SOLO MUSIC

Keys to emotions

Into the 38 tracks of this CD are distilled precious drops of the classical Javanese sung poetry – macapat – and also some uncommon, emotively related semi-improvisations on instruments. Both the vocal and the instrumental pieces are solo performances. John Noise Manis asked outstanding musicians of ISI Surakarta to cooperate in this musical collection featuring the eleven macapat, doubled in slendro and pelog, interspersed with short pieces for gender and for suling. The latter pieces follow and are inspired by some of the sung poems. In this way, the sequence of vocal stanzas – each a poetic microcosm – is made even more suggestive and reflective by the meditative mood of the solo instruments playing after some of the poems.

All texts of the twenty-two macapat (and of the one tembang tengahan) are included and translated in the liner notes. The booklet also carries extensive notes by Bapak Darsono and Rosella Balossino on the historic/literary background of macapat, and on the significance of this genre in Javanese aesthetics and spirituality.

For track details please see the booklet notes.  Total time  55:20

Performers:

            Vocal:   Darsono           (Tracks 1, 4, 7, 10, 13, 16, 20, 23, 26, 30, 33, 37)

                        Sri Suparsih     (Tracks 3, 5, 8, 15, 18, 25, 28, 34)

                        Yayuk Sri Rahayu        (Tracks 12, 21, 31)

            Gender:            Sukamso          (Tracks 9, 11, 17, 22, 24, 27, 36, 38)

                                   Ibu Pringgo Hadiwiyono [Ibu Kris Sukardi]  (Track 38)

            Suling:              Supardi            (Tracks 2, 6, 14, 19, 29, 32, 35)

Recording of macapat – ISI Surakarta, 23 September, 2008

Recording of gender and suling pieces – ISI Surakarta, 3 July, 2010

Musical Design, Recording, Mastering, and Photos – John Noise Manis

YANTRA – Production and Digital Release