Java Jazz draws best performers, fans
Java Jazz draws best performers, fans
M. Taufiqurrahman and Evi Mariani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
It was not the typical scene that greets people at venues where
jazz is played. If jazz lovers usually savored jazz in a small
club with a cozy atmosphere, concertgoers at the Java Jazz
Festival had to elbow their way into the separate halls as their
favorite performers the likes of Earth, Wind & Fire, Incognito
and Deodato took to the stage.
A large crowd turned out on Saturday evening, the second day
of the Java Jazz Festival, crowding into all nooks and crannies
that were left at the Jakarta Convention Center (JCC) in Senayan,
Central Jakarta, where dozens of international and local artists
congregated to perform in a once-in-a-lifetime event.
All the performance halls in the JCC booked for Java Jazz gigs
were filled to full-house, with some concertgoers even sitting
and standing in the vicinity of the stages.
The crowd thronged to the Assembly Hall, with a great number
of them standing right below the stage and in the aisles --
whether or not they had an assigned seat there -- when veteran
guitarist and founding member of local jazz band Krakatau Donny
Suhendra came onstage.
Suhendra gave true meaning to the virtuosity and improvisation
that constitutes the heart of all great jazz. Every extended and
meandering solo from the musicians, including keyboardist Dwiki
Dharmawan and drummer Budi Haryono, roused an obligatory -- yet
no less enthusiastic -- applause from the audience.
And when the show was over, the pleased concertgoers wasted no
time in scurrying and scrambling their way out of the hall to
another venue for a different performance.
Contrary to the widely held belief that jazz music is confined
to a small, intimate audience, specifically mature ones, the
younger generation made up the bulk of the crowd who came to see
the jazz maestros.
Young men and women in the latest fashion trends and hairdos
shuffled around the venues, hurriedly making their way to see
various artists, some of whom they had never heard of before.
"I know Deodato, and I came to his concert because I wanted to
see how he performed live," a young jazz fan told The Jakarta
Post when asked if he knew of the Brazilian musician who was
performing as a headline act in the Saturday line-up.
A number of teen idols ranging from television soap opera
actresses to music channel presenters also put in an appearance
at the festival, mingling with other like-minded concertgoers.
Deodato's, however, also revealed a grave flaw the festival
organizers had failed to mend from the day before: several
concert halls had substandard sound systems with the bass turned
up so high that it drowned out entire shows. Delayed performances
were thus a norm of the festival.
The organizers were lucky that the audience was polite and
patient -- unlike those die-hard rock fans notorious for their
penchant for throwing stones and breaking glass.
The audience for the Deodato gig were willing to wait over an
hour before the stage was finally ready for his evening
performance. They sat idly on the stage, made no rowdy
provocations, and only booed half-heartedly, when several people
spoke aloud about their impatience and frustration.
When the Brazilian group finally appeared with a spontaneous
beat of thunderous percussion, the crowd broke out immediately
into an applause of appreciation and welcome.
Deodato's Latin origin was not obvious during the show, except
for the energetic percussionist, who danced vigorously in between
his rhythmic pounding on the drums.
Despite the shortcomings, the audience, who had been deprived
of noteworthy music festivals in the past few years, seemed to be
grateful -- and gracious -- anyway.
"The festival is great. We've enjoyed it so far. And I think
we should have this annually," concertgoer Affan told the Post.
The best thing about the festival is that the performers and
the audience forged an excellent bond, as happens naturally when
entertainers and fans come together over a shared love.