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THE Sundatang is a traditional musical instrument from Sabah, sometimes nicknamed the “Sabah Guitar”. 

It has two strings and a long neck, like a guitar but simpler. 

The Kadazandusun and Rungus are the main players of this instrument.

It is made from local wood like jackfruit, acacia or vitex trees. 

In the past, people would play it alone for fun or to impress someone they were interested in romantically.

The instrument is tied to local stories and traditions. 

Unfortunately, not many people play it anymore and it is in danger of being forgotten. 

However, musicians like Gindung McFeddy Simon are trying to bring it back and keep this cultural tradition alive.

His folk-rock band Tuni Sundatang launched their first extended play (EP) recently with hopes of it being an effort to save Sabah’s indigenous musical instruments from disappearing.

“This EP is not just music but about memories. It is our archive,” said band founder McFeddy, who also makes the instrument.

The launch comes after a successful year for the band internationally. Tuni Sundatang recently won Best in Asia (Asian Folk) at the InterContinental Music Awards 2025 in Los Angeles, beating over 500 finalists from more than 50 countries. 

The band also performed at Thailand’s Wonderfruit Festival 2025 last December and appeared on BBC in 2024. 

Their music video for Sayau Rondom (Dancing in the Dark), which premiered on Oct 31, 2025,  reached over 100,000 views in five days on YouTube.

“I spent years around the end of 2017 travelling across Sabah, states and countries in the Borneo archipelago, meeting elders, learning from masters and collecting what was left of the Sundatang’s story. 

“It is an almost extinct traditional stringed instrument, so I wanted to bring back its sound before it vanished completely,” McFeddy said at their EP launching at the Ruang Tamu Ekosistem in Alamesra, here. 

The six-member band from Ranau mix rare indigenous instruments like the Sundatang, Sompoton (bamboo aerophone) and Kulintangan (small gongs) with modern rock music.

The band members are Gindung McFeddy Simon who plays the Sundatang, Apek Adrian Johnny (Sompoton, Suling, Gong, Tuntug, Toburik), Dexter Ferrer Denis (Kulintangan), Maxelvin Berimbun (bass, midi keyboard), Jiji Azizi Razlie (guitar) and Oat Deen Shahrie Bidin (drums). They also have a seasonist drummer, Andrew Zeno. 

The EP, titled Alunan dari Tanah Tinggi, contains six songs and took nearly two years to complete. 

“We took about two years to complete this project, from recording sessions to music video preparation,” the band said. 

“But throughout that time, we also had many performance invitations and most of us have our own jobs, so sometimes it got too busy and the timeline stretched,” they said. 

The EP features songs like WarCry, which encourages young people to reconnect with their roots and Sayau Rondom, inspired by old hunting customs. 

“In the darkest nights, that is when hunters would go out because the animals could not see anything,” the band said. 

“When they brought back their catch, they would celebrate in their longhouses. 

“There was no television, no electricity … that was the time of joy for people back then. 

“We want to remind everyone of those moments we will never experience again,” they said. 

The band balances traditional sounds with modern music to attract younger listeners while keeping their culture alive. 

“We maintain the traditional sound, especially from the gongs and kulintangan. 

“But we add modern elements to attract younger audiences,” they said. 

Their modern approach has received support from indigenous community leaders.

 “We received approval from our elders. 

“When I showed them our work, they immediately said, ‘This is really good’,” said McFeddy.

That positive response from the traditional keepers is the biggest endorsement we could get to modernise these instruments,” he said. 

However, the band has faced doubts from some. 

“Some people say we were just copying the Sape musical instrument from Sarawak,” McFeddy said. 

“That is why I collected all these old instruments… some over 100 years old in my collection. 

“I even went to the British Museum to do research and found documentation proving these instruments existed thousands of years ago,” he said. 

Adrian said the band plans to add more traditional instruments in the future, including the Gabang (wooden xylophone) and Tongkungon (bamboo gongs).

Project manager Catriona Maddocks, who is McFeddy’s wife and originally from the UK, hopes their success inspires others to explore Sabah’s culture. 

The band is now working on a full album and plans to open classes and create a public archive space for these endangered instruments.

“These instruments do not belong to me.  I am just collecting them so the proof of their existence is preserved,” McFeddy said.