The Making of "Majulah Singapura" as We Know It
Coming in August
The national anthem that we know today wasn't the original version composed
by Zubir Said. The first version was longer and was pitched at a higher
key. Emeritus Professor Bernard Tan talks about how "Majulah Singapura"
came about and how it changed over the decades, and illustrates how these
versions differ on his piano.
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What Prof Tan Talked About
About the Guest
Emeritus Professor Bernard T. G. Tan is a retired professor of physics from the National University of Singapore who also dabbles in music. Some of his compositions have been performed by the Singapore Symphony Orchestra. He is a former chairman of the Sing Singapore organising committee.
Resources
Bernard Tan, “The Search for Home, Truly (and Other National Day Songs),” BiblioAsia 21, no. 1 (April–June 2025).
Rohana Zubir, Zubir Said: The Composer of Majulah Singapura (Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, 2012).
Credits
This episode of BiblioAsia+ was hosted by Jimmy Yap and produced by Soh Gek Han. Sound engineering was done by Nookcha Films. The background music "Di Tanjong Katong" was composed by Osman Ahmad and performed by Chords Haven. Special thanks to Prof Tan for coming on the show.
About the Podcast
BiblioAsia+ is a podcast about Singapore history by the National Library Singapore.