Jazz is not that distant in Pekanbaru

Jazz is not that distant in Pekanbaru

Mikael Setiawan, Contributor, Pekanbaru, Riau

As the jazz musicians completed their performance on Valentine's Day here recently, the look of satisfaction was clear on the faces of the audience.

Titled Jazz Nite, the event was highlighted by top-notch Indonesian jazz musicians, such as singer Mergie Siegers, who was accompanied by the Idang Rasjidi quartet, and also internationally acclaimed soprano saxophonist Joe Rosenberg.

Over 200 people packed the ballroom of the Pangeran Hotel, where the bimonthly event is held.

Some of the audience even arrived two hours before the opening of the performance at 9 p.m.

The hotel's marketing manager, Harry Susanto, said that they had been holding regular jazz performances since April last year, and that the Valentine's Day's concert was their fifth so far.

"There are a lot of businesspeople going back and forth every week. Unfortunately, there is not much entertainment here, so we offered a live jazz performance as an alternative to karaoke parlors and discotheques," he said.

The show that night was kicked off by local jazz group True Box, led by local jazz figure Yan Haris on drums and vocals, who played several numbers confidently.

Keyboard player Idang and his group -- Ananda Mathez, or just Mathez, on contrabass, Eddy P Syakroni on drums and Agam N. Hamzah on guitar -- came up next, performing On the Green Dolphin Street.

Mergie then joined the band, singing the jazz version of The Falling Leaves. Her deep and clear voice resonated through the audience, who were glued to their seats during the entire show.

The musicians each gave a memorable performance, while Agam, elder brother of noted emcee and TV presenter M. Farhan, hypnotized the audience with his acoustic guitar in a jam session with Idang.

A woman was especially amazed by Mathez' performance, and she whispered to the man sitting next to her, "How could he play that song so beautifully with a bass that has no frets?"

Eddy was also amazing, despite the fact that the drum mikes were often lowered from their positions.

Rosenberg wowed the audience as he jumped on stage, accompanying Mergie, Idang and friends, playing Stella by Starlight, The Autumn Leaves, Imagine and Just the Way You Are.

Ramli, who had come all the way from Duri -- a town some 180 km northwest of Pekanbaru -- just to see the show, said he really enjoyed the performance.

"It was great. They play the songs wholeheartedly."

Rina, a local highschool student, confessed that it was her first time to listen to a jazz performance.

"It's Valentine's Day, you know. I just wanted to see something different here."

Idang, meanwhile, said that the performance was not merely a show.

"We kept to the rhythm and pace of the show. The audience here seemed still shy -- I saw some of them are still unfamiliar with jazz, but that's OK," he said after the performance.

He, however, seemed to be annoyed as some of the guests at the front tables spoke very loudly and their mobile phones kept ringing during the show. He quickly added, though, that he had to be tolerant, as it was not easy for just anybody to listen to jazz.

Nevertheless, the show was a good basis to cultivate the jazz community here.

"Batam's jazz community was definitely like this a few years ago, but now they are so appreciative. I believe the Pekanbaru jazz community will improve," Idang said.

Yan Haris, one of the remaining jazz musicians in Pekanbaru, said that the event was important for regeneration.

He added that there were some 70 people who supported the idea of making a "Pekanbaru jazz community". In the long run, the community could work with similar jazz-loving communities in Jakarta and other cities, to exchange information about jazz and inviting jazz musicians from all over Indonesia.

Two years ago, Idang, Yan and some other jazz musicians in Batam held a jazz festival that was a great success, which marked the birth of the Batam jazz community.

Idang said this year, he was working with the idea to hold a similar event here. Having already released five albums, he also expressed his concerns regarding music producers in the country.

"Indonesian jazz musicians have been recognized internationally, but not domestically...I do believe there will be young jazz musicians, including those from Riau, who will be able to surpass their seniors. In this sense, jazz performances like this are very important to help the birth of a new generation of jazz musicians."