Erwin hits right note for Indonesia pop orchestras<\/p>\n
By Endi Aras<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Erwin Gutawa is a successful arranger, conductor
\nwho has an orchestra named after him and has been a music
\ndirector on a number of albums. And he is ready to become more
\ninvolved through his \"pop orchestra\".<\/p>\n
Born in Jakarta on May 16, 1962, Erwin began his career in
\nmusic when he joined a band. Previously, he won many children's
\nsinging contests. His success in singing contests attracted the
\nattention of the late Pranajaya, who recruited him for his Bina
\nVokalia choir. He later joined the Karimata group and took part
\nin festivals abroad, including the North Sea Jazz Festival.<\/p>\n
In one of his latest performances, he appeared in the sold-out
\nChrisye concert. The success of the show cannot be separated from
\nErwin, the man behind the concert's orchestra.<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post met Erwin recently in his Syailendra studio
\non Jl. Fatmawati, South Jakarta, to learn more about him and his
\nmusic. Following is an excerpt of the interview:<\/p>\n
Question: Do you think orchestration was a determining factor
\nin the concert?<\/p>\n
Answer: Actually, the concert's concept of performance was not
\nonly orchestration. The orchestra was only part of the musical
\nsetting. I adopted this concept because I knew that Chrisye's
\naudience comprised both young and old generations. So I had to
\npresent a package that accommodated a variety of things which
\nwould appeal them. In other words, we emphasized the variety to
\nensure the audience would get all sorts of music that still
\nsuited Chrisye. The orchestra, since it was big, gave the
\nimpression of grace and grandness.<\/p>\n
Well, to compose music for an orchestra or do the arrangement
\nfor orchestral music is different from ordinary recording. In
\nordinary recording, we begin with the drums and then bass. After
\na while, we introduce the guitar. It's just like painting. In an
\norchestra, we have to compose everything. The music for the
\nflute, the piano and so forth. I am the first to hear it, in my
\nimagination. It makes me tense. Only when the song is presented
\nwith the orchestra do we know whether it is good or not.
\nSometimes we are successful, sometimes we are not. What I mean as
\nsuccessful is that the music, when played, is exactly what I
\nwanted to hear when I wrote it.<\/p>\n
Some say that Indonesian songs are difficult to turn into
\nmusic for an orchestra. What do you think?<\/p>\n
Well, it is relative. In my case, it is the music industry. I
\ncome from the music industry, not from experimental. To me things
\nare not difficult. Well, by saying not difficult I don't mean it
\nis always good either. A song is a creation and allows us to
\ninterpret it. It is up to us to use orchestral or gamelan music,
\nfor example. The difficulty lies in technical matters. In this
\nregard, we can just learn how to put together a good orchestra.<\/p>\n
To tell you the truth, not all Indonesian songs are good. Some
\nare very good indeed though. And we have songwriters of the
\ncaliber of Mas Guruh (choreographer Guruh Soekarnoputra). Many
\nsongwriters, it is true, are not very careful when writing their
\nsongs and they usually leave us confused. We do not know what to
\ndo with their songs. So, this is more about the technical aspect
\nof the songs. If a song is good, it may be turned into a great
\nvariety of music, just like the Beatles' songs.<\/p>\n
What is pop orchestra?<\/p>\n
I have said that I am a musician oriented to the music
\nindustry and entertainment. So I am always connected with the
\nproduction of cassettes. I am not a musician who is also, say, a
\ncomposer. A composer is a different thing and is not related to
\nthe music industry. I just like to observe things but I cannot
\nfocus entirely on them. I'm aware of my potential. So, pop
\norchestra is close to entertainment and the music industry. As
\nyou know, the music industry is akin to pop music. Honestly, this
\nis my world.<\/p>\n
Is pop orchestra a new thing in our music industry?<\/p>\n
Not quite. It is but pop music with instrumental setting which
\nmay involve 30 to 40 musicians for an orchestra. The late Pak
\nIskandar and the late Pak Isbandi pioneered this kind of music
\npresentation with their Telerama on TVRI television station.
\nThat's why I have said that this kind of music must have been
\nfamiliar to our people. In fact, that was the beginning of the
\npop orchestra.<\/p>\n
Now that orchestral music has entered the music industry, what
\nis your opinion?<\/p>\n
That's OK. I am happy about it but there are difficulties. An
\norchestra means a number of people play music together at the
\nsame time. This means we need facilities, budgeting and a proper
\nrecording technique. Of course, this is more difficult than for a
\nband of four or five members only.<\/p>\n
People in the music industry are often adverse to such things
\nbecause they know the budget will swell. Musically speaking, I
\nindeed am very keen to learn a lot and I like to involve many
\npeople. The more people involved, the better the result. It is
\ntrue, however, that orchestral music has yet to get a firm
\nfooting in the music industry because people in the music
\nindustry are not yet open to this.<\/p>\n
How long does it usually take for an orchestra to get a song
\njust right?<\/p>\n
It depends on how many instruments are involved. The more
\ninvolved, the longer it takes. Each musical instrument needs a
\nseparate music arrangement.<\/p>\n
Is there improvisation in an orchestra?<\/p>\n
No, because everybody must play according to what has been
\nwritten for them. So they cannot improvise.<\/p>\n
What is the position of ethnic musical instruments in an
\norchestra?<\/p>\n
Honestly, I have included these kinds of musical instruments
\njust because I like them. I do not want to use Javanese or
\nSundanese musical instruments only. I have tried several times in
\nmy shows for RCTI and I have involved ethnic music players. True,
\nsome people say these ethnic musical instruments are simply given
\na very minor role, act as decoration. This does not worry me
\nbecause what is important is that I have experimented in
\nsomething which needs careful thought and calculation. This is so
\nbecause I am from the music industry. I refrain from forcing
\nthings. If it's not suitable, I won't use it. It is true that I
\nhave tried to use specific musical instruments and I need input
\nfrom the young.<\/p>\n
Do you write musical scores for these ethnic instruments?<\/p>\n
Yes, I do for an orchestra. I have to tell them how and when
\nto play, although sometimes I give them free range.<\/p>\n
What about the music composition for percussion instruments?<\/p>\n
Rhythm. Rhythm is close to a workshop with various techniques
\nwhich we must seek. If I wrote things down, the result would be
\nrigidity.<\/p>\n
Other singers now want to use orchestras for their songs. What
\ndo you think?<\/p>\n
Well, I'm happy about the possibility. But it must be clear to
\nall that involving music the way I have done takes profound
\nlearning and loyalty. As I have said we cannot just ask 50 people
\nto play. We need to treat them properly to win support. Let me
\ngive you an example. In some instances there could be musicians
\nfor an orchestra, but the arrangement and management are both
\npoor. The audience would not be supportive. Finally, the judgment
\nwould be that Indonesians are not good at working on orchestral
\nmusic. This could be a trap for all of us. So if a committee
\nwishes to have orchestral music, the first important thing is a
\ncommon vision. This is not the same as a music band.<\/p>\n
It means there is special management in an orchestra?<\/p>\n
Yes, we need arrangement on how to present ourselves. As for
\nme, I prefer to see my orchestra appear casually. I rarely
\nperform for such events like parties or gala dinners at
\nexorbitant ticket prices. I prefer to play for such events like
\nGigi, Chrisye as the atmosphere is casual. If you go to a concert
\nhall for an orchestra you must be neat. You also cannot shout. As
\nfor me, the audience can do what they please. This is what I want
\nto introduce to our music fans.<\/p>\n
Of course, we need more than just the show. We need loyalty on
\nthe part of the organizer or promoter so that we appear
\ncompassionate and then people will like us more. If we have more
\norganizers, we will have more musicians in terms of the music
\nitself. Now many people say, \"Win, your musicians are those that
\njoin the orchestra of Addie MS\". In my opinion, this is the best
\nway. Why? To have an event every other month is already good
\nenough. If we had more musicians, many of them would be jobless,
\nand then who would be responsible for them? The case now is that
\nwe have just enough musicians to meet the demand. A big concert
\nlike Chrisye's happens only once a year. Addie MS once performed
\na concert every two months. That's good.<\/p>\n
Well, if an orchestra performed every week, there would be a
\ncraze for orchestra. People would become restless if they failed
\nto go to a concert hall once a week. Well, in this case there
\nwould be new musicians. The competition would be healthier. Good
\nmusicians would earn more respect. And in this situation I would
\nask, \"Who will give them a job?\"<\/p>\n
To be able to perform three times a year is good enough. So,
\nwith my concept of casual orchestra I try to bring orchestral
\nsounds to other kinds of music. For Gigi, for example. I helped
\nin Dewa's latest recording. In three songs you can hear
\norchestral sounds. At least people will realize this and
\nhopefully in their next show there will be an accompanying
\norchestra.<\/p>\n
Have we got a concert hall appropriate for an orchestra?<\/p>\n
We have yet to get a proper concert hall for an orchestra.
\nMaybe Teater Tanah Airku in Jakarta is closest the closest thing
\nwe have. Indeed we are still in difficulty about this. As it is,
\nwe must put up everything before we perform: the stage, the
\nlighting and so on. Everything must first be set up, and this is
\nour obstacle.<\/p>",
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