Me and My "Prostitutes"

In fact I had not wanted to talk about my next opera, but since there is this open audition for the singers and the enthusiasm has been mounting, now it's like everybody talks about it. So I better write a bit on it, mostly to clarify what it IS and it is NOT about. From its title "Tumirah, Sang Mucikari" (Madame Tumirah, the Pimp), most people would assume that there are many sexually (pretty) explicit scenes in it. WRONG. Yeah, the female main roles are damn beautiful and nice to look at (apart from the fact that they sing like angels), but don't expect to see lots of their naked body parts! Yeah, the words "f*ck", "org*sm" and the likes are abundant, and as with Seno Gumira Ajidarma's other works, the language is pretty direct and less poetic. But this opera, in the end, is about love, and its difference from pure sex. And it is, like most of Seno Gumira's works, a social criticism, not only about the industry of sex, but about social justice. ............................................................................................................................................. The "judges" for the audition will be me and Chendra Panatan, my manager and also the choreographer & director of this opera. Please note: the voice remains the most important aspect for us, but also the gestures and appearance will have something to do with our decision to accept the singers. They don't have to dance, but they will be required to do some moving around and certain gestures in the opera. But remember, the crucial issue is still the quality of the voice. ............................................................................................................................................. In fact, there is another very important thing, but one cannot get it through auditions, and that is ATTITUDE. Remember: what is needed from artists is our PRODUCT. If you think people are more interested in your ego, your charisma, your selfies, you are dead wrong. If one acts like a diva but sucks in his/her product, whether it's the singing or whatever, one better not consider a career in classical music. But of course during the audition I cannot measure your attitude. So, just sing like an angel, and if you happen to be a divo/a, well, the rest of the musicians will have to eat that shit you give us. I am sorry for myself and the whole team to have to put up with Your Fabulousness. But remember, being a selfish diva and think that one is the center of the world is disgusting. OK, OK, we understand you are the best and the rest suck, but show it with your voice, with your ARTISTIC PRODUCT, not with your judgemental tweets or facebook status or condescending attitude. But hey, if you can sing well, do you still need to be an asshole? ............................................................................................................................................. Many amateur singers still think that an opera is like a musical : they sing 1 or 2 numbers, and that's it. The rest of the time they can use it for gossiping or criticizing other singers. WRONG. Each singer should be "on" almost during the whole opera, and one interacts with each other through recitatives and dialogues. So, one really got to know the music, the score. And the attitude affects other people in the production ; rehearsal time is limited, so each and every one has to be extremely prepared with his/her own parts. ............................................................................................................................................. For now we have the main roles, which are played by Artidewi (she has a unique voice which can sometimes sound "rocky", which will be exploited here) as the protagonist, "THE PIMP". Next are her prostitutes, Mariska Setiawan (soprano) and Evelyn Merrelita (coloratura soprano). They will be accompanied by a few female dancers, also acting as prostitutes. And then there is the tenor Widhawan Aryo Pradhita (who rocked Jakarta as "the police" in my previous opera, CLARA, and contributed to grab the award for Best Performing Arts 2014 by the TEMPO Magazine). We would need some male singers and still an extra "prostitute", but she will have to be an alto to complete the female voices. Anybody?

The Power of (Grandma's) Love

This is just a short entry, but a meaningful one, at least for me. Since I came back from my holiday in Madrid, I've started writing the actual notes for my new opera. It's not easy I must say, since I am still having doubts with the structure of the work ; it's a complex one, and I gotta change the order of some scenes from the original play. There are some instrumental interludes and long arias which would work for the original drama staging, but would be disproportional if one sets it to music. Anyway, I also had that problem in my 2nd Chamber Symphony recently finished : I was stuck, and then I realized that the flaw lay in the basic structure. I just changed the form during the ongoing process of composing, and it turned out ... err .. OK, I think (the premiere is still exactly 1 month from now, so I shouldn't say anything yet!). So, I concluded that I'd stop worrying, I just gotta start writing my opera, and if I get stuck later, I will just go back and see if the problem would be in the changing of scenes. ............................................................................................................................................. Anyway, I see that this opera is no small issue, so I was hoping that I could ask to postpone its World Premiere (due to be in February next year). To be honest, I was having trouble in beginning to write it. I felt clueless and scared in front of the blank, white music paper. Before I told my disquietude to the producer, I chatted with one of the sopranos for that opera about my anxiety. I shall quote her reaction, literally: ............................................................................................................................................. "Ooooh nooo ! My grandma [who lives in Germany] would visit Indonesia in February, and she was already so excited to know that it coincides with my operatic debut. If it were postponed, she would miss it, since she couldn't come in any other period to Indonesia. She'd be so disappointed!". The point is, she lives in Surabaya, so even though she would be in Indonesia in February, she still would have to fly to Jakarta to see her beloved (and very talented) granddaughter for the premiere. Yeah, that's how great the love of a grandma is. ............................................................................................................................................. Needless to say, this conversation immediately revoked my decision to talk to the producer, and my motivation to sit my ass and work got a big boost! Grandmas rock!