KUALA LUMPUR: The Penang House of Music, which opened seven years ago as a repository of the state's musical heritage, will close down soon.
"It is with a heavy heart that we announce that Penang House of Music will be shutting its doors for good," it said on Facebook.
"It's been a wonderful seven-plus years and we are proud of this labour of love, but alas, passion alone isn't enough, and the lack of financial and institutional support has made it a little too difficult to continue.
"As we tidy up loose ends, please be patient with us. We urge you to come visit us one last time and help us celebrate our rich music legacy."
Founder and musician Paul Augustin said financial constraints, made worse by the Covid-19 pandemic, were the main reasons for the closure, according to an FMT report.
"It was 16 months of uncertainty during the pandemic. One moment we could open and, other times, we could not. This took a toll on our finances."
Augustin added that since its opening in November 2016, the place had been on TripAdvisor's top 10 must-visit list.
It was listed by CNN as one of the 25 must-do things in Penang.
"I would like to continue archiving the nation's art and cultural heritage.
"We have been recognised as unofficial custodians of the nation's arts and music, and we have to carry on with our work.
"We don't know when we will close. Maybe the end of this month or next."
The Penang House of Music was launched as part of the Penang Musical Heritage Project with a RM3 million sponsorship by the Penang Water Supply Corp.
Located on the fourth floor of Komtar's ICT Mall, the premises covers Penang's musical journey from the 1900s when the British colonials held sway, the Japanese occupation in the early 1940s, the return of the colonials in the mid-1940s, the halcyon days of pre-independence, the glory days of the Swinging Sixties to the Buoyant Seventies.
Actor-singer P. Ramlee and Saloma are celebrated here, among Penang-born or raised entertainers, such as Ahmad Daud, Ahmad Nawab, Zainal Alam, Rubia Lubis, Jimmy Boyle, Ooi Eow Jin, Albert Yeoh, Richard Hoon, Lee Yee and David Arumugam.
Visitors can delve into long-forgotten musical and arts genres, such as ronggeng, bangsawan and boria.
The venue houses a radio studio where visitors can be deejays and record audio presentations as a keepsake.
There's also a diorama of a 1960s coffee shop complete with a jukebox and Rediffusion audio box.