Indonesian choir brings world to Bakersfield

Feb 22, 2016

BANDUNG, INDONESIA: The singers of the Maranatha Christian University Choir from Bandung, Indonesia, are traveling from the other side of the world to sing for Bakersfield audiences. We don’t even have to meet them halfway.

The internationally famous choir will give a mini-tour of Bakersfield next week as part of a larger California tour that includes performing for a major choral music convention in Pasadena. The choir’s Bakersfield stopover includes visits to Bakersfield High School and Bakersfield College to perform and work with students, and a public concert at 8 p.m. Monday at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 2215 17th St.

Event organizer Ron Kean said he first heard the choir perform at an international choral festival in Bali in 2014.

“I helped judge 105 choirs in a week, and the repertoire is simply amazing,” said Kean, professor emeritus of the Bakersfield College choral program and a recognized expert in world music.

The Maranatha Christian University is located in Bandung, Indonesia, about 90 miles from Jakarta, the nation’s capital. Made up of students and alumni, the choir serves as both a training ground for aspiring professionals and as cultural ambassadors to help East meet West. Under the direction of Agustinus Bambang Jusana, the choir has earned an international reputation and awards for their performances of both the Western European repertoire and the traditional music of Indonesia.

“We think of Indonesia as one country,” Kean said. “Actually, there are bazillions of cultures there. Every island has different traditions and even different languages.”

That traditional music ranges from music composed for the Roman Catholic Mass but using Indonesian musical ideas, to traditional music incorporating traditional dance, traditional costumes, storytelling, percussion instruments, war cries, animal calls and the vocal techniques associated with different spoken languages.

Kean noted that while much of the “world music” repertoire, particularly that of African cultures, is heavily influenced by Christianity, music from Indonesia is influenced by Islam, which is the dominant religion in that region, and that has a significant impact on all types of music from that nation.

“Harmony is not part of the Islamic tradition; it just isn’t,” Kean said. “So the choral music is really interesting.

“I think the goal of this concert is trying to understand and appreciate the music of other cultures on their terms.”

Kean said local choral students will get a more in-depth experience during the choir’s visit. The choir will visit both BHS and BC, sing for the students and with them, and even give them pointers on how to perform the traditional music of Indonesia.

“(The Bakersfield College singers) are going to sing a traditional song and they’re hoping this choir will tell them how to sing it,” Kean said.

In addition to the musical exchange, Kean said many members of the local choral community are providing housing for the 43 singers in the choir.

“Music is a great window to begin to appreciate and understand these other cultures,” Kean said. “So that we may find a better way to live side by side with another culture.”--The Bakersfield Californian