a Methodist Church background. After local primary school in Molot, he attended George Brown High School (Vunairima) in 1978 then had a few years back in the village and was doing Distance learning with College of External Studies (COES) before enrolling in 1984 at George Brown Paster's College (Vunairima) then later in 1986 to George Brown Rarongo Theological College (Vunairima). The location of Vunairima is on the north coast of the Gazelle Peninsula where schools and college campuses are established for the United Church. These institutions are named after Dr George Brown, pioneer Methodist missionary who introduced christianity to New Britain in 1875. Andrew's early exposure to music and his development as been mastering the guitar and consolidated by music education and his desire to learn music and mostly self taught through books, magazines and musical literature. His development of musical skills and talents was from strings (guitar) in Gospel and Pop music in competitions and live bands to choral music to be covered in Side B. Andrew's ability to read and interpret music complemented classical guitar techniques to choral music and choir singing of hymns. His musical knowledge, interest and passion drove to be successful in choral competitions where his choir was awarded top prize at a number of festivals as he is able to read music, compose, write melodies and harmonies and conduct as a choir master. Andrew completed his Theological degree in 1990 to qualify as a Reverand and Church Minister of the United Church of PNG. His thesis was in indigenous music under topic of " The Value of Indigenous Music in the Ministry of the Church in Duke of York Islands". His work talked about the traditional forms of music and the influence and impact of western music through hymns singing introduced by Methodist missionaries. The indigenous people were good singers and easily embraced the introduction in hymn singing and expressed in local language of Ramoaina spoken on Duke of York Islands as "koina na malira na lotu" which means that the songs were good magical songs of church or worhship to God. As with traditional music or singing, it communicates their feelings through song but to their gods of ancestors but now the hymns are for the Christian God worshipped. The introduction of guitars and ukuleles in modern music with songs are similar and using the same concepts with traditional instruments such as "tidir", "kundu", "pakupak" amongst others and reviving the similar music in the worship of God is church music is coming back as a form of songs and praise mixing the secular and contemporary music in the ministry of the Church in his observation and experience. (Steven Gagau, April 2019)

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