Trisutji, Singgih compose new Islamic songs

Trisutji, Singgih compose new Islamic songs

By Gus Kairupan

JAKARTA (JP): Perhaps a better description would be Indonesian
Islamic music, for no doubt there are composers in, say, Turkey,
Pakistan, Egypt and other Moslem countries who have written works
in the same vein -- that is, with the religion of Islam as the
basis for inspiration. The musical idiom of those countries is
not altogether alien to me, but I am sure that the little I have
heard would have been secular rather than religious. Neither do I
know if there is a strict separation between religious and non-
religious music in the Middle East.

In Europe, up to the end of the Middle Ages, formal music was
rather the equivalent of church or religious music, while music
for entertainment was frowned upon -- perhaps because the music
of entertainers in those days crawled with what church fathers
called "the lascivious mode" (mode being something like a scale)
and "the devil's note". That sort of attitude has been out for
centuries, of course, but to give you an idea of what lascivious
mode is, the most famous Christmas carol Silent Night is written
according to just that system.

But to get back to Islamic music, the first such works I heard
was during the recent Festival of Islamic Art on Oct. 25,
featured a concert of compositions by Trisutji Kamal and Singgih
Sanjaya. Trisutji is one of Indonesia's prominent composers -- in
fact, I cannot think of any other composer who is as productive
as she is.

Of Singgih, I have heard mostly arrangements of popular
Indonesian songs featured as encores of concerts by the Nusantara
Chamber Orchestra of which he is a member. His Shalawat Nabi is
the first serious composition I have heard and is written for
orchestra and choir. Though it is still fragmentary and somewhat
weak in resolving lines, Singgih has a commendable grasp of tone
coloring.

Western

The musical background of these two composers is predominantly
Western, and so was the music performed at Gedung Kesenian
Jakarta by the Jakarta Symphony Orchestra conducted by Yudianto
Hinupurwadi. True, the elements of Eastern-flavored intervals was
very prominent but these were blended with devices that are
foreign to Eastern (not just Middle Eastern) music, such as
harmony and harmonic progressions and modulation. In Indonesia,
the use of such devices is not surprising if one considers that
they have been around since the times when the Portuguese were
here four centuries ago.

The pure Eastern characteristic, I would say, was the
recitation of Koranic prayers and verses and the use of Balinese,
Sundanese and Malay percussion instruments. For Indonesian
standards, the setting of the music is very large and includes,
besides the above instruments, a mixed adult choir and a
children's choir. There were also two mu'adzin, whose task is to
call the faithful to prayer, two Koran readers, a poetry reader
and an interpreter. Well over 70 people crammed the stage at
Gedung Kesenian.

The five compositions presented included two songs for soprano
and orchestra, Tembang and Kepadamu Bunda (To Thee, Mother).
Tembang refers to a classical Javanese form of poetry singing or
reciting, which is traditionally accompanied by a gamelan
ensemble. The style of this song reflected the highly polyphonic
characteristics and intricacies of Javanese music which the
orchestra had some difficulty coping with.

The second is written on conventional lines and is dedicated
to the composer's late mother. Trisutji also wrote the lyrics to
both songs. Rendering them was prominent Indonesian soprano, Binu
Doddy Sukaman. I would say that these two songs were the
highlight of the program and I am sure that they will hold
themselves very well among the large number of similar works
categorized as concert arias.

The two major works were Persembahan (Offering), a setting to
music of poetry by Emha Ainun Nadjib, and Kepadamu, Ya Rasul (To
Thee, O Prophet). These works featured all instrumentalists,
vocalists, readers and chanters. I was wondering how Trisutji
would resolve the recitation and chanting which would be void of
any key or tonal systems (let alone a diatonic one), but she
found the answer in having the choir members repeat sentences in
what could only be described as sprechgesang (speak,sing in
German), followed after a few moments by the orchestra. In this
way all the elements were deftly accorded their place within the
composition. It also presented a mosaic of tones and tonal colors
that was both entertaining and spiritually uplifting. These two
compositions were written especially for the festival.Kepadamu,
Ya Rasul flowed better than Persembahan, but both could use
tightening, especially the somewhat lengthy pauses in the
recitations.

Another important aspect is that these works are very
substantial and of very high standard. They are original
Indonesian compositions, and, as far as I know, belong to the
very few in public. Most Indonesian composers concentrate on
music from the final decades of this century. It is just as well
that both Trisutji's and Singgih's works are conventionally
written. After all, universal music (it hasn't been the exclusive
domain of the West for years) had to go through Machaut, Schuetz,
Vivaldi, Bach, Mozart and so on, before reaching the age of John
Cage and Philip Glass.