You might know how much I love live music, and it’s one thing I really miss. Bands in the bars here play the same 10 reggae and classic rock songs, and we have discotheques in Jogja, but they seem to be for for underage kids existing outside a culture of alcohol who drink way too much and fistpump to uber-masculine brostep. When my friend invited me to go to the Jogja Jazz festival (http://www.ngayogjazz.com/) this weekend, I was also skeptical. How many other ways can I be reminded that I won’t have a satisfying live music experience for a year or two?
Again: wrong! Welcome to nine hours and seven stages of improvisational jazz in Kotagede, the ancient capital of the pre-colonial Sultanate of Mataram. The stages were nestled throughout Kotagede’s ancient market and mosque, with my favorite under the hundreds-years-old banyan tree at the city center (which I don’t have a picture of – sorry!). We grabbed a table with a view at a nearby warung (small restaurant) and watched music from there while friends came and went, sipping coffee and hot orange juice till after sunset when we walked around to the other stages. Only one thing felt off: no one danced. During one set in particular with as much energy as any ‘jamband’ concert I’ve been to, I barely saw a head bob.
Listening to this music played out loud in Indonesia made me feel like I was hearing it for the first time in the 1950s — good old transgressive American-style music where maybe it’s never been played before, in the conservative context of Java’s ancient capital. That’s not to say that such cultural displays are “disapproved” of here, or that it feels counter-cultural, threatening, revolutionary to be present, not at all: people from all over the region came with their families to enjoy the music and festival in Saturday’s nice weather. It’s only that sometimes, the great cultural mix of Indonesia makes you do a double take.
mcljava 