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Dewa Budjana's warm greetings to the sun
Solar salute: Dewa Budjana introduces some numbers from Surya Namaskar at Java Jazz
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Solar salute: Dewa Budjana introduces some numbers from Surya Namaskar at Java Jazz. (JP/ P.J. Leo) (JP/ P.J. Leo)
Solar salute: Dewa Budjana introduces some numbers from Surya Namaskar at Java Jazz. (JP/ P.J. Leo)
Experiencing the latest instrumental solo album by progressive Indonesian guitar legend Dewa Budjana bears a similar feeling to waking up in the morning embraced by warm sunshine.
Surya Namaskar, which means Sun Salutation, is the title of Budjana's new album. The title is borrowed from a set of powerful yoga exercises.
'Surya Namaskar is the earliest routine set in yoga. However, the album doesn't talk about it at all. I adopted the term simply because I really love the sun.
'I'm a morning person; I wake up before the sun rises. I love that moment in time, and it's really inspiring,' the 50-year-old told a press conference during the release of his album in Jakarta.
On the album, Budjana collaborates with legendary American drummer Vinnie Colaiuta and bass master Jimmy Johnson. It also features synthesizer player Gary Husband in 'Fifty' and guitarist Michael Landau on the title track.
In Indonesia, the album is distributed by Demajor Records. Meanwhile, internationally, it is handled by New York-based MoonJune Records.
Budjana, who is also guitarist of Indonesian popular pop-rock band GIGI, shared that keeping himself productive, by among other things producing solo albums periodically, was one of his goals in life.
He, however, admitted that he applied a different approach when producing a solo album as he often composed songs not long before recording.
'I choose musicians that I'd like to work with first before composing the songs. Somehow, it works for me. Finding and getting the targeted musicians has made me a productive artist,' said jazz-rooted guitarist Budjana, who has produced seven solo albums so far.
His previous solo albums are Nusa Damai (Peaceful Island, 1997), Gitarku (My Guitar, 2000), Samsara (Suffering, 2003), Home (2005), Dawai in Paradise (Strings in Paradise, 2011) and Joged Khayangan (Heavenly Dance, 2013).
For Surya Namaskar, Budjana, who worked with Johnson on Joged Khayangan, revealed that he looked for a new drummer. He, however, had no idea that the choice would end with Colaiuta.
'Initially, I didn't even recognize who Colaiuta was. I got his name after asking several friends who their favorite drummer was. Colaiuta was frequently mentioned,' said Budjana, who along with GIGI has produced 12 studio albums.
He said that Johnson played a big part in helping contact Colaiuta for the album.
'Colaiuta is a great and famous drummer. I knew that it wouldn't be easy to get him to collaborate,' said Budjana, adding that Johnson, nevertheless, got Colaiuta's contact information from within his network.
'One day, Johnson told me that the drummer responded to his email [about the album project] ' possibly because Johnson told Colaiuta that I've played with [drummer] Peter Erskine [in Joged Khayangan], another great drummer in the US,' he said.
When Colaiuta agreed, Budjana wrote the compositions a month-and-a-half before recording, which took place in January and October last year in Los Angeles.
Budjana said that he learned and was inspired by Colaiuta's talent and work ethic.
'The drummer didn't need to rehearse. He studied the compositions and did the takes ' I used most of his first takes,' he said, saluting Colaiuta's fast learning skills.
Five tracks for the album were recorded in the first recording session in January while the remaining three were recorded in October. Each session was conducted in less than a day.
Budjana admitted that Colaiuta's spirit at 60 years old had encouraged him to be a better musician.
'When I released Joged Khayangan, I thought that I wanted to always produce calm and easy compositions. But some of my friends provided me with a great wake up call, and then I saw Colaiuta's fiery works regardless of his age. I feel inspired,' he said.
Surya Namaskar offers more aggressive and raw sounds, which makes it lively, as compared to Budjana's previous albums.
'It is louder. There's a lot of distortion ' I only put two acoustic compositions on the album,' said Budjana.
In the coming years, Budjana, who regularly performs at the annual Java Jazz Festival, said that he wanted to produce more solo albums even if they saw lackluster sales.
'Making music and producing albums is essential for my health. I don't really care if no one buys them.'
After the album launch, Budjana showcased his eight latest compositions along with young musicians such as bassist Sadu, drummer Yandi, violinist Didit and keyboardist Don Joesran.
'Most of them are the sons of my friends. Sadu is the son of [jazz musician] Idang Rasjidi, Yandi's mother was my bandmate in high school, and I know Didit's father well although we have never collaborated. The older player is only Don Joesran.
'I intend to take the stage with those players because I worked with them at the recent Java Jazz Festival,' said Budjana.
