IO, Yogyakarta – Batik Musik Festival (BMF) is an international music event held for the first time in the Prambanan temple complex in 2019. The Festival, promoted by Rajawali Indonesia and PT Taman Wisata Candi Borobudur, Prambanan & Ratu Boko, was successfully held on Saturday (05/10/2019). The Festival’s main attractions were musical maestros from both inside and outside of our country, Yovie Widianto and David Foster.
In the festival, organized specifically to celebrate National Batik Day, David Foster went on stage with the “David Foster & Friends” format, which include stars such as Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds, Katharine McPhee, Pia Toscano, Yuna, and Nick Zavior. Yovie Widianto likewise showed his own “Yovie and His Friends” format by collaborating with Kahitna, BCL, Raisa, Rio Febrian, Marcell, 5 Romeo, and Arsy Widianto.
CEO of Rajawali Indonesia and originator of Batik Music Festival Anas Syahrul Alimi stated that the first staging of the festival was very fun and festive. He was able to directly see many Indonesians from several generations arrive to enjoy music and proudly wear batik at the same time. Anas further stated that he means to hold the festival again next year, and establish it as an annual international musical event. “Alhamdulillah, praised be Allah, this is the first time we hold the Batik Music Festival. Our target was to have 6,000 spectators or so here, but so many more turned out. The total number of spectators watching the show at both the Festival Show and Special Show stages was 9,100 people. This is unexpected, really a surprise. I thought that nobody would care if we set batik for the dress code. But it turns out that more than 90% of the audience wore batik,” he said.
David Foster added that the concept behind the Batik Music Festival is an integration of three masterpieces: clothing (batik), music, and architecture (Prambanan Temple). This is amazing, because these are three things that Indonesians should be proud of. This is the biggest reason for Foster wanting to return for another concert in the Garuda Republic.
David Foster and friends covered 18 of his hits on the Special Show stage, including I Swear, All by Myself, To Love You More, When Can I See You, Change the World, That’s Life, and Power of Love.
The other stage, the Festival Show stage, featured Yovie and His Friends. When the one hour and a half concert was done, Yovie stated that he was happy to be entrusted to be a part of the first Batik Music Festival. He notices that the festival’s audience is comprised of Indonesian music lovers who also appreciate their ancestors’ heritage, in this case batik and Prambanan Temple.
Batik Music Festival was also the first time for him to witness thousands of people from various backgrounds watch an international-level music concert wearing batik. He finds this historic and worthy of appreciation that batik and modern music are celebrated jointly in a pleasant moment. “For the first time in my more than 30 years of playing music, I can see so many members of the audience wearing batik. I am proud and touched that I get to watch this moment – I even mistakenly called “Prambanan” as “Borobudur” because I was so overwhelmed. This is amazing! We should keep doing this to prove how much we really love Indonesia,” he said.
Raisa made a similar statement. “I was really happy when I found out about the Batik Music Festival. Then I told myself, “Oh my, then we are having batik as the dress code!” I really love wearing batik. It’s usually worn only for parties and formal events. This is an amazing moment for me,” she said.
The Batik Music Festival covered at least 16 of Yovie Widianto’s hits, including Ada Cinta (“There Is Love”), Peri Cintaku (“My Love Fairy”), Katakan Saja (“Just Say It”), Suratku (“My Letter”), Cerita Cinta (“Love Story”), Soulmate, Kasih Putih (“Pure White Love”),Takkan Terganti (“Irreplaceable”), and Adu Rayu (“Battle of Sweet Nothings”) to warm up the atmosphere around Prambanan Temple’s grounds. The three masterpieces really became one during the festival – the distinct beauties of batik, music, and Prambanan Temple merged seamlessly into an unforgettable memory.
The Batik Music Festival as an event celebrating National Batik Day is a true form of SOEs’ synergy in supporting all positive activities of the people. Jasa Raharja Putera Insurance, Bank BRI, Bank BTN, Garuda Indonesia, Semen Indonesia, Jasa Marga, Pupuk Indonesia, Pelindo III, and Angkasa Pura 1 all fully supported this music festival.