I am so privileged to come to Indonesia not just for a vacation but to learn and have an experience as I enter the field of teaching. But beyond the fact that I am to be an intern, we were gladly and warmly accommodated with an excursion in one of the popular tourist destinations in Bandung, Udjo.
Aside from being a teacher, I am a musically-inclined person who loves appreciating different genres of music and instruments. When I have learned that we were about to be brought in a traditional musical venue, it came as music to my ears as well. I was so excited to meet the musical personality of Bandung Indonesia.
I met Angklung. Angklung is the finest and classical instrument in Bandung. Upon seeing the instrument itself brought me a lot of curiosity and interest on how it is being used. An ordinary person would have just thought that it is an ordinary bamboo made item that will bring joy for it's sound. But guess what, it's not the way we have to appreciate this instrument. As curiosity arises in me, I had to be patient in waiting until my curiosity is fed.
The whole cultural show was amusing to understand the culture, tradition, and identity of Indonesia. It took 2 - 3 hours until my interest is already fed. The last part of the program includes the interactive cultural show as they call it. Everyone in the venue was provided with Angklung. When I heard everybody shaking the Angklung given,I heard different sounds literally and figuratively. Literally, I heard different notes from it. Now it tickled my mind once more and got a clue out of it. Angklung is not an instrument, it is a group of instruments. Angklung has their own note, and sound. The audience were given a whole octave. I was able to hold an Angklung possessing the higher octave C or Do. I heard a different sound figuratively. From these people shaking their Angklung brought me to the reality of us, humans, have different sounds to bring. We bring a sound of joy, hope, love, peace, and even the ones that are of the opposites. But in order to bring a great sound in this world, we have to come as one and be like a whole set of Angklung. Angklung is not meant to be one, but it a group of several ones.
I enjoyed this excursion as it has also brought me to depth of these realizations. Come and visit the world of Angklung, the world of Udjo.