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Dutch choir lights up arts festival with Indonesian songs
"Nina bobo, oh nina bobo Kalau tidak bobo digigit nyamuk
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"Nina bobo, oh nina bobo Kalau tidak bobo digigit nyamuk." ("Nina is sleeping. Oh, Nina is sleeping. If you were not sleeping, you'd be bitten by the mosquito.")
SING TOGETHER: The Colorful City Choir sings “Naik Naik ke Puncak Gunung” with children from the Alisama orphanage at the Denpasar Arts Center on Monday. (JP/Irawaty Wardany)
Taken from a popular Indonesian lullaby,"Nina bobo", the above was sung by the Colorful City Choir from Nijmegen in the Netherlands during its concert at the Denpasar Art Center's Ksirarnawa Theater.
Monday night's performance, part of the 30th annual Bali Art Festival, drew huge applause from an audience clearly amazed by the foreign troupe's ability to sing an Indonesian song perfectly.
The singing group won the heart of the crowd with three Indonesian songs, "Nina Bobo", "Burung Kakaktua" (Cockatoo), and "Naik-Naik Ke Puncak Gunung" (Climbing the Mountain).
All three are children songs. During the performance, many in the audience hummed the familiar tunes.
The children in attendance were even more expressive: They sang at the top of their lungs, particularly during "Naik-Naik Ke Puncak Gunung", eliciting smiles and supporting applause from the rest of the crowd.
The choir sang more than 10 songs from various countries.
Established seven years ago, the choir comprises both adults and children, the latter from South Denpasar's Alisama orphanage. The orphanage receives financial aid from KION, a foundation under the supervision of the Colorful City Choir.
The choir, which performs in the traditional West European choral style, is known for its exceptional ability to perform songs from every corner of the globe, from Africa to Asia.
Choirmaster Johnny Rahaket said songs from all over the world were well-known and liked in the Netherlands.
"You would be surprised by the similarities between songs from different countries," he said.
Rahaket, whose father is from Indonesian's spice island, Maluku, added the choir has always performed songs from Indonesia.
The choir also performed a traditional song from Maluku called "Gandong E" as well as a song inspired by the Balinese kecak dance.
"We absorb influences from outside and transform them into something familiar to us," Rahaket said.
Ingrid Dumpel, master of ceremonies for the evening's performance, said the choir chose to sing the Maluku song in honor of the Netherlands' large community of Maluku people, who have traditionally had a strong influence on music in Indonesia.
Rahaket expressed his gratitude at being invited to perform in the 30th annual festival.
"This is our first time performing in Bali and we are all excited. The audience's response has been awesome so we are glad to be here," he said.
Rahaket said he expected to be invited to next year's festival.
The annual festival lasts for more than three weeks. This year's event, which will end on July 12, has presented traditional art and culture from all over Indonesia as well as performances from Japan, Singapore, India, Taiwan, the United States and Thailand, among others.
