Jazz lovers gather without borders

Dede ,  CONTRIBUTOR ,  JAKARTA   |  Sat, 03/14/2009 12:30 PM  |  Entertainment

Jazz for all: Beben Supendi Mulyana founded the Komunitas Jazz Kemayoran (Kemayoran Jazz Community) out of the belief that jazz should be accessible to all, regardless of background. (Courtesy of Komunitas Jazz Kemayoran)

Three young men set up their rigs on the stage, before launching into a version of Charlie Parker’s “Donna Lee”, an up-tempo tune rigged with a bunch of notes and definitely not for beginners.

But these boys pulled it off smoothly, to the delight of the watching audience.

This was no professional performance, nor an act at one of the city’s international jazz festivals.

Rather, these were members of the Komunitas Jazz Kemayoran (Kemayoran Jazz Community) or the KJK, getting up and performing at one of the group’s regular events, held at the Jakarta City Center on the last Saturday of each month.

The KJK, with its members numbering in the hundreds, started out in March 2004, a gathering of less than 10 people in the Kemayoran home of Beben Supendi Mulyana.

Beben said he founded the community because he realized that there were many jazz enthusiasts, but that they had nowhere to go to share their love for the music.

“At that time, I wandered through cafes and paid for coffee – which was very expensive for a college student like me – just to watch senior musicians playing jazz,” Beben said.

So he started it as a nonprofit organization – membership is fee # with the goal of uniting every jazz lover, without boundaries or restrictions.

He believes that, as jazz tends to be out of the mainstream, those who love it should not be divided by insignificant factors such as age, origin, financial status or anything else.

The KJK now offers a growing number of music lovers to share their enthusiasm, through the monthly meeting, a mailing list and other activities.

Each monthly gathering usually attracts about 40 or more people, who show up to watch videos of jazz concerts, take part in a jam session or perhaps just have a chat with fellow jazz lovers.

Afterward, some performers are asked to get up on stage and play some tunes. KJK members will sell merchandise, such as T-shirts, jackets and stickers, and on rare occasions, someone might also sell secondhand jazz recordings at a very reasonable price.

After some performances, there is usually a jazz quiz, with CDs or merchandise as prizes, and once in a while, the gathering includes a workshop or seminar on jazz history or music theory. The event closes with jam sessions, with lots of young musicians keen to take part. A special attraction for all is when senior musicians such as Krishna Siregar and Iwang Noorsaid join
in the jam session alongside the younger players.

The KJK mailing list, according to one of the moderators, has more than 600 subscribers. The list keeps subscribers informed about jazz events in Indonesia, reviews jazz musicians and gives subscribers a forum to discuss jazz, asking about music theory or for album recommendations or perhaps to arrange an event. After all, as this is a community, contact is not restricted to monthly meetings. Members get together at gigs or jam sessions, or just to drink coffee.

Those involved enthuse about the benefits.

“KJK really helps me to get informed about jazz in Indonesia,” said Deo, an Indonesian jazz lover living in Malaysia. “It is sad that I can’t attend the monthly gathering regularly.”

Another member, Iman, 52, who is keen on Brazilian music and harmonica, said the KJK gave him the opportunity to share and learn about music. He emphasizes the importance of this community, as he believes that there aren’t many places where he can gather with fellow jazz lovers his own age.

The KJK has also been important in developing the skills of those seeking to become professional musicians.

Ricky, an early KJK participant, said the KJK had been very helpful in terms of raising him as a musician. He said that he started from nothing and, years later, was able to perform at major jazz events.

“Being in the KJK convinced me to be a professional musician and I left the office life,” said the young bass player. There have also been plenty of other bands, such as Notturno, Vodka, Zinnia and Van Alloy Big Band, who got the opportunity to perform while in the KJK.

The KJK’s largest event, perhaps, was the 31 Hours Non-stop Jazz Concert held in JaCC on May 30, 2008. The event, which involved more than 40 bands, was held under the surveillance of the Indonesian Book of Records, and took place to coincide with the group’s fourth anniversary, thus reuniting many bands and old friends.

Since its inauspicious beginnings, the KJK is currently considered one of the largest jazz communities in Indonesia. As it has grown, its role has become more significant in introducing jazz to music lovers who might not have been as familiar with it.

As it grows, more and more groups have started to play at the monthly gathering, and some KJK members have even performed at major events such as Malacca Strait Jazz Festival, JakJazz and the Jakarta International Java Jazz Festival. And as senior musicians such as Benny Mustafa van Diest, Benny Likumahuwa, and Oele Pattiselanno, who have also experienced the atmosphere of the community, play with members, it ensures that everyone has a chance to share their love of music and learn from each other.

And if there is one thing the KJK is proving, it is that jazz is not, as some believe, the domain of the rich, the old or the geeky, at home only in glamorous places with glittering images.
Jazz is, indeed, for everyone.

The writer is an intern at The Jakarta Post.

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