Voice of the people: Taking your pick of music courses

Features - March 14, 2004

There are dozens of music courses in town, all having their own specialities on offer,
although from the first glance at their signboards it's often hard to tell them apart. If you
have ambitions of singing for your supper, just want to perfect that bathroom baritone or
tinker on the ivories, scan the following list. At the end of the day, your choice may well
hinge on which school is closest to home.

Sekolah Musik Yayasan Pendidikan Musik (YPM)

Jl. Kepodang Raya No. 30, Tel. 021-7350374

Jl. Manggarai Utara No. 5, Tel. 021-8292469

Established in 1952, this music school is probably the oldest and most respected one in
the country. Programs include piano, violin, guitar, flute and vocal. The school has
yielded top notch graduates, including Kuei Pin Yeo, the first Indonesian with a PhD in
music from the Manhattan School of Music. The New York Times once described him as
a great technician and a responsive musician.

Yayasan Musik Indonesia

Yamaha Music Center Building

Jl. Gatot Subroto No. 4, South Jakarta Tel. 021-5201577/5202578

Perhaps the biggest music course chain here, with 60 branches opened across the country
since it was established here in 1972. A franchise of Japan's Yamaha Music Foundation,
it has programs in piano, electone, guitar, drums, children's music education and popular
music course.

Elfa's Music Studio

Jl. Duta IX Blok LL No. 15, Tel. 8203757

Jl. Wijaya I No. 7, Tel. 021-7251647

Formed by noted musician Elfa Secioria in his hometown Bandung, it now has branches
all over the country. There are four branches in the capital. Programs offered are piano
and vocal, with an admission fee of Rp 300,000.

Lembaga Pendidikan Musik Farabi

Jl. Dharmawangsa XI/5, South Jakarta Tel. 021-7224407

Established in 1978, it was subsequently taken over by top musician Dwiki Dharmawan.
Teachers include the famous drummer Gilang Ramadhan, and programs range from
guitar, drum, violin, classical piano, bass, trumpet and saxophone. Admission fee of Rp
600,000 with monthly fee of Rp 200,000. Audition needed for electric guitar, with
additional fee of Rp 25,000. There will be final examination, which means there is the
possibility of flunking, and a certificate is provided.

Purwacaraka Music Studio

Jl. BDN Raya No. 10B, South Jakarta, Tel. 021-7512845

Another music course owned by a musician. Courses include vocal, guitar, piano, drums
and violins. Admission fee is Rp 400,000 and monthly fee Rp 200,000.

Bill Saragih

Jl. Cikini Raya No. 77, Central Jakarta. Tel. 3157002

Run by Indonesian jazz legend Bill Saragih, often called the Indonesian Louis
Armstrong.

Yayasan Amadeus

Menara Citibank, Jl. Metro Pondok Indah 2nd Fl., South Jakarta

Tel. 7662853/54/57

Recommended by conductor Addie MS, the school is run by 39-year-old violinist Grace
Sudargo. She was the first Indonesian, and the first Asian woman, to graduate cum laude
in teaching and concert from the Austrian Hochschule Fur Music, the oldest music
university in Europe.

Institut Musik Daya

Jl. Taman Kemang I Kav. 11, South Jakarta

Tel. 021-71792331

A music school run by noted jazz musician Tjut Nyak Deviana Daudsjah. It has two
programs, undergraduate and graduate study. Students will be taught anything they need
to know about music, with a major given in later years pf study. There are five subjects
given for undergraduate study, and 22 subjects for graduate. The minimum age for
undergraduate students is 15 years old, while graduate students should be at least 18 but
not older than 30. -- Hera Diani