Summer Festival 2023: Sounds of Indonesia: Unheard Stories from a Distant Land

Ensemble Tritala: Sofia Livotov (soprano) Satriya Krisna (tenor) Prajna Indrawati (piano)

Mochtar Embut - Setitik Embun (A Drop of Dew)
Mochtar Embut – Srikandi (A Song about the Indonesian Female Warrior)
Claude Debussy - Apparition (L53)
F. X. Soetopo - Puisi Rumah Bambu (Poem of Bamboo House)
Benjamin Britten - The Little Old Table - The Choirmaster`s Burial from Winter Words, Op.52, no. 4 & 5
Trisutji Kamal - Bunda (To My Mother) - Pantun (A Quatrain)
Jaya Suprana - Fragmen
Paul Seelig - Sinom (Contemplation)
Djauhari - Bukit Kemenangan (Victory Hill)
Leopold Godowsky - Java Suite no. 1 “Gamelan”
Henk Badings - I Love You Much
Iskandar & M. Embut - Kisah Mawar di Malam Hari (The Story of a Rose at Night)
Ismail Marzuki - Wanita (Woman)
Sjafii Embut - Malam Indah (Beautiful Night)

Indonesian art songs, also known as "Seriosa", have yet to gain recognition in the Western Classical Music scene. Nevertheless, their history is both fascinating and inspiring. Seriosa emerged in the 20th century, introduced by a small group of European-educated musicians, and played a pivotal role in inspiring Indonesian fighters during the National Resurgence movement. As an expression of freedom, these songs reflect the voice of a new generation, recounting stories of leadership, victory, Indonesian nature, mythology, and the struggles of a country that endured three and a half centuries of colonisation.

Connected by their love of art songs, the Leeds based opera singers - soprano Sofia Livotov and tenor Satriya Krisna together with pianist and RCM graduate Prajna Indrawati began their collaboration in 2018. As some of the few artists currently performing and recording Indonesian classical music in Europe, the three musicians strive to bring this lesser-known genre to a wider audience. Their recent performances of Indonesian art songs include appearances at Oxford Lieder Festival as well as at various concert venues in London, Berlin, Hamburg, Salzburg and Jakarta. Furthermore, songs from their short album 'Sounds of Indonesia' - which the musicians recorded during lockdown - were broadcast on German radio SWR2, Radio Klassik Stephansdom and Canadian radio CKIA FM.

Sofia Livotov

German soprano Sofia Livotov is a versatile artist, equally at home performing opera, art song, and contemporary music. Based in Leeds, she has appeared at international venues such as the Tonhalle Zürich, Oxford Lieder Festival, Wigmore Hall, TivoliVredenburg and on the concert stage in Jakarta. After joining the Chorus of Opera North for Parsifal in April 2022, Sofia returned as a member of the Chorus for the current year, recently appearing in the role of the Owl in Opera North's production of The Cunning Little Vixen.
An established concert singer, both in recital and oratorio, Sofia has performed with ensembles such as Festival Strings Lucerne and Sinfonietta Zürich and appeared in contemporary opera productions at Tête-à-Tête Festival and Lucerne Theater. Other roles on the operatic stage include Musetta (La Bohème), Adina (L’elisir d’amore), Anna (Nabucco), Pamina (The Magic Flute) and Micaela (Carmen). A graduate of Hochschule Musik Lucerne (2013) and the Conservatorium van Amsterdam (2017) under the tutelage of Valérie Guillorit, Sofia has received numerous scholarships from Swiss, German and British foundations. As a duo, Sofia and pianist Prajna Indrawati were selected for the Oxford Lieder Residential Mastercourse 2021 and awarded the 2020 Transmission Fund by Help Musicians UK as well as the second prize in the chamber music category of the 2022 London Classical Music Competition. Sofia is currently coached by Nelly Miricioiu in London.

Satriya Krisna

Satriya Krisna, an Indonesian tenor based in Leeds, is known for his warm, lyric voice and robust velvet tone. He has performed at prestigious venues including the Royal Opera House, English National Opera, Dutch National Opera, Amsterdam Concertgebouw and from season 21/22 has been a member of Opera North Chorus. Satriya obtained his Music BA in 2015 and Masters in 2017 under the tutelage of Henny Yana Diemer at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam. He was selected to participate as part of international young artist programs, including the Verbier Festival Academy, Georg Solti Accademia, Samling Artist and Les Azuriales Young Artists Program. As an alumnus of the National Opera Studio’s 2017/2018 Young Artists program in London Satriya has been recognized through numerous awards, including the Judges'Discretionary Prize at Fulham Opera's Robert Presley Memorial Verdi Competition 2017. He has performed the role of Don Jose in Bizet/Brooks La tragedie de Carmen with Pop-Up Opera, the role of Pinkerton in Puccini's Madama Butterfly and sang the role of Cavaradossi in Puccini's Tosca for Diva Opera. He recently covered and performed the role of Don Jose in Bizet's Carmen at Opera North in Carmen season 21/22 and for the Longborough Festival Opera 2022. In 2023 he is going to cover the role of Nadir in Bizet’s Pearl Fishers at Opera North. He continues to develop his singing under the guidance of Richard-Berkeley Steele.

Prajna Indrawati

Indonesian pianist Prajna Indrawati honed her Master of Performance degree in Collaborative Piano (2018) at the Royal College of Music under tutelage of Roger Vignoles, Kathron Sturrock, and Simon Lepper. Accompanying singers, she performed in few places in the UK, such as Royal Festival Hall, Holywell Room Oxford, Wigmore Hall, etc. She was awarded second place for Accompanist Prize in “Brooks- van der Pump” English Song Competition and Joan Chisell Schumann Competition and Titanic Memoriam Award for accompanist in Lies Askonas Competition 2018. She has attended Oxford Lieder Mastercourse programme twice in 2018 (with Soprano Joyee Cole) led by Wolfgang Holzmair and in 2021 (with Soprano Sofia Livotov) led by Joan Rodgers. She had been supported by Help Musicians UK and featured by the Classic FM, performed in BBRadio3 “in Tune”, Victoria and Albert Museum, St. Martin in-the-fields, St. James Picadilly, Teatro de la Maestranza, Grand Theatre Ismail Marzuki, Kings Place London, Newbury Spring Festival, Alderney Music Festival, 2020 Leeds International Music Festival, Edinburgh Music Society etc; as well in Seville (Spain) and Creete (Greece). With Soprano Sofia Livotov, they have been awarded the Second Prize in the Chamber Music Category of the London Classical Music Competition 2022.

Go behind the scenes with Sofia, Satriya, and Prajna here.