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Superstars heat up Jakarta stages
A group of Indonesian teenagers, jazz superstars Oleta Adams and Laura Fygi, and a show paying tribute to the late Indonesian soloist legend Chrisye drew fans spilling out of their respective venues here Saturday at the second day of the fifth Jakarta International Java Jazz Festival
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A group of Indonesian teenagers, jazz superstars Oleta Adams and Laura Fygi, and a show paying tribute to the late Indonesian soloist legend Chrisye drew fans spilling out of their respective venues here Saturday at the second day of the fifth Jakarta International Java Jazz Festival.
The Young Prodigies – a group of six musical boys aged 12 to 16 – slowly but surely gathered steam as they cranked out the tunes of international artists and their own original creations.
Drummer Rafi, bassist Enos, guitarist Krisna, keyboardist Zeta, saxophonist Dennis and singer Albert showed fans that age was nothing but a number – putting in a performance worth looking forward to the next time they get together.
“They are so young but play those instruments like they have been doing it for much longer than anyone could imagine,” said Sebastian, 29.
He admitted he wasn’t interested in the Prodigies at first, but rather came because of pop singer Marcello “Ello” Tahitoe, who joined the band to sing a jazzed-up version of the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ “Aeroplane”.
Fans of Adams and Fygi were treated to master-class performances, as they drowned in hit after hit from these two renowned jazz musicians.
Fygi, who was one of the few artists at this year’s festival classified for special shows, sent fans into memorable moments as she belted out, among others, “It’s Wonderful”, “Let There Be Love”, “Triste” and “Something About Him”.
Local acts were pretty much Saturday’s highlights, ranging from new group RAN, R&B star Glenn Fredly performing Chrisye’s hits from the 1980s, and Chaseiro – a senior vocal group that kicked off their enduring career in 1979 and reunited for a show mostly attended by fans from their own generation.
“I have to be honest, I have no idea what jazz really is. I got the ticket for the second day because I knew there would be performances by artists that I would enjoy, such as RAN, Glenn and of course Jason Mraz,” said teenager Vita.
Glenn, who performed at the Jakarta Convention Center’s Plenary Hall just hours after Jason Mraz held his second show at the festival, led enthusiasts back to the early and last days of Chrisye, who died in 2007 of lung cancer.
Matt Bianco had their second performance in two days late Saturday, cranking out their jazzy, latin-flavored tracks. Formed in 1983, the UK band first gained fame in Europe before making their way to Asia in the mid 1990s.
