TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Friends, fans pay homage to rock legend Harry Roesli
Friends, family members and fans of Indonesian rock legend Harry Roesli are scheduled to gather on Monday to talk about the maestro's legacy in the country's rock history, especially regarding his magnum opus Opera Ken Arok (Ken Arok Opera).
Change text size
Gift Premium Articles
to Anyone
Share the best of The Jakarta Post with friends, family, or colleagues. As a subscriber, you can gift 3 to 5 articles each month that anyone can read—no subscription needed!
Tribute: A group of street musicians, who were adopted by Harry Roesli, perform a tribute to the rebel musician during the album re-launch. (JP/PJ Leo)
F
riends, family members and fans of Indonesian rock legend Harry Roesli are scheduled to gather on Friday to talk about the maestro's legacy in the country's rock history, especially the contribution of his magnum opus Opera Ken Arok (Ken Arok Opera).
The event will take place at the Rumah Musik Harry Roesli (RMHR), Bandung, West Java.
Harry's widow Kania, his close friend Aat Soeratin and his bandmate Hari Pochang are among speakers to be featured in the discussion, which has been organized in conjunction with the release of the Opera Ken Arok vinyl edition.
Forty-one years after its initial release, Opera Ken Arok is being released on vinyl, following the completion of remastering work commissioned by Jakarta-based indie label La Munai Records.
The album, which was released in cassette format in 1977, was considered by many to be one of the best progressive rock records ever released in the country. The album is also known for its biting commentary on the nascent authoritarianism of Soeharto's New Order regime.
A play that would form the basis of the recorded work of the same name was banned by the regime in 1976.
Opera Ken Arok ranked number seven on the list of 150 best Indonesian albums compiled by the now-defunct Rolling Stone Indonesia magazine.
For the vinyl reissue project, La Munai Records enlisted London-based audio mastering firm Carvey Cuts to improve the sound of Opera Ken Arok and pressed 333 vinyl copies of the record for the Indonesian market.
Opera Ken Arok was the second of Harry's Trilogy, which also consists of Philosophy Gang and Titik Api (Burning Point). La Munai released the vinyl version of Philosophy Gang last year.
Harry Roesli died in 2004 from cardiac arrest.
