Xmas songs go traditional

JAKARTA (JP): Vocalista Sonora, a choir and orchestra from Yogyakarta, kicked off the Christmas season Saturday by performing at the PLN Concert Building.

They performed 19 Christmas songs, including some that are drawn from, or combined with, local spiritual values, traditions and cultures. Some of the numbers were accompanied by local instruments such as a large drum from Nias, a tambourine from Kei, a gong from Flores, and gamelan from Java.

"It's an experiment," Father Karl-Edmund Prier SJ, the conductor of the 80-person orchestra, said. "We try to integrate the native cultures and spirit in our liturgy, so that Gospel songs are enriched."

The group also performed Christmas songs from Ireland, Puerto Rico, Argentina, Spain, and Poland.

The choir was sponsored by the Catholic Businessmen's Dedication of the Diocese of Jakarta. (05)