'Requiem' awakens Jakarta for a night<\/p>\n
By Gus Kairupan<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): It has, thankfully, been centuries -- perhaps
\nmore than a millennium -- since the abbot of the church of
\nGlastonbury placed archers inside his place of worship with
\norders to shoot anyone in the choir who dared to divert from the
\nprescribed modes and harmonic structures. The choir probably
\nconsisted of only monks and in those days there wasn't much
\nstructure: only someone singing either a fifth below or above the
\nother.<\/p>\n
Church music was held very sacred and kept very secret. A
\nMiserere sung at the Sistine Chapel only on very special
\noccasions until well past the mid-18th century was written down
\nby a 12-year-old brat on a visit to Italy. He remembered every
\nsingle note and word of the 9-voice composition.<\/p>\n
Th brat's name was Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. It is tempting to
\nsay that after that little incident the church threw open the
\ndoors to its musical archives, or discarded the modes and began
\nto accept new musical idioms.<\/p>\n
In fact, the church always moved with the times, and though
\norganum is probably still sung at services, modern scales and
\nharmony are very much part of church music today.<\/p>\n
If the church had clung to the forms of old, the likes of
\nPalestrina, Sweelinck and Vivaldi would have been condemned to
\nthe underworld. But one can speculate that from the end of the
\n17th century an appreciation for church music (or sacred music)
\nbegan to expand beyond the adherents of Catholicism. People
\nstarted liking it for its musical value and would flock to any
\nperformance, whether it be in a church or a concert hall.<\/p>\n
Today, in the final years of the 20th century, the concept of
\nspiritually goes beyond the beliefs or creeds one grew up with. A
\nnon-Muslim can get the same uplift from Trisutji Kamal's Islamic
\ncompositions as a non-Christian might get from Haydn's The
\nCreation or Bach's B-Minor Mass or Gabriel Faure's Requiem.<\/p>\n
The Requiem was the major work performed last Friday at
\nJakarta's Roman Catholic Cathedral as part of a series of events
\ncollectively known as \"November - Month of Church Music\".<\/p>\n
A requiem was also presented last November because the event
\nis meant as a celebration of All Souls' Day, the commemoration of
\nthose who have passed away. November is also the month in which
\nthe cathedral's choir, Sancta Caecdlia, celebrates its birthday.
\nIt is 130 this year. The cathedral, understandably, does not have
\na permanent orchestra so it engages musicians from other
\norchestras.<\/p>\n
Last Friday's performance was conducted by Tommy Prabowo, who
\nis also a pianist, a violinist, and a nuclear scientist or a
\ncomputer scientist or both. The all-Faure program featured,
\nbesides the Requiem, his Pavane (for orchestra) and a composition
\nfor cello and orchestra, Elegie. Indra Notowidigdo performed the
\nsolos. Joseph Kristanto Pantioso and Yoana Fonny Chandra sang the
\nbaritone and soprano solos in the requiem. The Sancta Caecidia
\nchoir sang all the other parts superbly.<\/p>\n
It was clear from the moment the oboe (Juhad Ansyari) opened
\nthe program with the hauntingly beautiful strains of the Pavane
\nthat the concert would noteworthy. As far as orchestral music in
\nJakarta is concerned it was a major event.<\/p>\n
Like all things in Jakarta, it did have its problems. Seven
\nviolins (divided into firsts and seconds) against seven violas,
\nfive cellos and three double basses was a bit lop-sided, and it
\nshowed. Not that the violins were not up to the task -- they
\nplayed and projected with strength. Sadrakh Hutapea merits
\nmention as the leader of the group and, consequently, concert
\nmaster. Even so, the violins somewhat overshadowed by the other
\nstrings and the French horns led by Irianto Suwondo.<\/p>\n
There were four horns (only three were listed in the program)
\nand their performance was nothing less than amazing for the
\nstrength and, more importantly, the confidence with which they
\nplayed their parts. This is a most welcome change from the
\nexcruciating horn sections in the other three Jakartan
\norchestras.<\/p>\n
Another stumbling point was the performance of cello soloist,
\nIndra Notowidigdo. He is in his mid-teens, an age where it may be
\na bit difficult for him to understand and feel the passion of
\nromantic music. He has talent and could reach considerable
\nheights, although it is questionable whether he can achieve this
\nin Indonesia. There are no good cello teachers in this country.<\/p>\n
The problems, however, were minor and much of the success must
\nbe laid at conductor Tommy Prabowo's door.<\/p>\n
Communicating with the musicians is one of the most important
\naspects when leading an orchestra, something Tommy accomplished.
\nAble to play the piano, violin, organ and sing, he has a much
\nwider knowledge of how to shape and color tones than other
\nconductors. He does not confine himself to indicating tempo and
\nhe could become a major force in orchestral music in Indonesia.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/requiem-awakens-jakarta-for-a-night-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}