REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- Japanese rock band, Weaver, claimed to know gamelan after being involved in ‘We Are Asia: Dean Fujioka and Friends’, a documentary-style entertainment program that enables them to experience the adventure of culture in Cambodia, Hong Kong, and Indonesia.
"We went to watch the show and listen to the sounds of gamelan and thought it was very soothing, and a sound that we have never heard before,” said the Weaver members that consists of Yuji Sugimoto, Toru Kawabe, and the Shota Okuno.
The group recently released an album Night Rainbow and was keen to establish gamelan instruments in their music. It brings them to collaborate with dozens of young artists from Balai Budaya gamelan Minomartani, Sleman, Yogyakarta.
The main stage of collaboration took place at the Borobudur Temple, where the artists gamelan played two traditional songs' Suwe Ora Jamu 'and' Jaranan. Furthermore, the gamelan orchestra collaborated with Weaver to play 'Kokoro No Tomo' and a song specially composed for the program.
"The children were very unusual. They practice very hard. They did not look nervous at all and instead, we were really nervous!" Weaver said that it was their third time to come to Indonesia.
According to Weaver, We Are Asia is aired every Sunday on TV GEM Asia and they recommend watching it for the audience to listen to their performance. The program presents a unique experience on Japan and various regions in Asia as well.
Weaver pointed out, as a musician like they do not really know the various types of music and traditions in Asia. Therefore, learning culture is essential to know each other and find each other.
"There are so many instruments outside of Japan that we will never know if it were not here for We Are Asia. We feel our musical horizons have expanded," they said.
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