Capella Amadeus going from strength to strength

By Gus Kairupan

JAKARTA (JP): The program book for the most recent concert of the Capella Amadeus String Ensemble lists five instances of having appeared in Indonesia, but surely there have been more. The five were all commissioned events, mostly charity concerts, and performances in which it was asked to accompany foreign artists, like the time when it performed with two guitarists from Germany about two years ago.

The times the ensemble organized its own shows are not mentioned, but there must have been about a dozen since the group's debut nearly three years ago. Not a bad track record for an ensemble that specializes in classical music -- a risky business in this country.

The ensemble performed before a full house at a concert it arranged last month at the Erasmus Huis. The group was much larger as some of the players were not permanent members. Leader Grace Sudargo recruited trumpetists Eric Awuy and Trayadi as well as Canadian percussionist Francois Aubin to perform a Vivaldi composition for two trumpets and strings, and a modern work by Canadian composer, Alexander Brott, titled Critic's Corner for string quintet, percussion and police (or referee) whistle.

Other works in the program were Adagio In G by Tomaso Albinoni (1671-1750), Orchestra Quartet In C by Carl Stamitz (1745-1801) and Brandenburg Concerto No 3 by J.S. Bach (1685-1750).

Those who have followed the laudable efforts of Grace Sudargo and her ensemble (Capella Amadeus is indeed her creation) would no doubt be aware that the program runs very much to form in that the works presented over the years are mostly of the period from the late baroque to classical styles.

The grip that Capella Amadeus and Grace have on the music of that era is sure and confident. The concert was highly enjoyable and at times approached professional standards. What's more, the ensemble members performed with spirit and obviously enjoyed what they were doing. Gabi von der Heyden, who used to be a member when she resided in Jakarta, even came back from Germany to perform with Capella Amadeus. Anyway, Grace would do well to venture outside the late-baroque and classical eras.

Capella Amadeus has become a viable presence in the world of classical music activities in Jakarta and it won't be long before fans demand more varied programs.

Some quite knotty works were written during the late baroque/classical period. Take, for instance, the third of Bach's six Brandenburg Concertos -- it may be the shortest of the lot but it has more than a fair share of deviltry when it comes to entries.

I can't think of a single instance where the ensemble played tutti -- except in the two measures of the adagio, which is nothing but a bridge from the first to the final movement. Otherwise, every section (first and second violins, violas, bass) had its own role to play in this gigantic fugue.

There were a few entries that lacked decisiveness and confidence, resulting in a loss of individuality in the section. A fugue, after all, consists of individuals doing different things in perfect harmony -- and if this makes you think of Bhinneka Tunggal Ika (Unity in Diversity), you're not far off the mark. Anyway, the Brandenburg was the only interpretation that showed this little drawback.

With respect to unity, dynamics and coloring, the playing could not be faulted, nor could Eric Awuy and Taryadi, the two trumpetists who performed Vivaldi's only composition for those instruments.

Eric is the only classical trumpetist we have. For someone with such an extensive international background, he is the most underused musician in this country. Playing with Capella Amadeus was one of the very few occasions in the past two years that brought him back to Indonesia. He and Taryadi presented a lively performance of Vivaldi's work, leaving me to wonder whether there are more composition of the same kind because Taryardi matched Eric quite admirably.

As mentioned before, the concert also featured Canadian percussionist Francois Aubin. He has been in Indonesia for more than a year now, speaks Indonesian like a native and, like Eric, is very much underused as a musician. It was because of his efforts that Brott's work for string quintet and percussion, Critic's Corner, had its first performance in Indonesia.

The programmatic and very amusing work consists of five movements: allegro (describing the flamboyant yet basically shallow type of critic); allegro scherzo (the critic primarily interested in juggling words at the expense of content); andante (the self-indulgent sentimentalist); allegro vivace (the sly rather precious perfectionist) and allegro con spirito (the erudite critic busily in search of significance between the lines, in this instance represented by a five-part invertible fugue).

Quite a job for Francois, who carried it out with aplomb, running from the gong and kettledrums to the xylophone and jazz drums. In between he handled cowbells, tam-tam, triangle and occasionally blew a whistle.

Setting up the instruments was a show in itself and earned Francois a bit of applause. The performance of Critic's Corner put me in a bit of a spot, because the writer of the program notes mentioned -- with tongue firmly in cheek, I bet -- that the performance had been dedicated to me.

Of course someone had to ask me which of the five characteristics suited me best. Now, I don't like to be just one type, so I said that all five applied.