Indonesian Tour, 1994: Music and diplomacy

Striking Stories: a series of posts written by volunteers unearthing the fascinating stories within The Evelyn Glennie Collection. 

 The British Council is the United Kingdom’s international organisation for cultural relations and educational opportunities. 

It uniquely combines the UK’s deep expertise in arts and culture, education and the English language, our global presence and relationships in over 100 countries, our unparalleled access to young people, creatives and educators, and our own creative sparkle. It recognises the importance of ‘cultural propaganda’ in promoting British interests, and seeks to build connections, understanding and trust between people in the UK and other countries. 

With this brief in mind, negotiations began in 1993 with Evelyn’s representatives about an upcoming tour proposal, revealed in a letter to Ms Christine Cummings of Harrison Parrot Ltd [agents at the time for Evelyn] from Rosemary Shipsey, Head of Information of Books and Arts at the British Council, which suggests that Evelyn might like to consider extending her upcoming tour to South Korea and New Zealand, in June 1994, to include Indonesia.

Soft power and negotiations

The British Council is very clear about what they would like – to feature particularly the British interest in the Gamelan. It is to involve very senior Indonesians at the prestigious Hilton Convention Centre in Jakarta. They want to include workshops with students and professional Gamelan players. The letter asks for Evelyn’s availability before committing to concrete proposals.

To bring the arrangements to fruition it was necessary to involve experts in the field of Indonesian music and, in particular, the playing of the gamelan: these were the composers Dr Alec Roth and Dr Neil Sorrell, Senior lecturer in Music at the University of York, a specialist in Asian music, who lectured extensively on Indian and Javenese music and the author of ‘A Guide to the Gamelan’.

The prerequisites for the visit are clearly laid out in a letter from Alec Roth to Rosemary Shipsey in Jakarta:

1. The involvement of STSI [ Sekolah Tinggi Seni Indonesia Surakarta : musicians of the Indonesian College of Arts Denpasar campus in Bali ] is essential.
2. A formal request to be made to Dr Sri Hastanto, Director of STSI to involve up to 20 players. This famous institute is where practically all UK gamelan players have studied.
3. The STSI group should have top billing, second only to Evelyn and Dr Sri Hastanto should be guest of honour.
4. Intensive rehearsals with the players over one week in Solo [Surakarta] with Alec and Neil and their own rehearsals afterwards on a regular basis.
5. Available for rehearsal with Evelyn in Jakarta on 17th June, 1994
6. STSI must be contracted and paid at a generous rate in addition to concert fees
7. All STSI expenses must be covered
8. The gamelan used for concerts in Jakarta must be the same one used for the rehearsals In Solo. THIS IS ESSENTIAL [each gamelan being unique]. Thus arrangements will have to be made for the transportation of the gamelan instruments from Solo to Jakarta and back.
9. Rehearsals in April need one marimba and six tom-toms from the ISI Music Department and it needs to be approached formally
10. The approach to ISI needs to be sensitively handled, since no ISI players will be involved in the concerts.  Inducements maybe be a workshop for ISI percussion students by EG or financial arrangements to attend the concert.
11. Marimba player from ISI to help with April rehearsals.
12. Get Dr Sri Hastanto’s comments on this before proceeding any further. His support being crucial.

All this culminated in 2 concerts entitled ‘Rhythms of Harmony’ on 18th June, 1994 in the Jakarta Hilton Centre in Jakarta, in the presence of the President and his wife, and on 19th June in Taman Mini in Jakarta Timur, featuring Evelyn, the British Gamelan Orchestra and Gamelan Jawa.

A Workshop was held on 20th June in Taman Ismail Marzuki  which necessitated making flight arrangements for the following instruments: Marimba, Rototoms, Tom toms, Bongos, Stick trays, and stand case.

Striking the right note

The significance of this cultural event can be seen in the ‘Rhythms of Harmony’ programme which states: 

‘In brief, the significance of this event lies in the harmonious blending of Western percussion and the Eastern Gamelan : Ms Evelyn Glennie’s virtuosity in a variety of percussion instruments and a 65 person gamelan orchestra from Surakarta’

‘It is an imaginative example of British-Indonesian co-operation, a clear sign of British interest in Indonesian music and culture, and in gamelan in particular’.

Dr H.Ibnu Sutowo, Cabinet Minister, wrote ‘It is apparent that our two countries are growing ever closer and, it is hoped that this joint performance, we can obliterate social differences that are always detrimental to human civilisation’.

There are contributions from the British Ambassador, Roger Carrick, from Dr Sri Hastanto, Director of STSI, Dr Rahaju Supanggah, composer, Neil Sorrell and others. There was a joint British/Indonesian Organising Committee to facilitate matters and many sponsors from the British/Indonesian business community.

The success of the venture can be judged by a letter from the British Ambassador, Roger Carrick, to Evelyn dated 19th June, 1994 which reads;-

‘A hundred thousand thanks! Thank you for coming; for bringing your tremendous talent and musical magic with you; for entrancing and enthralling us so completely; for flying high and to such great effect the flags of St Andrew and the Union; and for making such a deep impact, so many wrapt admirers, and such beautiful and enduring memories’.

‘To put it crudely, you blew the socks off the President this evening! I have not seen him and Madame Soeharto so enchanted and so willing to express their enchantment’.

Evelyn also enthralled the Corps Diplomatique:

‘You also, this evening, captured the Corps Diplomatique! My Ambassadorial colleagues and their wives, a number of them seriously musical, and all of them serious searchers after civilised, cultural, top class, world class entertainment were bowled over. They can be cynical these Ambassadors: none was: all were overjoyed and deeply appreciative’.

His penultimate paragraph reads:

‘May I thank you again, for so much…but above all you, with your enormous talent and truly great professionalism…and for having done your country great honour and great service. My very sincere thanks and admiration’.

Letter from the British Ambassador to Indonesia to Evelyn Glennie, 19th June, 1994.

This tour is a fine example of the work of the British Council in organising and sponsoring a cultural event aimed at improving bilateral relations with another country whilst promoting British values, culture, education and talent. Evelyn played a key part in this and, subsequently, in other places.

 written by Peter Horley