SMOOTH AND EFFORTLESS

 

SMOOTH and EFFORTLESS

His name is Maher Zain. He is a Muslim singer. His songs are concerned with Islam such as the life of the Prophet Muhammad, prayers to Allah, the struggle for the independence of Muslim countries, and others. His lyrics are simple to understand but heart touching and heart soothing. His lyrics are in various languages, including Bahasa Indonesia. What makes me deeply impressed is that he can pronounce Indonesian lyrics so smoothly and effortlessly that as if he were an Indonesian speaker.

I had been thinking that he was an Indonesian speaker until I watched his podcast several months ago. In a live dialogue in the podcast, he admitted that he speaks three languages: Arabic, English, and one more language (I forget the third language that he mentioned). Indonesian was not mentioned in his short list of languages he speaks. I got astonished!!! How can he pronounce words so smoothly, effortlessly, and naturally without speaking it?

On the basis of this, I come to the conclusion that he has positive attitude to the Indonesian language. Second Language Acquisition studies confirm that one of the factors contributing to the success of second language acquisition is the learner’s attitude toward the target language. The better and the more open the attitude is, the better the result will be. The natural, smooth, and effortless pronunciation are the examples of the almost-perfect performance of Maher Zain in Bahasa Indonesia. Relying on the research results, I am sure that the almost-perfect performance is due to his openness and his appreciation toward the Indonesian language. However, my belief is a hypothesis. It needs research using empirical data. I wish that some day I can reach him out personally and conduct research on his Indonesian pronunciation.

 

September 16, 2022