If there is a man who looks special among those in the Gita Advayatva Choir, it must be Ignatius Budiono.
Budiono, popularly known as Pak Budi among his colleagues, is the choir's trainer. At 54, he is as energetic as choir members in their early 20s.
""I've been with this choir for the past 21 years. We decided to start the choir to accompany UPN students at graduation ceremonies,"" Budi told The Jakarta Post.
Before the choir was established, the graduation ceremony was accompanied by a recorded choir from a cassette player.
Budi said there were different challenges over the years. The main one is, however, improving the discipline of the students.
""It is about ensuring they are on time for choir practice. Very often, the practice is delayed because only a few students show up,"" said Budi, a civil servant at the public works ministry.
With decades-long experience in the choir, Budi has been popular among student choirs. ""People know me and they often invite me to train other choirs,"" said Budi, who describes himself as an autodidact.
To keep the students enthusiastic in the choir Budi not only tells them how to perform patriotic and heroic songs. He also gives the students popular songs from either the Indonesian or English repertoire.
During practice, Budi also asks students to sing rock group Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody. ""That presents them with a new challenge,"" he said.
Born in Yogyakarta in 1953, Budi said he saw music as a balancing factor for the students.
""It seems that students from this choir usually get high academic grades,"" he said.
-- JP/Kurniawan Hari
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