National anthem 'Indonesia Raya' can be orchestrated ...
National anthem 'Indonesia Raya' can be orchestrated ...
By Sri Wahyuni
JAKARTA (JP): Bogor Palace will once again make history. After
the APEC forum last year, the palace will host, for the first
time in its history, a concert by Twilite Orchestra, one of the
few such groups in the country, which will present Simponi
Kemerdekaan (Independence Symphony) on the evening of Sept. 9.
This is a rare event indeed.
"For the first time during the New Order period, an orchestra
is allowed to perform there," said Addie MS, Twilite's
conductor/music director. For him, it is a big honor to be able
to perform "imported" music at the palace.
Simponi Kemerdekaan -- presented as part of a series of
programs to celebrate the country's golden anniversary -- will
include the national anthem Indonesia Raya and a number of other
patriotic songs popular during the revolutionary struggle for
independence, such as Sapu Tangan dari Bandung Selatan
(Handkerchief from South Bandung), Bengawan Solo, Janger, Varia
Ibukota and Varia Nusantara. The latter is a medley of a number
of songs from various areas of the country.
The highlight of the concert is that for the first time Indo
nesia Raya will be orchestrated. The version we have often heard
is fanfare orchestra. According to the explanation to a 1958
government regulation on the national anthem, Indonesia Raya can
be orchestrated, played by harmony, brass instruments or the
piano.
Formation
Twilite was formed in April, 1992 on the initiative of musi
cian/songwriter Oddie Agam and businessman Indra Bakrie. The idea
to form this orchestra came from a concert by Addie's ensemble
group -- at that time consisting of 15 people -- in Anyer, West
Java, in 1990. The group was playing for a thanksgiving party
hosted by Indra Bakrie. A number of guests, including
conglomerate Sudwikatmono and former director of the state-owned
TVRI Ishadi -- were impressed by the group's performance. The
host then encouraged Addie to form a real, bigger orchestra, much
to Addie's delight, for it had been his dream to have his own
orchestra.
"Considering his (Indra's) enthusiasm, despite the fact that
he is not a musician, I told myself I could not let financial
constraints get in the way," Addie recalled.
Indra also agreed to reimburse what Addie would have earned
from his recording and songwriting activities as well as
producing musical commercials.
Thus, Twilite was established with Addie as its
conductor/music director. It has 64 members and is supported by a
choir, the 64-member Twilite Chorus.
Twilite managed to run for two years with Indra's financial
support, although for every concert they more often lost money
than not.
"We could not even reach a break-even point, let alone gain a
profit," said Twilite's communications manager Alex Fritz.
So far Twilite has staged 38 concerts, both for limited audi
ences and the public. Their concert at Bogor Palace will be their
39th appearance.
Four of the previous concerts were gala or holiday concerts,
meaning they were public appearances whose financing and
organization were arranged by the orchestra. The rest were
bookings such as for birthday parties, seminars, product
launchings and the BASF Awards presentations.
"We try to be professional, so we set a certain fee for re
quested concerts," said Addie.
Holding gala or holiday concerts means losing money, although
ticket prices are quite high, between Rp 100,000 and Rp 250,000.
A similar concert in New York or Los Angeles would cost around
US$75 (Rp 168,000).
Factors
According to Addie, there are a number of factors why a con
cert costs a lot to stage. First, Indonesia does not have a
concert hall with a minimum capacity of 2,000 people. Here, a
concert is usually held at hotels which can accommodate no more
than 1,000 people.
"If tickets are sold at Rp 15,000 each, we can only earn Rp
150 million. To stage a gala concert requires at lest Rp 350
million," he explained.
The Rp 150 million income from ticket sales is spent on the
costs of building the stage which has to be removed after the
show and which costs up to Rp 20 million. The orchestra also has
to rent the sound system at another Rp 10 million.
Second, Twilite has to pay tax of between Rp 30 million and Rp
50 million per concert.
"Ironically, although the tickets are always sold out, we are
always losing money," Alex added.
No less important is the lack of public interest in such con
certs.
"In other countries, there are a lot of sponsors for such
events," said Addie, who always tries to find time to go to New
York or Los Angeles to enrich his knowledge on orchestra.
All these problems, however, have not discouraged him from
keeping Twilite running.
"No matter what, we want Twilite to run independently. Unlike
today, when we still have to rely on financial support from
others," he said.