ASAH Indonesian Tour II
March 25 - May 19
 

Sergei Rachmaninoff (1 April 1873 – 28 March 1943) was a Russian composer, pianist, conductor and studied at the St. Petersburg and Moscow Conservatories. He had legendary technical faculties and rhythmic drive, and his large hands were able to cover the interval of a thirteenth on the keyboard. Following the Russian Revolution of 1917, he and his family emigrated to the United States and his music was banned in Russia.. They never returned to their homeland. He died in Beverly Hills, California.
Études-tableaux are two sets of piano études arranged under opus numbers 33 and 39. They include Etude-Tableau No. 2 in C major and No. 7 in E-flat major Op. 33.
Another well known composition is Sonata for Cello and Piano in G minor, Op. 19. The sonata was composed in 1901 and published a year later.

Frederic Chopin (1810 – 1849)
The music of Frederic Chopin occupies a unique place in the piano repertoire. Celebrated during his lifetime, his music has remained a staple of the repertoire for teachers, students and performers throughout musical history.
Chopin was singular in his compositional focus, writing some two hundred works for solo piano. He was also instrumental in creating and popularizing many new types of compositions for the piano, such as the berceuse, scherzo, barcarolle, polonaise and mazurka. Rather than being grouped together by genre or chronologically, they are linked together as harmoniously as possible in mood and tonality.
The Op. 25 etudes is a collection of twelve etudes composed in 1830 – 1834. Etude Op. 25 No. 1 in A-flat major is often called the Aeolian Harp. The weak fifth finger encounters a singing melody above a web of melting textures. A work of melodic magic, and one of the less taxing of the Etudes. Etude Op. 25 No. 2 in F minor is a study in cross-rhythms, requiring delicate finger articulation for its characteristics Chopinesque whisper.

Franz Liszt (October 22, 1811 – July 31, 1886) was a Hungarian composer and virtuoso pianist of the 19th century. He took piano lessons from Czerny and composition lessons from Salieri. In 1823, he moved with his family to Paris, from where he toured widely as a pianist. Influenced by the phenomenal violinist Paganini, he turned his attention to the development of a similar technique as a pianist. In 1848 he settled in Weimar as Director of Music Extraordinary, accompanied by Princess Sayn-Wittgenstein and turning his attention now to composition and in particular to the creation of a new form, the symphonic poem. Most of his music is for the piano and much of it requires formidable technique.
One of his popular composition is "Un Sospiro" which is the third of Franz Liszt's Trois Études de Concert (Three Concert Etudes). The etude is a study in crossing hands, playing a simple melody with alternating hands, and arpeggios. Its melody is quite dramatic, almost Impressionistic, radically changing in dynamics at times. 

Henry Eccles (1671 – 1742) was an English violinist and composer from the baroque era. He was born in London (England) and died in Paris (France). He was the second son of Solomon Eccles who was also a musician. Henry worked as Musician to King William III and Queen Mary II and later for Queen Anne (1701- 1714). However, conceiving himself neglected in England, he went to Paris and played in the court of King Louis XIV. In 1720 he published there, in two books, 'Twelve Solos for the Violin'.  One of his famous works is theSonata for Cello and Piano in G minor.

Antonio Vivaldi (March 4, 1678 – July 28, 1741), was a Venetian priest and Baroque music composer. He was famous and influential as a virtuoso violinist and composer. Although Vivaldi composed operas and fine church music, he is best known for his 450 or so concerti grossi and solo concertos. He also composed some pieces for cello, flute, piccolo, bassoon and even mandolin. Vivaldi wrote six sonatas for cello and piano, including the sonata for cello and piano no. 3 in A minor.

Olivier Messiaen (December 10, 1908 – April 27, 1992) was a French organist and composer. He entered the Paris Conservatoire at the age of 11, and studied with Paul Dukas, Maurice Emmanuel, Charles-Marie Widor, Marcel Dupré and others. Messiaen's music is rhythmically complex (he was interested in rhythms from ancient Greek and from Hindu sources), and is harmonically and melodically based on his own innovation. Messiaen’s work includes Louange à l’éternité de Jésus, a composition written for violin, clarinet, cello and piano. This piece has a meditative and religious melody from the opening until the end.

Gabriel Fauré (May 12, 1845 – November 4, 1924) was a French composer, organist, pianist, and teacher. He was the foremost composer of his generation and his musical style influenced many 20th century composers. His work was based on a strong understanding of harmonic structures which he received at the École Niedermeyer from his harmony teacher Gustave Lefèvre. Fauré was a prolific composer. He wrote chamber music; piano quartets, piano quintets, cello sonatas, violin sonatas; operas, piano pieces, songs and other compositions. One of Faure's most popular vocal pieces is “Après un rêve” (After a Dream) Op. 7.  His composition “Élégie pour violoncelle et orchestre”, Op. 24 (Elegy for cello and orchestra, opus 24), was written in 1880. Originally for cello and piano, the piece was orchestrated by Fauré in 1890 at the request of conductor Edouard Colonne. Elegy features a sad and somber opening and climaxes with an intense, fast-paced section that symbolizes the despair of love.

Ludwig van Beethoven (December 16, 1770 – March 26, 1827) was a German composer and virtuoso pianist. He was an important figure in the transitional period between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western classical music. Born in Bonn, he moved to Vienna, Austria, in his early twenties and settled there, studying with Joseph Haydn and quickly gaining a reputation as a virtuoso pianist. Beethoven's hearing gradually deteriorated beginning in his twenties, yet he continued to compose masterpieces, and to conduct and perform, even after he was completely deaf.
Sonata for Cello and Piano No. 3 in A Major, Op. 69 is one of his greatest work, completed in 1808, the same year as his Fifth and Sixth symphonies.

Maurice Ravel (March 7, 1875 – December 28, 1937) was a  French composer and pianist, known especially for the subtlety, richness and poignancy of his music. His piano music, chamber music, vocal music and orchestral music have become staples of the concert repertoire.
Pavane pour une infante défunte (Pavane for a Dead Princess) is a well-known piece written for solo piano in 1899 when Ravel was studying composition at the Conservatoire de Paris under Gabriel Fauré.
Maurice Ravel (7 Maret 1875 – 28 Desember 1937) adalah seorang komposer Perancis sekaligus pianis, terkenal dengan musiknya yang kompleks dan rumit, kaya, serta memiliki kesan yang mendalam. Musiknya untuk piano, musik kamar, vokal dan orkestra telah menjadi karya utama yang dimainkan dalam konser-konser.

Johan Sebastian Bach (March 21, 1685 – July 28, 1750) was a prolific German composer and organist from the baroque era. Bach created masterpieces in every baroque form except opera. He was recognized as the most eminent organist, harpsichordist, and improviser. He was little known outside Germany, and by the time of his maturity, the baroque style had started to go out of fashion and many people thought his works too heavy, complex, and polyphonic. His music was largely forgotten for years after his death, though a few later composers were aware of his genius; but in 1829 Felix Mendelssohn presented Bach’s  St. Matthew Passion, and Bach’s music has been the daily bread of every serious musician since then.
The Six Suites for unaccompanied Cello by Johann Sebastian Bach, including Suite No. 3 in C major BWV 1009, are acclaimed as some of the greatest works ever written for solo cello. They were most likely composed during the period 1717–1723.

Benjamin Britten (November 22, 1913 – December 4, 1976) was a British composer, conductor, violist, and pianist. Britten was born in Lowestoft in Suffolk. He showed musical gifts very early in life. He began composing prolifically as a child. Britten was an exceptionally accomplished pianist, and frequently performed in chamber music or accompanying lieder. However, apart from the Piano Concerto (1938) and the Diversions for piano and orchestra (written for Paul Wittgenstein in 1940), he wrote very little music for the instrument. He wrote chamber music, orchestral works, music for ballet, opera, cello suite, etc.

Antonín Dvořák (September 8, 1841 – May 1, 1904) was a Czech composer of romantic music. Dvořák wrote in a variety of forms: his nine symphonies generally stick to classical models, but he also worked in the newly developed symphonic poem form and the influence of Richard Wagner is apparent in some works. Many of his works also show the influence of Czech folk music, both in terms of rhythms and melodic shapes; perhaps the best known examples are the two sets of Slavonic Dances. Dvořák also wrote operas, chamber music, songs, choral music, and piano music.

Johannes Brahms (May 7, 1833 – April 3, 1897) was a Romantic composer, born in Hamburg, Germany. His work is personal in style but rooted in the music of Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven. Brahms created masterpieces in all traditional forms (except opera), include symphonies, concertos, piano pieces, songs, choral music, and numerous chamber music.

Iannis Xenakis (May 29, 1922 - February 4, 2001) was a Romanian-born composer of Greek parentage and one of the most important modernist composers of the 20th century. He’s a pioneer in the use of computing in the process of composition, sometimes with a mathematical allocation of instrumental notes within a large tapestry of sound. 

Aram Khachaturian (1903 - 1978 was an Armenian composer and pupil of Gnesin and Myaskovsky. His works are often influenced by Armenian folk-music. They include a piano concerto (originally with a part for flexatone, imitating an Armnian folk-instrument), a violin concerto, cello concerto, three symphonies, ballets (Gayaneh, and Spartacus, choral -, piano - and chamber works.

Royke B. Koapaha (1961), born in Bandung. He majored in Guitar at the Indonesian Music Academy in 1980. He's been 1st Prize Winner for Composition in Hongkong, and in Singapore (1982). Koapaha is the pupil of Marlon Pesolima and Ance Pariera. He received his Master degree for Composition in 2003. He studied with Dietar Mack, Slamet Abdul Syukur, Philip Corner and William Alves. His principal compositions include Music for film (Stigma), Duo Guitar (Generation), Duet Cello and Piano (dedicated to ASAH tour) and other pieces for Chamber Music. He's a faculty member of the Indonesia Institute of Art Yogyakarta and teaches composition and music theory.

Ismail Marzuki (1914 – 1958) was an Indonesian pianist and great composer. He learnt a lot from Dutch musicians and started composing after the Japanese occupation. He was motivated to compose at times during which the Japanese government banned western music. His works include Sepasang Mata Bola, Selendang Sutra, Gugur Bunga, Rayuan Pulau Kelapa, Wanita, etc.

Saiful Bahri is a conductor and composer from Indonesia. He was the leader of Orkes Studio Djakarta (OSD) until 1950s. He came from Kayutanan, Sumatra Tengah, and was considered to be a talented musician. Some composers including Iskandar, Ismail Marzuki, Mochtar Embut, and others, assisted him in composing. His works are intuitive and simple. Bahri’s compositions include Kerudung Putih, Lagu Untuk Anakku, etc.

Slamet Abdul Sjukur

Composer with a lot of different jobs. Teacher of 'Mandala' Kinder-Garten in Surabaya, Lecturer for the Magister Program (S-2) in STSI (Sekolah Tinggi Seni Indonesia) Surakarta etc. History:

Head of Jakarta Arts Comittee Head of the Indonesian Composers Association

Got fired from the Jakarta Institute of Art and Suara Surabaya FM. Received Awards: Golden Record of l'Academie Charles Cros, France; L'Officier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, France and from the Millenium Hall of Fame at the American Biographical Institute. Also received the: Medaille Commemorative Zoltan Kodaly, Hungary.

His scores and recordings are conserved in: SACEM/ Societe d'Authors, Compositeurs et Editeurs de Musique, Paris; CDMC/ Centre de Documentation de Musiques Contemporaines, Paris; ARION recording publishers, Paris; Radio Nederland WERELD OMROEP, Hilversum; and AMERICAN GAMELAN INSTITUTE, California, USA

He also produces and publishes CD's for his friends.

 
Mochtar Embut is an Indonesian composer. After his graduation from Lagree School in Makassar, he moved to Jakarta and studied music. One of his famous works is Amboi amboi mambo. Embut is the first Indonesian composer who participated in Tokyo’s International Festival with his composition “Salam mesra dari Jakarta” in 1971 which was sung by Elly Sri Kudus.
 

JakArt secretariat: Jln. Lebak Bulus II / 20 A, Cilandak – Jakarta 12430, INDONESIA
Tel/ fax: + 62-21-75907687, Tel: + 62-21-70830742, email: proseni@indosat.net.id