T

he country’s oldest recording studio, state-owned Lokananta, is struggling to survive despite efforts by Sahabat Lokananta (Friends of Lokananta), a community dedicated to promoting the historic studio to the public.

The community recently held a festival to mark the studio’s 56th anniversary on Jl. Ahmad Yani in Surakarta, Central Java.

“Initially, we just wanted to raise awareness of this historical recording studio,” Adia Prabowo, a Sahabat Lokananta member, said.

Many people only know Lokananta for its recordings of old keroncong songs and gamelan music orchestra. In fact, like many other recording studios, Lokananta produced tracks across a variety of genres.

The company has been blighted by budgetary issues as well as limited human resources.

Head of the State Printing Company Consortium (PNRI) Surakarta Branch, Pendi Heryadi, said that Lokananta’s access to the central government had been closed because it was not certified.

Prior to the declaration of bankruptcy that saw the company liquidated in 2011, Lokananta had been under the authority of the Information Ministry, before the ministry was dissolved in 2000, PNRI then took over authority of Lokananta.

However, the hand over certificate has still not been issued due to administrative and bureaucratic problems. The certificate is a prerequisite for direct access to the central government and financial aid.

As a result, Lokananta has had to source funds through alternate means and for the past three years the studio has functioned as a futsal (indoor soccer) space. The rental fee has been Lokananta’s main income.

To cover operational expenses, the company needs between Rp 40 million (US$4,100) and Rp 45 million monthly. The majority of which covers the salaries of its 20 employees with payments ranging from Rp 600,000 to Rp 1.4 million per month each. Other expenses include maintenance fees, cleaning and the annual property tax of Rp 137 million for the 21,500 square-meters plot. The tax is paid by the PNRI’s central office.

Lokananta has over 40,000 recordings, which include some 5,200 commercial labels, in its collection. The studio also holds the master recordings of Indonesia’s first president Sukarno’s speeches as well as recordings of the national anthem, “Indonesia Raya”, “Bengawan Solo” (by noted composer Gesang) and “Walangkekek” (by noted singer Waldjinah).