This cycle for baritone & piano, based on 4 poems by Goenawan Mohamad, started from setting the poem "Sajak untuk Bungbung" on flight from Jakarta - Frankfurt beginning of January 07. Someone gave me the complete poems of GM for a present during my stay in Jakarta that turn of the year and that was my "official book" for the flight. Having finished setting that poem, I realized that I have created a material that has a hypnotizing effect (which suits very well with many of GM's poems) : repeated notes, and that material could be developed in further works.
Another poem, Perjalanan Malam (Journey of the Night) also attracted me immensely, since it was based on Goethe's poem "Der Erlkönig" which was later set to become Schubert's most famous song. So, I took my repeated-notes material and also studied Schubert's song before setting GM's poem . Of course I wouldn't dare to emulate the Austrian master, but my piece certainly couldn't have existed without it. It turned out later that all the songs are all based on the note C, although one couldn't pinpoint whether it's major, minor, bi-tonal or even atonal.
This work will receive its world premiere during the closing of the JCoM Fest on the 12th of August, with myself accompanying one of Indonesia's best baritones, Rainier Revireino.
