The first of a series of discussions, called Dischord #1, is inspired by what the collective sees as a pressing need for an open discussion of the noise genre in Indonesia.

According to a press release received by The Jakarta Post, the discussion will feature musicians, contemporary artists, local as well as foreign researchers and academics as they explore the noise music phenomenon.

Dischord #1 will take the form of a conversation between experts of different artistic disciplines, including Jazz musician Tesla Manaf, German composer Jonas Engel, DJ Wèi Wáng from Taiwan and artist Aris Setyawan.

“Everybody has their own interpretation of what noise music is,” said Martinus Indra Hermawan, one of the collective founders and the curator of Jogja Noise Bombing Festival.

“For me, it’s an art of exploring sounds using tools that are not limited to musical equipment.”

The Indonesian music scene began to recognize the noise genre around seven years ago. Before that, the genre community existed mostly on the internet, where bedroom musicians shared their work.

The collective has also invited people who are not yet part of the noise genre scene and have zero to little understanding about it to the discussion.

“We want people to now that noise is a serious thing and not just about twisting knobs of pedal effects,” Martinus said.

“You still need to learn your instruments and find your specific sounds.” (hdt)

The writer is an intern at The Jakarta Post