Evergreen helps give global color to 'degung'

Her Suganda, Contributor, Bandung

Only few have realized that local music, particularly Sundanese music, has put itself into the international music arena. In the hands of professional musicians of Toronto-based Evergreen Club Contemporary Gamelan, degung (Sundanese traditional orchestra) has popularized Sundanese music with the international community.

For Sundanese, degung was traditionally performed to entertain guests at a wedding ceremony or circumcision rite.

However, in a special performance on June 16, a contemporary arrangement of degung managed to provide fresh and mesmerizing entertainment. During the entire two-hour performance, around 300 people -- who packed the Sunan Ambu building of the Indonesian Arts Higher Learning School (STSI) of Bandung -- seemed to be awakened to the fact that local music still occupies a decent place in the era of globalization.

The performance -- jointly organized by STSI Bandung, Indonesian Education University (UPI) Bandung and West Java culture and tourism service -- was enlightening to Sundanese song composers.

"We should feel ashamed in front of them (the foreign musicians) and learn the way they do," noted Sundanese artist Enoch Atmadibrata commented after watching the first set of Sundanese songs.

Eight degung players successfully brought to the audience a strong Sundanese flair, thanks to artistic director Blair Mackay, who closed the whole performance with Anjeun (You), composed by Nano S. The performers received a standing ovation from the audience, mostly Sundanese.

They admired the use of degung as the main means of performance, which, when played with other instruments, mentally transported the audience to the atmosphere enveloping the beautiful and hospitable land of Sunda. Degung originally consisted of waditra (instruments) -- bonang, cempres, jenglong, kendang (drums), suling (flute) and goong (gong). Originally, degung, the nayaga (players) of which used to be all male, was only concerned with instrumental music.

Since 1958, degung was also performed with juru kawih (singers) and allowed females to participate. More instruments were added later: saron-I, saron-II and rebab (a two-string bowed instrument).

Degung was known mostly as the art of Sundanese menak (aristocrats). The performance was usually held in the public hall of a regent's office. When Bandung regency was led by RAA Wiranatakusumah, degung could be performed outside the public hall if a special permit was obtained.

Thanks to Enoch Atmadibrata, Evergreen Club musicians were able to get acquainted with Sundanese degung. No wonder that Evergreen Club gave a special citation to this famous Sundanese dance contributor.

It all began when Enoch was still teaching in the U.S. At that time, Lou Harrison, his composer friend, asked him to find a gamelan for Lou's students at Mills College.

As soon as the degung consignment was received on Feb. 14, 1983, the gamelan, dubbed "Si Pawit", was immediately used for musical exploration by the Evergreen Community. When composer Jon Siddall studied at STSI Bandung, "Si Pawit" was returned to its owner in Vancouver.

Then Evergreen Club looked for a new gamelan. That was made by Tentrem, the master gamelan maker in Surakarta, Central Java.

FX Widaryanto of STSI Bandung said, in his introductory address, that with degung gamelan, Evergreen Club toured Canada, Europe and the United States, performing the work of a number of noted composers. Some of the works, he added, were even specially created for a degung ensemble or degung-plus.

Composers whose work has been performed by Evergreen Club include Walter Bodreau, John Cage, Lou Harrison, Jon Siddall, James Tenney, Giles Tremblay, John Wyre, Evan Ziporyn and others. Many of these works are available in CD form, including North Of Java (Arjuna Records, 1992), O, Bali (CBC Records, 1993) and Palace (Artifact Records, 1996).

A degung ensemble has also been used for musical illustrations in a number of films. Composer Jon Sidall once studied at the Indonesian Dance Academy (ASTI) of Bandung and took lessons from Nano S.

The Evergreen Club's concert in Bandung was divided into three parts. After a repertoire of Sundanese music, the club warmed up the atmosphere with Canadian music. The performance finished with music and dances.

Heavy rain had just stopped in Bandung but the degung audience did not feel the cold. It felt warm, admiring the dancers -- Louis Aberge-Cote, Susan Lee and Jessica Runge -- who moved agilely, interpreting with their movements the Surakarta gamelan music created by composer Mark Duggan and the dance neatly arranged by choreographer Maxine Heppne.

Evergreen Club Contemporary Gamelan was in Bandung after previously taking part in the Gamelan Festival in Yogyakarta. From Bandung, it proceeded to another leg of its journey: Jakarta.

The performances by Evergreen form part of the activities to commemorate 50 years of cultural ties between Indonesia and Canada. More events in this context will soon be organized. As this commemoration will last until 2003, artists of the two countries may make exchange visits.