Civil servants cash in on 'calung' music

Civil servants cash in on 'calung' music

Agus Maryono, Contributor, Purwokerto, Central Java

The economic crisis that hit Indonesia in mid-1997 has forced
many people, including civil servants, to find ways to supplement
their salaries with additional income.

The civil servants, as is widely known here, are underpaid but
have not lost the motivation to find ways to earn more money. One
example is in the tourist resort of Baturaden, Central Java,
where 12 civil servants working at the tourism office all perform
Banyumas calung, a traditional orchestra mostly comprised of
bamboo instruments.

The 12 musicians form the Calung Banyumasan Wulung Sari group
and perform twice a week in Baturaden. The group also receives
invitations to perform at private gatherings out of working
hours.

Despite demand for the group, they are only paid Rp 150,000
(US$15.80) per show by the Banyumas regency's tourism office.
That is a small amount considering that the money needs to be
divided among the 12 members.

Wulung Sari leader Sodikun admitted that the pay-per-show
salary has not been enough for his players.

"We have received Rp 150,000 per show for more than five
years. There's nothing we can do about it though because we are
paid by our superior at the tourism office. We have to obey her.
But perhaps we'll ask for a rise next year," he said.

"The money is only enough to buy cigarettes," one of the
members joked.

Sodikun said that the proper fee for each show is around Rp
400,000.

The group has set its own standard price for private
performances.

"We usually receive between Rp 300,000 and Rp 400,000 per
show. The price is set based on the distance of the show's
venue," he said, adding that the group usually performs for seven
hours per show.

The group may charge additional fees for transporting the
musical instruments to venues outside Baturaden resort.

The office head, Sri Amini, said that by performing calung
every weekend, her employees could earn additional income.

"We also give them additional money for practicing," she said,
declining to mention the figure. "If they are invited to perform
outside the regency, they take home the total payment. We don't
charge them at all."

A Dutch tourist expressed his astonishment at the calung
performance.

"The performance is excellent and I really like their playing.
We don't have this kind of music in our country," he said, adding
that he had visited Baturaden twice.

Yuni, a local tourist from Surakarta, also enjoyed the calung
performance.

"Calung is very funny and simple. What's more, we can watch it
for free while eating roasted corn," she said.