JP/7 /harmoni/set 1 cols Box

Musician creates melody from aluminum, bamboo, trays

SURAKARTA, Central Java (JP): Asep Saerul Haris, a graduate student of the Surakarta STSI music school, not only composed a piece for his degree, but also designed his own instruments with unique materials to produce specific tones and sounds.

In just one month, he finished his composition and determined how it should be performed. His success earned his composition a place in the forthcoming "Rhythms of Harmony" performance of STSI, scheduled in Jakarta for June 18-19.

The performance, sponsored by the Indonesian Red Cross and The British Council, will include traditional instruments such as the Javanese gamelan and modern percussion instruments.

One of Asep's unique preparations included calibrating empty bottles to recreate the sounds of a bubbling spring.

He filled the bottles with varying amounts of water, and added tamarind seeds to others, depending on the sound desired.

Secured by strips of rubber on a wooden platform, the bottles are played like a marimba, but sound more gentle.

Asep also used bamboo extensively in his effort to produce specific effects.

He drove three kilograms of nails into five bamboo poles of different lengths, then filled the poles with plastic beads and marbles.

When swung from side to side or up and down, the instrument creates a convincing imitation of the sound of flowing water.

Moved another way, the instrument sounds like crickets chirping.

The Storm

Aluminum shaped into two simple forms produces the sounds of a storm. When shaken vigorously, one long horizontal box filled with strips of metal creates the crack of lightning, while the other form, a circular tube, is cranked at high speed to make the steel strips inside the aluminum roll like thunder.

These sounds, "symbolize challenges that we face every day ... (which) can always be overcome," Asep said.

Another five pieces of bamboo of different lengths were secured to two parallel bamboo poles to produce marimba-like bubbly sounds.

Asep stressed, "My intention was not to imitate nature but to distill its meaning, because nature is beautiful."

For this purpose, he taught male musicians to imitate frogs croaking, dogs barking, etc. through the ingenious use of their mouths and hands.

Asep's most unique-looking instrument is a very rough surfaced winnowing tray on which green beans are slowly spilled, rubbed, and allowed to slide from side to side until the motion rises to a crescendo.

This depicts a storm, subsiding eventually into silence as a women's choir recedes into an almost inaudible hum.

Hearing this in Ulalaho, one cannot help but be impressed by the 11-minute original melody that will open the "Rhythms of Harmony" repertoire.

The only "standard" instruments Asep uses are tom-toms for accent and the rousing finale.

Describing the composition, Asep said that after the sounds of thunder and lightning, it "ends with that indescribable peace and serenity that sets in after a storm,"

Linda Miraflor is a member of the organizing committee for the Rhythms of Harmony performance in Jakarta.

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