Kua Etnika at Jazz Gunung

It was Sigit Pramono, President Director of state-owned Bank Negara Indonesia and chairman of The National Banks Association (Perbanas), who crafted the idea of organizing a Jazz event at Tengger's soil that gave the birth of the first Jazz Gunung last Saturday, July 25, 2009. He's also known as skilled photographer ... [Read more...]

C.TwoSix at Jazz Gunung

Last weekend, July 26, a live musical event of Jazz Gunung was held at Java Banana Bromo, claims to be a tropical lodge with the best panoramic view of Mount Tengger. The place is located at Wonotoro village, Sukapura subdistrict, Probolinggo, East Java. At 2000 meters above sea-level, it gives real cool fresh air with temperature between 14–18°C at daylight and 6–10°C at night. Blended with scenic view of the surrounding mountains, coupled with the mystical Bromo-Batok-Semeru trip afterwards, Jazz Gunung certainly gives a unique experience for Jazz lovers and lovers of natural beauty.

I got a free pass as a "photographer" of Apey, a friend who's a freelancer of an on-line Jazz journal and a DJ of a cyber radio, and got a red pin, labeled with "press" on it. Cool. I then bought a black T-shirt, my favorite color, and a nice looking hat at Warta Jazz counter and I put it on my head with the red pin attached shyly on it.


A local traditional performing arts, named Jathilan, seemingly opened the event. Jathilan is a group uncoordinated dance where the performers, usually men, ride on bamboo horse and at certain point of time they enter into a state of trance.
The above picture, however, is a Reog mask dance that took stage right after the Jathilan. I believe they belong to the same group.


C.TwoSix, a group of Jazz community from city of Surabaya, took the stage after being introduced by Butet Kertaredjasa, MC of the event.


It was not that clear whether Butet was enjoying his cigarette, the cool fresh air, or the lovely scenery. It might be all of them.


The group played several familiar songs, such as Earth Wind & Fire's In the Stone, Sade's Smooth Operator, Bill Withers' Just The Two of Us, and Bob Marley's I Shot the Sheriff.


The organizer provided simple but comfortable seats for Jazz Gunung spectators.


The two months old grass stage could provide ample space for the musicians to play their music compositions.


Personnel of C.TwoSix who played that day might not yet be among the high level of Jazz performers, but they certainly deserved to get credits, particularly for the male saxophonist, drummer, and the bassist. Unfortunately, i didn't write down the crew's name.

More practices and more live events are certainly needed for the group to improve their promising musical performance. I would expect, however, that they will play their original compositions next time I watch them on stage.

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Fight!

Disbelief and humiliated, those were among the first responses that came into everybody's mind on hearing the news of bomb explosion at JW Marriott and Ritz Carlton Hotel, Jakarta, on Friday morning. Deep sympathy to the victims and their families, who were killed and wounded in the blast, were poured. The Jakartans and the Indonesian people in general were deeply wounded again with this act of violence.

Whoever these people and their enemies are, they are playing at wrong battle grounds. No matter what motives, messages they try to convey, and results they want to achieve are, their acts of violence will soon bring their own demise, instead of bringing them closer to their ideals.

If injustices are their enemies, they shouldn't act with the same bad language. What have made them looked different then? Why would they inflict such grave damages to the country and the people who were just recovering from decades of wounds and may little to do with their problems? If the intention is to prevent Indonesia and the Indonesian people from advancing towards a better and stronger country, God's willing, it will fail.

We have no answers yet to those questions, and may not get one very soon, but we will. In the mean time, the political elites shall hold their mouths. Instead of using the tragedy as ammunition to attack rivals, they have to unite. But if they don't, people know where to stand. The election is over, and no benefits for any black campaigns. Those who put more fuel and a flame will eventually get themselves burnt.

Indonesians are strong enough to face such a challenge, and get even stronger with such irresponsible act. Fight is certainly not the only word that would bring the perpetrators down, but fight has many facets other than its physical and violent forms. Violence will not surrender with violence. War can’t be won with war. Ancient Chinese says, Water quenches Fire, Fire melts Metal, Metal chops Wood, Wood parts Earth, Earth absorbs Water.

Indonesia is advancing in many aspects of life, and act of terror will not stopping us from pursuing better lives. Those who used to get benefits from our problems, instability and backwardness shall start changing their behaviors if they want to get benefits from the more stable and prosperous Indonesia.
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