[Kabar-indonesia] 'Rush Hour' offers witty radio amid Jakarta's heavy traffic

[Joyo at aol.com]

also: Sujiwo decries apathy about traditional music; 
and 203 'pesindens' join celebrations

The Jakarta Post 
Friday, August 25, 2006

'Rush Hour' offers witty radio amid Jakarta's heavy traffic

Evi Mariani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Starting out as host of a somewhat boring English-lesson radio program, Uncle 
J.C. and his motley crew have over 10 years turned their program into a radio 
sitcom with amusing characters launching witty comebacks at each other.

Currently broadcast on KIS FM, (95.1 FM), in Jakarta, Uncle J.C., Lily 
Mooncake, Brenda, Mimi and Andy host Rush Hour every Tuesday and Thursday at 6 p.m. 
through 8 p.m., when many Jakartans are stuck in heavy traffic.

The hosts take turns on the program, but Uncle J.C. is the mainstay.

"I play the character of Uncle J.C., am old, fat, bitter, bald man; Lily is a 
Chinese-Indonesian from Makassar who also speaks Mandarin; Mimi is Lily's 
cousin, a naive girl from a kampong in Malacca; Brenda is a sophisticated 
Indonesian woman and Muslim, while Andy is the playboy and the foodie," J.C. Falch 
said.

Uncle J.C. has spiced up Jakarta's radio scene for more than 10 years, first 
hosting an English-lesson program at MS Three and later Smart FM and Radio SK.

"I would say, 'listen class', then past, present, continuous tense. It was 
boring, the callers were boring people," he said.

Later, with Lily, his long-standing partner, he developed the program into 
what he jokingly called "psycho sinetron (soap opera)".

"Our regular listeners know our story. Lily hates J.C. because J.C. doesn't 
pay her well, for example," he said.

And there's this control issue between Uncle J.C. and Brenda. Uncle J.C. 
often claims Rush Hour is "my program", which is frowned upon by Brenda, who would 
snap angrily at J.C.

And there's lovable Mimi, who's played by Laguna.

"Throughout this show, I've played Inga, an old lady, myself, a reserved man 
and Mimi, Lily's cousin," Laguna said.

"But we like him to play Mimi, because he's good at playing her," Lily added.

In one episode, the hosts decided to make "What's your fantasy birthday 
celebration?" the topic. Listeners can call or send cell phone text messages to 
Rush Hour to share their fantasies. Within each two-hour episode, Rush Hour can 
receive eight calls and a dozen messages.

Some of the callers are apparently familiar with the hosts, as they sometimes 
poke fun at J.C. (he's almost always the major target).

In the fantasy birthday celebration episode, callers wanted J.C. to be the 
butler at his party, one wanted him to be the doorman, another even wanted J.C. 
to be the anchor of her birthday cruise ship.

J.C. jokingly "nuked" the one who wanted him to be an anchor.

Every time J.C. thought a callers' fantasies became too hot, he would utter 
"Hey! We have sixth graders listening here," and then laugh out loud.

The success of Rush Hour has often depended on both the topic and callers. 
For example, the birthday celebration topic proved to be more successful than 
"What's the most romantic moment you've ever had?"

Because the strongest point of the program is the poke-fun-at-each-other act 
and sassy jokes, it doesn't really suit solemn topics like "romantic moments".

Rush Hour is more amusing to listen to when the topic allows both hosts and 
callers to bicker.

While all the hosts speak nearly perfect English (Uncle J.C. has successfully 
dropped his native Florida drawl, hence his English is perfect), the callers 
sometimes speak broken English.

"We might poke fun at each other and at the content of the calls, but never 
make fun of callers' English," J.C. said.

Because the program also serves not merely as English-language entertainment 
but also as an English lesson, J.C. said that he carefully chose his 
vocabulary, preferring words he thought Indonesians would be familiar with.

However, many of the callers, mostly Indonesians, speak good English, with an 
American accent from watching many Hollywood movies. Some of the callers even 
become hosts themselves.

"We were previously callers," Brenda said, referring to herself, Laguna 
(Mimi) and Andy.

Although Laguna and Andy are relatively new members of the crew, they mingle 
with the others well. The team works well together and can produce rapid-fire, 
witty comebacks without a script. Ideas for programs fly easily; this bunch 
clearly consists of people who love their job.

All the hosts have another job besides hosting Rush Hour. Laguna, for 
example, is a fashion designer while Andy is the owner of Paprika restaurant, Central 
Jakarta.

They may sound like they're about to kill each other twice a week, but in 
reality they are just a bunch of good friends ready to entertain frustrated 
Jakartans caught in traffic. 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Jakarta Post 
Friday, August 25, 2006

Sujiwo decries apathy about traditional music

Intan Ismawati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Even after 61 years of independence, the country's music industry has yet to 
find a way to articulate its rhythm and melody in its own way.

"People here do not realize that music has been 'contaminated' by outside 
conventions on melody and rhythm", said Sujiwo Tejo, a well-known Javanese 
musician.

Jiwo (as he is called) regretted the inability of Indonesians to recognize 
the strength and uniqueness of their traditional music, which has its roots in 
the nation's ethnic diversity.

"I believe that listeners will not find the same uniqueness in other forms of 
music", said Jiwo, emphasizing the importance of preserving this diversity.

He added that the process goes beyond the use of traditional instruments, in 
contrast to what is popularly believed.

Musicians, Jiwo says, should combine the uniqueness of traditional music with 
modern instruments when composing songs.

"We should use such instruments according to the dictates of traditional 
melody and rhythm", said Jiwo while explaining that his previous albums used 
modern instruments but traditional rhythms from rebana (tambourines), gongs and the 
gamelan.

He sees music as a melting pot -- composers can always mix and match colorful 
melodies, rhythms and nuances into their pieces without losing the identity 
of traditional music.

Jiwo believes that the receptiveness of people toward more modern styles of 
music is due to the impact of the media.

"If traditional music were given the same exposure, I'm pretty sure it would 
be just as popular, too," explained Jiwo.

Based on his experience, the immediate environment is equally important as an 
influence on audiences.

Jiwo's father was a dalang (puppeteer) and his mother a lecturer in Javanese 
literature. Born into a family full of enthusiasm for the arts and traditional 
music, he shares the same passion.

Realizing that sales of albums of traditional songs are not that strong, 
local composers play safe by not taking risks.

"I took a risk. Alhamdulillah (thanks be to God), I've always been able to 
support my family and send my children to good schools", said Jiwo, in gratitude.

Through his albums, Jiwo has promoted traditional Javanese music, and his 
first attempt, Pada Suatu Ketika (Once Upon a Time, 1998) is widely regarded as a 
masterpiece.

A former journalist, he totally changed direction toward the arts back in 
1998 and, since then, has struggled to bring traditional music closer to the 
people.

Despite slow progress, Jiwo is convinced that its popularity will grow.

"The involvement of musicians like Viki Sianipar has proven that traditional 
music is consolidating itself," said Jiwo.

Viki, a young musician who is highlighting the music of Batak people (from 
North Sumatra), has collaborated with Jiwo since their first meeting back in 
2000.

To Jiwo, there are few traditional musicians compared with those who play 
other types of music, but there are enough to sustain it against tough 
competition.

"I believe that we don't need as huge mass of people for the onset of a 
revolution. Three to five is enough," said Jiwo, optimistically. 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

The Jakarta Post 
Friday, August 25, 2006

203 'pesindens' join celebrations

As many as 203 traditional singers, locally known as pesinden, performed 
together during a collaborative shadow puppet play titled Rama Tambak to highlight 
the 56th anniversary of Central Java province on the night of August 15 at 
the governor's office in Semarang.

The show was also held in conjunction with the 61st anniversary of 
Indonesia's independence.

It was Wonogiri's regent, Begug Poernomosidi, who took the initiative to 
invite over two hundred pesindens, grouped in the Wonogori Association of Pesinden 
and Dancers.

That was the first time ever such a number of the singers appeared in a 
puppet show. Donning their graceful and pretty blue costumes, these singers 
captivated the audience.

The puppet show presented guest puppet masters, namely Wonogiri Regent Begug 
Poernomosidi, Sragen Regent Untung S. Wiyono and Karanganyar Regent Rina 
Iriani sri Ratnaningsi, Ki Widodo Wilis Prabowo, Ki Suyati, Ki Pandam Wariyanto, Ki 
Jliteng Lukito, Ki Eko Sunarsono, Ki Pujono Gumelar, Ki Anjar Sutrisno and Ki 
Mulyadi.

A puppet show, which traditionally presents stories based on the Ramayana and 
the Mahabharata, lasts from evening until past midnight.

Governor Mardiyanto was among those who followed the show to the end.

------------------------------------------ 
Joyo Indonesia News Service
------------------------------------------