A Youthful Celebration Of Classical Music, Cantabile

Cantabile! A youthful celebration of classical music
Harry Nazarudin, Contributor, Jakarta | Fri, 02/04/2011 10:08 AM | Entertainment
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AdigunaAddie Muljadi Sumaatmadja, also known as Addie MS, is a member of Indonesia’s celebrity club.

He has more than 44,000 followers on Twitter. Yet he is not a soap opera star or a business tycoon, but a respected conductor, composer, music arranger, and director of the Twilight Orchestra.

In fact, only a handful of classical music performers in Indonesia are as popular as Addie MS. He and his Twilite Orchestra understand that classical music does not traditionally belong to Indonesia’s culture. Therefore, he often chooses simple and easily understood themes for Twilite Orchestra concerts, making them accessible and even enjoyable to teenagers.

For Twilite Orchestra’s first concert in 2011, Addie MS used Twitter to ask his followers what they wanted to hear. The answer was: Nodame Cantabile. If you’re not familiar with Nodame Cantabile, you’re probably above the age bracket targeted for this concert. Nodame Cantabile started as a popular Japanese cartoon (manga) in 2001, which was then used to produce a live action drama aired in 2006 and a popular Japanese cartoon series (anime) in 2008.

The story recounts the romance between Megumi “Nodame” Noda and Shinichi Chiaki, two eccentric teenage music students. The ups and downs of their relationship is expressed in the works of Rachmaninoff, Beethoven, and Gershwin, which they encounter and perform along the way.

So Twilite Orchestra’s “Cantabile!” concert performed last Thursday at the Balai Sarbini Hall, Jakarta, was like a dream come true for hundreds of teenage Jakartans.

The concert started with Montagues and Capulets, from Romeo and Juliet Suite No. 2, Op. 64 by Sergei Prokofiev. Many would have recognized the tune as it is often used when introducing mafia godfathers. Although the tempo faltered a bit at the start, many in the audience nodded at the tune.

Two solo pianists were invited to perform at the concert, based on requests sent on Twitter. Twenty-five-year-old Gita Bayuratri played the popular Etude Op. 10 No. 4 in C-sharp minor by Frédéric Chopin while 14-year-old Victoria Audrey Sarasvathi performed Danse Russe by Igor Stravinsky.

Audrey, who performed in a dashing purple dress, had to stretch her legs to reach the piano’s pedals.

But when she played Danse Russe, her expression, accuracy, and skill caught the attention of the audience.

The jewel of this concert, George Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue, premiered in 1924 at the Aeolian Hall, New York, the US, pioneering the inclusion of jazz elements into a classical music composition. It starts with the famous clarinet glissando, a clarinet thrill followed by a 17-note rising diatonic scale.

Kazuha Nakahara, head of the piano program at Universitas Pelita Harapan Conservatory, played the piano part of this composition. Her vibrant piano playing, coupled with Addie’s smooth style at the baton, presented the audience with a rare opportunity to share Gershwin’s quest for creative musical exploration. Critics are still debating whether the composition can be considered as “jazz”. But the final judgment came from the audience, as the breath-taking performance was given a long applause.

After the intermission, two compositions were performed: Felix Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 4 in A major, Op. 90 “Italian”: 1st Movement and Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 in C Minor, Op 18. Levi Gunardi, one if Indonesia’s noted pianist, played the challenging piano for Piano Concerto No. 2.

During his visit to Europe in 1928, George Gershwin visited Alban Berg, a genius Austrian composer. To honor his guest, Berg organized private performances of his work, including Lyric Suite, a composition so sophisticated it is said to have a “narcosis” effect. Berg asked Gershwin to play one of his compositions on piano but Gershwin, who felt dwarfed by Berg’s reputation, shied away. Berg then gave Gershwin a stern look, saying: “Mr. Gershwin, music is music!”

Music is indeed music: Whether it is composed by a genius composer or by a long-haired rock singer, music is for everyone. Although a light theme was chosen for ‘Cantabile!’, the music was dead serious. For those critics arguing the musical performance paled in comparison to concerts in Vienna or Berlin, they should take note of the hundreds of youngsters in jeans and T-shirts who came to the Balai Sarbini Hall that night — crowds one would never see in Europe.

And this shows just how Indonesia is today: Full of young spirits, eager to live and learn.

That the Twilite Orchestra managed to attract so many young audiences to see, not Baby Baby from Justin Bieber, but Piano Concerto No. 2 from Rachmaninoff, is already an achievement. We hope to see more of these concerts in the future.