Campus Digest

HKBU concert promotes Indonesian culture

13 July 2022

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Young musicians perform using the Gamelan, which is a traditional Indonesian instrument.
Dancers perform “Tari Saman”, a popular traditional Indonesian dance of the Gayo ethnic group in Aceh, a province of Indonesia.
The music, which fused western classical and Indonesian styles, was composed by HKBU student Lauryn Vania Kurniawan.
The conductor and HKBU alumnus Mr Gip Chan Wing-yip and the performers.

Members of the Collegium Musicum Hong Kong and the HKBU Symphony Orchestra performed at an Indonesian cultural concert named “The Gamelan in Hong Kong” to an audience of around 450 offline and 1,100 online people on 29 May in the Academic Community Hall.

The Gamelan is a traditional Indonesian ensemble comprised predominantly of metallophones. The idea of organising the concert originated from Lauryn Vania Kurniawan, a final year Indonesian music student at HKBU, who is dedicated to showcasing the culture of Southeast Asia, encouraging the inclusivity of Southeast Asians, and promoting the Belt and Road cultures in Hong Kong. Kurniawan was also the composer and director of the concert.

Apart from the HKBU musicians, the orchestra included HKBU alumni and members of the Gip Percussion Ensemble. Both traditional Indonesian instruments and classical orchestral instruments were used during the performance. There was also a dance performance which was a fusion of ballet and a traditional Indonesian dance.

The festive evening attracted guests from the Consulate-General of the Republic of Indonesia, the National Bank of Indonesia, and the Consulate-Generals of Malaysia and Brunei. 

The event was sponsored by the Consulate General of Indonesia and Bank Negara Indonesia in Hong Kong, and it received funding from the Global Engagement Squad of HKBU’s Office of Student Affairs. It was also supported by HKBU’s Academy of Music (formerly the Department of Music), the Gip Percussion Ensemble, the Asia Pacific Percussion Society and the Hong Kong Model ASEAN Association.