Thean See Xien, Petronas legal counsel by day, master pub-quiz genius my night, and national anthem fiend 24/7. Yes, Malaysia’s most prolific singer of global national anthems has 113 national anthems under his belt, but still keeps the Negaraku closest to his heart.
Last year he met the composer Saidah Rastam, who explained the meaning behind the patriotic ballad, and Thean was moved to tears.
“Negaraku is the first anthem I ever learned. It is essentially a love song – one that expresses our love for our country and our willingness to protect it.
“It speaks of the Malaysia that we all desire, and we should heed the message in our anthem,” he said.
He believes that the words of the song encourage us to move beyond political and social differences, to commit to the country what is best for her and her people.
Having spent the best part of two decades memorizing national anthems, he’s learned to see the nuances of each song, and how they reflect in each country’s own history and outlook.
La Marseillaise, for example, is the French national anthem. To Thean, it reinforces the spirit of liberty, and equality; it’s a fight against tyranny. Its passion and spirit has also been known to make footballers cry.
Less emotional, but equally as powerful is pub-favorite God Save the Queen. In a country with more accents than cheeses, the British can agree on one few things: terrible weather, tea and their monarch.
But what of other lesser known anthems? Here’s a list of some of Coconuts picks for most unusual anthems, and telling lyrics:
1. Italy: With a lyric that includes “The Austrian eagle has already lost its plumes. The blood of Italy and the Polish blood it drank, along with the Cossack. But it burned its heart,” you’ve got to wonder how angry these guys still are about the effects of 18th century Austro-Hungarian politick and the subsequent Napoleonic wars.
2. Burkina Faso: “Against the humiliating bondage of a thousand years, Rapacity came from afar to subjugate them for a hundred years. Against the cynical malice in the shape, Of neo-colonialism and its petty local servants.” The post-colonial ballad isn’t mincing words. After decades of French rule, they’re put their feelings to paper like a nationalist Adele album.
3. St Helena: Where? The South Atlantic Island is most famous for being the far-away outpost that an exiled Napoleon spent his final years. It’s so remote that even the national anthem’s composer couldn’t be bothered to make the trek: he wrote the country song (what?) by looking at a postcard (how?).
4. Belize: a country whose anthem asserts that its male population is willing to throw “their manhood” on the line “to the liberty of Belize”. Commitment, but it should be noted that they’re still part of the Commonwealth. Everyone has a Daddy (Mummy).
5. Czech Republic and Slovakia: Czechoslovakia created a national anthem in 1918 when the country was formed, part Czech opera, part Slovak folk tune. When the country divided in 1993, they just split the anthem in two, and called it a day. Efficient.
Here’s a clip of Thean running through his 113-strong anthem repertoire:
