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I Wayan Tuges: Wildlife protection through music
(JP/Indra Harsaputra)There are many ways to save our wildlife from extinction
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(JP/Indra Harsaputra) (JP/Indra Harsaputra)
(JP/Indra Harsaputra)
There are many ways to save our wildlife from extinction.
A unique method has been adopted by I Wayan Tuges, a guitar craftsman from Bali, and Doddy 'Mr D' Hernanto, a former keyboard player in the Boomerang rock band, who are campaigning through music to rescue Java's bulls (banteng) and Bali's starlings (curik).
The roaring sound of carving machines was heard from the house of I Wayan Tuges on Jl. Baruna 5, Guwang, Sukowati in Bali, that afternoon as Tuges and two guitar makers fashioned a carved guitar with flower motifs that had been ordered by Indonesia's legendary singer Iwan Fals.
'I can't play the guitar. I used to be a sculptor and later I learned guitar crafting from American professional guitar maker George Morris. Now guitar music has become part of my life,' said Tuges, who was born in Bali on Oct. 7, 1952.
While providing a living, for Tuges guitars also serve as a medium to express the human relationship with nature, including wildlife. He feels that men have begun to ignore the environment and rare animal species. For instance, curik as a Balinese icon is threatened with extinction due to illegal hunting.
'Besides receiving orders from musicians, I make various guitar carvings with Indonesian nature and typical wildlife as a theme to introduce this worldwide and at the same time invite musicians to care about the conditions of our environment and animals,' he added.
Among musicians in Indonesia, I Wayan Tuges is famous for his artistically carved guitars with melodious tones. His products are worth tens of millions of rupiah and have mostly been sold to different countries like Canada, Japan, Europe and the US.
The idea to make such guitars struck him after Canadian entrepreneur and musician Danny Fonfeder showed an interest in Tuges' sculptures. To make his guitars more than just visually artistic, Tuges learned the skill of making guitars from George Morris.
More than maintaining the beauty of his work, Tuges also chooses materials that cause no forest destruction, such as rose wood, mahogany, ebony and spruce, an alternative to teak wood.
'I've picked environmentally friendly materials, also for the purpose of making my products marketable in Europe, which is very selective in choosing environment-oriented goods that inflict no damage on Kalimantan's forests,' he said.
His 'Blueberry' guitars vary in price depending on the materials used, crafting difficulty and carving ornaments.
It takes months to finish his carved guitars. While paying attention to details of guitar carvings, Tuges, with around 45 Balinese youths as his creative hands, also strictly controls the sound quality of the instruments. At prices fixed at US$3,000 and over, Blueberry products sell better on the international market.
His Indonesian customers include musicians Dewa Budjana, I Wayan Balawan, Erros Djarot and Doddy 'Mr D' Hernanto. Along with Tuges, Doddy also campaigns for wildlife conservation in several Indonesian schools through musical programs.
'He's inspired me. Apart from creating his guitars, I Wayan Tuges is a supporter of the Bali starling release program carried out by the Wildlife Conservation Forum and Indonesian Safari Garden in West Bali. He appeals for artists in Bali to fight the illegal hunting of the birds in the West Bali National Park,' said Doddy.
Today, Doddy, who is introducing the technique of one-finger guitar playing, is also actively campaigning for the rescue of Java's bulls among artists and street children in Yogyakarta and Central Java.
'The banteng population in Alas Purwo and Baluran, East Java, is declining. The success of the Indonesian Safari Garden in cross breeding banteng with Bali's cows offers hope to local residents to obtain cheap beef,' he pointed out.
Doddy revealed in Baluran that only 22 bulls were left, while last year they were still in the hundreds. Not only banteng, but even buffalos are becoming scarce there.
'In addition to hunting, the shrinking savannas where Javan bulls are grazing also contribute to their decreasing population. Not only in Baluran, but in other regions the same bulls also reduce in number,' he noted.
The world population of the bulls is estimated at no more than 8,000, perhaps even less than 5,000. In every zone or habitat, their population rarely reaches more than 500.
In Ujung Kulon National Park (TNUK), the number of bulls was put at 300-700 in 2003, 200 in Meru Betiri National Park (2000), 200 in Baluran National Park (2002), and 80 in Alas Purwo National Park (2002). Smaller numbers can also be found in places like the nature reserves of Cikepuh-Cibanteng in Pangandaran (West Java), Malang and Kediri (East Java).
With the total population further decreasing, the bulls have since 1996 been listed in the Endangered (EN) conservation status by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN). So far, however, the bulls haven't been included in Appendix I of the CITES, although an entry has been proposed since 1996.
The population drop and scarcity of banteng today are more due to illegal hunting and habitat reduction as a result of land reclamations for settlements and agriculture. The endangered state is also caused by the bulls' competition with other animals and excessive preying on them by wild forest dogs.
'We and several animal lovers are communicating the need to protect Javan bulls from hunting to the government and public by showing the successful effort undertaken by Indonesian Safari Garden in cross-breeding the bulls with Bali cows,' he affirmed.
Doddy said the calves resulting from the cross-breeding had an average weight of around 20 kilograms each, compared with only about 15 kilograms in the case of Bali cows' calves. They also grew faster, reaching 40 kilograms within a month, while young Bali cows only weighed 20 kilograms.
'If we're capable of conserving banteng, within the next 10 years Indonesians will no longer be facing a beef shortage. The public won't have to buy beef at high prices anymore,' he said.
Tuges and Doddy's efforts are not the first time artists have backed wildlife conservation programs. In Indonesia, the musical group Slank has joined ProFauna, while the band from Bali Naviculla and artist Nugie are active in orangutan protection campaigns.
In Britain, Brian Harold May, a guitarist and founder of Queen, is known for his AIDS relief activities and his fight for animal rights. Born in Hampton, the UK, on July 19, 1947 also uses his website, brianmay.com, as a medium of his struggle.
Bali's artist and cultural expert Putu Indrawan described the campaigns through music as a very effective way of increasing public attention on environmental issues, in view of the fact that music was a universal language and was easily accepted by people from all walks of life.
