Diplomacy Through Beauty (my original, unedited article at the Jakarta Post, April 17th 2016)

Piano Concert of Giovanni Allevi : Diplomacy through Beauty ............................................................................................................................................. by Ananda Sukarlan, pianist & composer ............................................................................................................................................. Do we have to understand the music to love it? And by understanding, what do we mean? Is there really an "education for the ear" to appreciate --let alone love-- "good music" (which means sometimes complex, long and "heavy")? Do we need to know the genre of the music we are listening to? And is it important for any music to fit nicely into a "genre" box? ............................................................................................................................................. The Istituto Italiano di Cultura (IIC) of Jakarta under its visionary and hyperactive director Michela Magri has invited the hugely popular pianist and contemporary (classical) composer Giovanni Allevi to perform at the Usmar Ismail Hall last Friday the 8th of April. It was meant to strengthen the ties between Indonesia and Italy, and also happened to be the first event of Italy's new Ambassador for Indonesia, Vittorio Sandalli. Allevi performed exclusively his own compositions, with the happy exception of giving a surprise to the Indonesian audience, by performing an excerpt of my own Rapsodia Nusantara no. 10. I realized it when we met for the first time at the Ambassador's residence for the welcoming dinner on Thursday the 7th. He broke the secret that he asked the IIC my music score to be sent, so I asked for a music score of his as well. Since the IIC asked me to co-host his concert, I then not only opened it with a (very) short speech, but I play his music, "Secret Love". ............................................................................................................................................. It seemed like a simple and fun game between two musical (new) friends: exchanging musical scores. But it was much more than that. Allevi didn't just "arrive, perform, go home". He took the time and effort to browse and investigate on the Indonesian classical contemporary music, which then brought him to the knowledge of our traditional music, since my Rapsodia is based on Balinese scales and rhythmic structure. Music goes deeper to a cross-cultural understanding, and therefore what occured in his concert was already an act of Cultural Diplomacy. An extra happy coincidence is that Allevi came with his charming wife whose name is Nada, a musical name for us Indonesians since it means "musical note" in our language. We all wish that Allevi would incorporate some Indonesian musical elements in his future music, just like what other Western composers had done who visited Java in the past, such as Michael Tippett or Benjamin Britten. ............................................................................................................................................. Allevi's own music is usually 4-6 minutes long, with characteristic exquisite melodies abound. Notable among the 10 works he played are "Playroom" with its childlike simplicity, the romantic-without-being-too-sweet "Sacred Love" and the humorous "It Doesn't Work". ............................................................................................................................................. Cultural diplomacy is not (only) about entertaining people. It is about relationship building between two countries: its PEOPLE and not only a segment of its society (politicians, economist or even artists) – the most long term strategy used and is potentially the most significant. The relationship building programs stretches over years and is aimed at giving deep insight to the people and how they think, express and live. It is also about "nation branding", and the best way to know --and love-- a country is certainly through its culture and the arts. Opening up to another culture and other views certainly would invaluably enrich anybody's life. ............................................................................................................................................. The increasing globalization has also created a sharper competition between countries as it has become increasingly difficult to stand out from the others and governments have therefore sought ways to increase their own relative competitive edge in relation with other states. Nation branding has been a great way to do this, but first, what is going to be presented by the artist(s) to the other country should have a clear and solid national identity. The artist should be able to show the nations’ possibilities of representing their own artistic utterances to the world, while being capable of understanding what others have to express about themselves. Only then this two-way communication could be established --and sustained. ............................................................................................................................................. This does not necessarily have to have anything to do with its function and the quality does not necessarily have to be better or worse than the arts and culture of the other country. People’s perception of the artistic product is what counts and its expressive and emotional value will make it stand out from the rest as it has its own story to tell the people, since it will make us realize that in whichever part of the world we were born and raised, we all have the same passions, conscience ... and love for everything beautiful; it's just the way we express them is different. Shortly speaking, through the arts we speak the same language. ............................................................................................................................................. The state of easy digital access to a near-endless supply of music that we now have has placed a special burden on music making. What else does the public need? There are those who say that "everything in music has been written". "Everything" includes all the music and genres that are not close to our hearts. ............................................................................................................................................. Why should we listen --and therefore pay-- to the music that doesn't strike a chord in our heart? I do not use the term "understand the music" since music is, unlike words, not to be understood. Do we "understand" Tchaikovsky's "1812 Overture"? It does not even have lyrics with it, yet why is it so universally excepted as the triumph of glory? And do we need to know the German text of Beethoven's 9th to realize that it is about brotherhood of men? ............................................................................................................................................. Fortunately, Allevi's fully-packed concert was not only attended by Indonesian audience. There were some expats too, as well as some foreign diplomats. I personally saw the Ambassadors of Armenia, of Great Britain, of Spain and at least of 5 other countries. Together we show the audience that "classical music" does not mean "music written by dead composers"; it is very much alive. It has now even acquired a new term --unfortunately in need of a better one--, "classical contemporary music". The concept of beauty remains the same and there are so many different points of artistic views that are yet to be discovered. ............................................................................................................................................. "We live in a wonderful world that is full of beauty, charm and adventure. There is no end to the adventures that we can have if only we seek them with our eyes open." (Jawaharlal Nehru). Substitute "eyes" to "ears" and you will be much more enriched with any new music around you without being judgemental, since when one judges, one will not be able to love.