Trisutji, Singgih compose new Islamic songs<\/p>\n
By Gus Kairupan<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Perhaps a better description would be Indonesian
\nIslamic music, for no doubt there are composers in, say, Turkey,
\nPakistan, Egypt and other Moslem countries who have written works
\nin the same vein -- that is, with the religion of Islam as the
\nbasis for inspiration. The musical idiom of those countries is
\nnot altogether alien to me, but I am sure that the little I have
\nheard would have been secular rather than religious. Neither do I
\nknow if there is a strict separation between religious and non-
\nreligious music in the Middle East.<\/p>\n
In Europe, up to the end of the Middle Ages, formal music was
\nrather the equivalent of church or religious music, while music
\nfor entertainment was frowned upon -- perhaps because the music
\nof entertainers in those days crawled with what church fathers
\ncalled \"the lascivious mode\" (mode being something like a scale)
\nand \"the devil's note\". That sort of attitude has been out for
\ncenturies, of course, but to give you an idea of what lascivious
\nmode is, the most famous Christmas carol Silent Night is written
\naccording to just that system.<\/p>\n
But to get back to Islamic music, the first such works I heard
\nwas during the recent Festival of Islamic Art on Oct. 25,
\nfeatured a concert of compositions by Trisutji Kamal and Singgih
\nSanjaya. Trisutji is one of Indonesia's prominent composers -- in
\nfact, I cannot think of any other composer who is as productive
\nas she is.<\/p>\n
Of Singgih, I have heard mostly arrangements of popular
\nIndonesian songs featured as encores of concerts by the Nusantara
\nChamber Orchestra of which he is a member. His Shalawat Nabi is
\nthe first serious composition I have heard and is written for
\norchestra and choir. Though it is still fragmentary and somewhat
\nweak in resolving lines, Singgih has a commendable grasp of tone
\ncoloring.<\/p>\n
Western<\/p>\n
The musical background of these two composers is predominantly
\nWestern, and so was the music performed at Gedung Kesenian
\nJakarta by the Jakarta Symphony Orchestra conducted by Yudianto
\nHinupurwadi. True, the elements of Eastern-flavored intervals was
\nvery prominent but these were blended with devices that are
\nforeign to Eastern (not just Middle Eastern) music, such as
\nharmony and harmonic progressions and modulation. In Indonesia,
\nthe use of such devices is not surprising if one considers that
\nthey have been around since the times when the Portuguese were
\nhere four centuries ago.<\/p>\n
The pure Eastern characteristic, I would say, was the
\nrecitation of Koranic prayers and verses and the use of Balinese,
\nSundanese and Malay percussion instruments. For Indonesian
\nstandards, the setting of the music is very large and includes,
\nbesides the above instruments, a mixed adult choir and a
\nchildren's choir. There were also two mu'adzin, whose task is to
\ncall the faithful to prayer, two Koran readers, a poetry reader
\nand an interpreter. Well over 70 people crammed the stage at
\nGedung Kesenian.<\/p>\n
The five compositions presented included two songs for soprano
\nand orchestra, Tembang and Kepadamu Bunda (To Thee, Mother).
\nTembang refers to a classical Javanese form of poetry singing or
\nreciting, which is traditionally accompanied by a gamelan
\nensemble. The style of this song reflected the highly polyphonic
\ncharacteristics and intricacies of Javanese music which the
\norchestra had some difficulty coping with.<\/p>\n
The second is written on conventional lines and is dedicated
\nto the composer's late mother. Trisutji also wrote the lyrics to
\nboth songs. Rendering them was prominent Indonesian soprano, Binu
\nDoddy Sukaman. I would say that these two songs were the
\nhighlight of the program and I am sure that they will hold
\nthemselves very well among the large number of similar works
\ncategorized as concert arias.<\/p>\n
The two major works were Persembahan (Offering), a setting to
\nmusic of poetry by Emha Ainun Nadjib, and Kepadamu, Ya Rasul (To
\nThee, O Prophet). These works featured all instrumentalists,
\nvocalists, readers and chanters. I was wondering how Trisutji
\nwould resolve the recitation and chanting which would be void of
\nany key or tonal systems (let alone a diatonic one), but she
\nfound the answer in having the choir members repeat sentences in
\nwhat could only be described as sprechgesang (speak,sing in
\nGerman), followed after a few moments by the orchestra. In this
\nway all the elements were deftly accorded their place within the
\ncomposition. It also presented a mosaic of tones and tonal colors
\nthat was both entertaining and spiritually uplifting. These two
\ncompositions were written especially for the festival.Kepadamu,
\nYa Rasul flowed better than Persembahan, but both could use
\ntightening, especially the somewhat lengthy pauses in the
\nrecitations.<\/p>\n
Another important aspect is that these works are very
\nsubstantial and of very high standard. They are original
\nIndonesian compositions, and, as far as I know, belong to the
\nvery few in public. Most Indonesian composers concentrate on
\nmusic from the final decades of this century. It is just as well
\nthat both Trisutji's and Singgih's works are conventionally
\nwritten. After all, universal music (it hasn't been the exclusive
\ndomain of the West for years) had to go through Machaut, Schuetz,
\nVivaldi, Bach, Mozart and so on, before reaching the age of John
\nCage and Philip Glass.<\/p>",
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