Dewa Budjana & Tohpati with Czech Symphony Orchestra & Budapest Scoring Orchestra — Janapati (Pos Entertainment Indonesia/MoonJune Records, 2019)
Two guitarists at the summit of the Indonesian guitar world, Dewa Budjana and Tohpati Ario Hutomo, meet here as equals, not rivals. Across more than fifty combined appearances, often for MoonJune Records, they have learned each other’s reflexes so well that their expert craft becomes conversation. Their liner notes put it plainly: a long friendship breeds fluency, and fluency makes the writing come easy.
The setting is unabashedly symphonic. The Budapest Scoring Symphonic Orchestra and the Czech Symphony Orchestra make the dialogue possible, while Adhitiya Pratama on bass and Demas Narawangsa on drums provide the essential and skilled rhythmic support on several tracks with clean, unsentimental drive. The result feels exquisitely cinematic with the guitars in the spotlight surrounded by the orchestras like an engaging imaginary Indonesian film scaled for a wide screen.
The result is a set of instrumental wonders that bring together state of the art progressive rock, dazzling jazz fusion virtuosity by world-class guitarists and gorgeous symphonic arrangements with a distinct, exquisite Indonesian flavor.
Musicians: Dewa Budjana on acoustic guitar, semi-acoustic guitar, electric guitar; Tohpati on classical guitar, electric guitar; Adhitiya Pratama on bass; Demas Narawangsa on drums; Budapest Scoring Symphonic Orchestra; Czech Symphony Orchestra.