Movies & Music

Tohpati & Wawan on stage/Photo is courtesy of Witjak (Komunitas Salihara)On January 29, Komunitas Salihara, one of South Jakarta's established cultural centers, featured Tohpati Ario Hutomo in collaboration with Dimawan (Wawan) on cello as part of its Jazz Buzz repertoire.

Most local jazz aficionados know Tohpati, the caliber jazz guitarist and composer, for his talent and ability to mix modern and traditional music. In 1993, with Riza Arshad, Arie Ayunir and Indro Hardjodikoro, he formed an experimental band known as SimakDialog. Last year this group of cross ethno-jazz progressive ensemble was one of only 15 bands selected from a global roster to perform at the Jazzahead Festival at the Congress Centrum, Bremen, Germany. It really made Indonesians proud since SimakDialog was the only band from Asia.

Tohpati is also a member of Trisum, another band that he established along with two other famed Balinese guitarists, Balawan and Dewa Budjana. In 2009 he formed Tohpati Ethnomission, a project that aims to bring about collaboration between traditional and modern musical instruments.

Performing at the Salihara Theater with a full house, Tohpati was strumming and plucking on acoustic guitar, while Wawan was showing his versatile skills on cello. The duo opened their gig with a new piece titled Empty Space. It began with a slow tempo, sounding spooky at times, as both musicians projected the impression of a hollow and abstract space. Half way through the piece, Tohpati and Wawan came together with a gamelan like rhythm, eventually slowing through its eventual finish.

Next, Tohpati started with a fine command of his beautiful acoustic guitar and Wawan jumped in just as suddenly, bringing their tone to a stronger albeit moderate tempo with cheerful nuances. The piece became even more enjoyable after Wawan's cello took the lead, introducing a more energetic and "danceable" groove. A slow tempo was performed for the remainder of the piece followed by quicker rhythms from Tohpati's continuous, fluid hand movements. Towards the end, a beautiful harmony between guitar and cello again created a climax with an energetic dance groove. A slight sound and rhythm of Indian music was brought forward to announce the sudden culmination to the piece called My Dream.Tohpati & Wawan/Photo is courtesy of Witjak (Komunitas Salihara)

Sound effects, combined with a moderate tempo from the guitar, opened another piece of Gegunungan, while the cello responded with a strong, horn-like sound. Tohpati presented a chic melody on guitar, accentuated with a firm cello accompaniment. It was then the cello's turn to be dominant as the guitar stepped in with high notes. Towards the end, the tempo became consistently moderate, with more plucking from both Tohpati and Wawan. A repetition of the earlier part was nicely orchestrated all the way to the finale.

It's Time, the fourth composition of the evening, was in the form of an interaction between guitar and cello. A joyful ambience throughout this repertoire created enchanting sounds with Tohpati's guitar interjecting finesse until the very end. In another piece entitled Amarah, or anger, impulsively strong and loud sounds from both instruments set the tone. The guitar rhythm remained moderate, augmented with firm plucking from the cello. As the piece unfolded, Tohpati demonstrated a versatile command in the variety of notes emanating from his skillful hand while Wawan maintained his ability to evoke sounds of anger. The overall piece successfully illustrated one's simultaneous frustration and emotion all the way to its end.

The last two pieces, All The Things You Are and Mahabharata, are rather bold and sustained the audience's capacity for unique and unusual notes. The latter song in particular, projected a heartbreaking rhythm with a hint of Indian sitar emanating from Tohpati's guitar. A typically Hispanic tune was also interjected into this repertoire.

Bayu, one of the audience members at this evening's performance comments, "I prefer to listen to Tohpati with Trisum. Tonight his music was not easy to me. It was an intricate kind of music." The Parisian Pierre Poissonnier says of the performance, "It was my first time attending a concert here in Jakarta. It was a great show and they have influences from different music of different cultures in their pieces." It was a privilege to enjoy Tohpati's collaboration with Wawan. We shall definitely look forward to listening to this form of ethnic jazz for many years to come. Jazz rules!