Jakarta had a date with Beethoven last Sunday night at Aula Simfonia hall.
Young talent: Conductor Rebecca Tong leads the Jakarta Simfonia Orchestra during “Beethoven Night”, a classical music concert held at Aula Simfonia Jakarta concert hall last Sunday. JP/Nurhayati
The rendezvous seemed a bit far from the city center, but was definitely worth the trip. For almost two hours, Ludwig van Beethoven’s tempestuous and emotional sonatas, overtures, and symphony attempted to seduce Jakarta in Southeast Asia’s finest and newest concert hall, the Aula Simfonia, in Kemayoran.
The courting began when Beethoven lulled his belle, Jakarta, with Piano Sonata Op. 2 No. 3 in C major, played by the accomplished 15-year-old pianist, Kevin Suhardiman from Bandung.
The 18th century composer’s sonata, initially dedicated to Joseph Haydn, was indeed in good hands.
Kevin has been caressing piano keys from the tender age of six and kept up his passion ever since, under the supervision of many great teachers, the latest being Australia’s Professor Max Cooke. The piano prodigy has won countless competitions, prizes, awards, traveled to Vienna, Salzburg, as well as many important music institutions in Europe, and rubbed shoulders with well-known musicians there.
Kevin’s fingers danced on the piano that night, executing Beethoven’s difficult fingerings adeptly. Many pianists will admit Beethoven’s style is not easy to play. His creations are emotional, very passionate and require energy and strength.
So if Jakarta feared she was going to be caught in a boring tête-à-tête with a 230-year-old deaf German, she was mistaken, and most definitely riveted in her seat by the end of the sonata.
While she gazed at the 10 golden statues of Greek-looking gods guarding the walls of the hall and the towering Cassavant pipe organ, the grand piano was wheeled away. Beethoven pulled his second secret weapon out, another young addition to the world of Indonesian classical music, conductor Rebecca Tong. Her father Steve Tong would take the baton after her for the much-awaited Pastoral Symphony.
An elegant young woman with a determined look in her eyes, Rebecca led the 50-person Jakarta Simfonia Orchestra into a series of overtures, with names like Coriolan, The Creatures of Prometheus, Fidelio and Egmont, all conjuring images of distant lands and times.
Listening to the main C-minor theme in Coriolan, Jakarta could almost hear the Roman General Coriolanus’ resolve to fight a war and invade Rome.
After Jakarta recomposed herself during the interval, Beethoven served his pièce de résistance, Symphony No. 6, better known as the Pastoral Symphony and a favorite of many listeners.
For 60-something-year-old Paul and his partner, both visiting from Portugal, while their impromptu date with the German composer had been extremely well received, the best was yet to come. “We’re really looking forward to the Pastoral,” said Paul. “It always brings me fond memories of my father, who used to love it very much,” added a handsome Dutchman in Paul’s party.
Yes, the much awaited Pastoral, labelled “Recollections of Country Life” did not fail to please Jakarta, judging by the duration of the applause after the performance.
Acclaimed conductor Stephen Tong, the driving force behind the Aula Simfonia concert hall, energetically led the orchestra with his baton until the end of the concert, navigating young oboe, clarinet, bass, flute, horn, trombone, violin, timpani, cello, fagott (bassoon) and viola players through the forest of notes in each movement of Beethoven’s symphony.
As the seasons and movements passed, Jakarta finally understood Beethoven’s extreme love for nature, which led him to spend five years completing this symphony.
The cellos motif brought to life streams of water, while the woodwind instruments recreated the sound of birds calling.
And just as the storm had violently erupted hours before in town, sheets of rain came pouring down in the fourth movement.
“How happy I am to be able to walk among the shrubs, the trees, the woods, the grass and the rocks! For the woods, the trees and the rocks give man the resonance he needs,” Beethoven, the lover of nature, once wrote in a letter to Therese Malfatti.
Once the Allegretto, a hymn of gratitude toward nature, came to an end, Jakarta knew she had found
a keeper.
The crowd clapped, Jakarta left the tryst with a smile, and promised herself this would be the first of many nights with Beethoven.
