Indonesia

Ambassadors of Sundanese Jazz

By admin ⋅ February 18, 2011 ⋅  Print This Post ⋅ Post a comment

Original artists often slip under the radar of the Indonesian music scene, as many bands and singers trade in on their looks rather than their talent. But those willing to dig deeper will find the country has an abundance of unique artists, who often attract the attention of overseas music lovers before they manage to penetrate the local market.

SimakDialog is one such group. Founded in 1993, the band combines contemporary jazz with traditional Sundanese music to create an original sound that has brought it international recognition.

This year it have been selected as the only band from Asia to play at the annual jazz trade fair and festival Jazzahead in Bremen, Germany.

“People in other countries have finally realized that there are many great musicians in Indonesia,” said the band’s frontman, Riza Arshad.

Scheduled to take place from April 28 to May 1, Jazzahead is one of the world’s largest jazz gatherings. The event is a melting pot of people from all over the world involved in the jazz industry, including musicians, media representatives, recording companies, festival organizers and promoters.

Last year, Jazzahead welcomed more than 3,000 people.

Riza said people in Western countries were now searching for alternative music from foreign countries, including Indonesia.

“They are looking for different and unique sounds,” he said, adding that musicians had to work hard to respond to this demand by exploring their own originality.

The keyboardist took on this challenge with the other members of his trio, bassist Aditya Pratama and celebrated guitarist Tohpati Ario Hutomo, by inviting three Sundanese musicians — kendang players Endang Ramdan and Erlan Suwardana, and Cucu Kurnia, who plays Sundanese toy — to inject a traditional sound into their music.

The band has released five albums since coming together in 1993. The last two albums, “Patahan” (“Fracture”) and “Demi Masa” (“For the Sake of Time”), were recorded and distributed by American label Moonjune Records.

Under the international label, SimakDialog has received at least 200 positive reviews from music critics worldwide, helping to raise the profile of Indonesian music worldwide.

Riza said music lovers around the world had long been familiar with the tabla, a percussion instrument from India. But if they knew what the Sundanese kendang could do, he said, they might consider replacing the tabla with the Indonesian equivalent.

Riza said the kendang, a drum from West Java with two surfaces, could produce unique sounds by “manipulating the rhythm.”

SimakDialog has often been labeled an ethnic band due to the distinctive sound of the kendang in its music. Riza, however, is quick to dismiss the label.

“We call our music contemporary,” he said, adding that the band didn’t want to get pigeonholed in the traditional music category.

“It’s not really about how we play the kendang, but how to play the music deeply,” he said.

The band’s self-described style is “Karawitan jazz,” or jazz inspired by traditional Javanese music.

Project manager Agus Setiawan Basuni said SimakDialog’s success was a sign of the rise of jazz music in Indonesia.

Agus, who represents 12 other Indonesian jazz bands, said plenty of international jazz acts had already visited the country, so now it was time for local musicians to venture out and perform overseas. He said recent developments in jazz in Indonesia were promising, with more jazz festivals being held not only in Jakarta but also on other islands, including Sumatra and Sulawesi.

“We hope that more Indonesian jazz musicians will follow on to play at the international level,” Agus said.

According to Riza, SimakDialog’s upcoming performance at the Jazzahead festival is a good first step.

“As the only group from Asia to perform at such a prestigious event, this performance will be very important for the future development of Indonesian jazz,” the classically trained keyboardist said.

SimakDialog is scheduled to give a 45-minute performance on the first day of the event. As the day’s closing act, the band will play alongside acts from Australia, Brazil and Canada.

Guitarist Tohpati said SimakDialog had not been doing anything special to prepare for the event, but said the band was looking forward to playing live in Germany and sharing its music with an international audience.

Riza said his goal for the performance was simple. “I just want to inspire people through my music because I am always inspired by other musicians too.”