Beats of Borneo: Alena Murang with the MPO is Saturday 31 Oktober 2026 at 8:00pm. Dewan Filharmonik PETRONAS, Level 2, Tower Two, Menara Berkembar PETRONAS, 国油双峰塔. Junichi Hirokami conducts. Alena Murang plays sape'. The MPO page times the night at about 70 minutes plus a 20-minute interval. You walk in through Suria KLCC, 阳光广场, or off KLCC LRT.
This is the local Saturday that is not a mall promo. The hall sits in Tower Two. It is not Ombak. Galeri PETRONAS left Suria in July 2026.
Ravel, a new sape' concerto, then Mozart 40
The printed order is Ravel Le Tombeau de Couperin, then Vivian Chua's Concerto for Sape' and Orchestra, then Mozart Symphony No. 40. The MPO calls Chua's piece the first work of its kind ever commissioned. NST's Tahir Alhamzah, writing 14 October 2026 from the press conference, put the premiere at about 20 minutes. Bernama on 15 October 2026 named Chua as Sabah-born and Alena as the soloist under Hirokami.
Alena is 37 in those reports. This is her second MPO date after Sounds of Borneo in 2024. She told NST she wants sape' music treated as a genre on its own, not only as a government-function colour. The Bernama quote from the same briefing is sharper: 25 years ago neither her father's generation nor hers imagined a sape' concerto on this stage. She also praised Chua's use of oboe and bassoon against the lute. Tourism Malaysia's event listing repeats the MPO programme and the DFP phone, 03 2331 7007.
Tickets, codes, dress
General seats are RM199, RM249, RM299 and RM349. Suites are RM399 and RM449 a seat and include light refreshments. Online checkout adds RM5 a ticket and 3.5% on the payment. MyKad holders take 10% with code MYKAD10. Senior citizens take 15% with SENIOR15. Those codes do not stack. Student tickets are RM124.50 at the box office with a student ID. A 20% Classical Concert package discount applies if you buy at least three tagged concerts. Buy on TicketSearch event 155018 from the MPO season page.
Children under 8 are not allowed. Dress is smart casual. The no-list is torn jeans, shorts, collarless t-shirts, sweatshirts, singlets, sports attire, slippers and flip-flops. A wheelchair ticket includes a companion seat. Call 03 2331 7007 or email contactus@dfp.com.my for that. AAPPAC's Q4 DFP note listed this date as well, and mislabelled Mozart as Symphony No. 4. The official page is Symphony No. 40. Use that.
From KLCC LRT it is the same concourse as the mall. Saturday 8pm is the DFP slot locals actually dress for. If you want dinner in 阳光广场 first, leave a buffer. After the concert the Esplanade fountain on Taman KLCC is still running its light-and-sound sets. Pay in ringgit. I would not count on cheap leftover seats on the day for a premiere with Alena's name on the masthead.
The sape' in the Bernama stills is the long carved lute, not a guitar stand-in. That is the instrument Chua wrote for. If you only go to one DFP Saturday this month after Jaclyn Victor, this is the one with a new Malaysian score in the middle of the night.
Practical details
- Dates: Saturday 31 October 2026
- Time: 8:00pm, about 70 minutes plus a 20-minute interval
- Venue: Dewan Filharmonik PETRONAS, Level 2, Tower Two, PETRONAS Twin Towers, Kuala Lumpur City Centre, 50088
- Nearest LRT: KLCC (Kelana Jaya Line)
- Price: RM199, RM249, RM299, RM349. Suites RM399 and RM449 a seat including light refreshments. MyKad 10% MYKAD10. Senior 15% SENIOR15. Student RM124.50 at the box office. RM5 ticket fee and 3.5% online
- Age: No children under 8
- Phone: 03 2331 7007
- Website: MPO, Beats of Borneo: Alena Murang with the MPO
