Britain's Piano Circus on the road in Indonesia

JAKARTA (JP): A unique British music group, Piano Circus, will combine the best of rock and electronics with the precision of the contemporary classical tradition during its tour of Surabaya, Yogyakarta, Bandung and Jakarta this month.

Piano Circus, formed in 1989, is the combination of six people's unique vision of music, with the result promising to deliver high-quality, dynamic new music to a wide audience.

The group plays only new music, most of it specially written for them, which is exciting, vital and accessible to people of all ages and backgrounds.

Called the music world's answer to The Red Arrows, the group performs on six digital pianos, together with specially designed lighting, live MIDI, video and amplification. The six pianists have a broad range of experience, from traditional western classical music to jazz, pop, rock and African and Asian traditional music.

Piano Circus has made numerous radio and TV appearances, and has performed in a number of countries around the world, including Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Sri Lanka, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy and the United States.

In all the venues on their Indonesia tour, performances will incorporate musical collaborations with local artists, including Sujiwo Tejo of Eksotika Karmawibhangga Indonesia, Sastro Kroncong of Gadjah Mada University's School of Literature and Maha Gotra Ganesha of the Bandung Institute of Technology.

Apart from performances, the group will host workshops at music schools and with young musicians as part of its commitment to promoting music education, while at the same time introducing the range of new approaches the group has developed for the teaching of composition and performance techniques using the latest MIDI and computer technology.

The group is scheduled to perform and hold workshops on Sept. 17 at the Westin Hotel, Surabaya; on Sept. 19 at Gadjah Mada University in Yogyakarta; on Sept. 21 at the Bandung Institute of Technology; and from Sept. 24 to Sept. 26, the group will entertain Jakartans at the Taman Ismail Marzuki arts center. For further information contact (021) 252-4115.