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[BANDUNG, unpadchoir.com] Titled Lux Cantio: The New Journey of A Luminous Melody, Unpad Choir once again held their annual concert which this time was different from the annual concerts from previous years. This year, Unpad Choir held their annual concerts in Bandung and Yogyakarta. Lux Cantio, which means beautiful singing, depicts the wishes of Unpad Choir to always go forward, shine and expand its existence in the choir world through their desire to learn new songs and visit a new city, that being Yogyakarta.

“Lux Cantio means a shining singing. It is represented by the singers who are dominated by the young generation of Unpad Choir so that it relates to the spirit of the young people,” stated Sanisha Olivia, project officer of Unpad Choir’s 23rd annual concert Lux Cantio.

The preparation for the concert in both cities is a long and winding process, as is the preparation of choir concerts in general. However, there are new obstacles that are found by Unpad Choir, who held a concert in the new city: Yogyakarta. Holding a concert in a city that has never been visited before has its own challenges.

Bandung Concert

Like the tradition of Unpad Choir in their annual concerts, the 23rd annual concert of Unpad Choir titled “Lux Cantio” was held in the building Grha Sanusi Hardjadinata, at Unpad Dipatiukur, in Bandung. The concert, held on 27 November 2019, attracted audiences from various circles including family, friends, and also the singers’ relatives.

At this Bandung concert, the first song presented by Unpad Choir was the song Hymn to Freedom (Oscar Peterson [1925-2007]) Paul Read’s magnificent arrangement was performed magnificently for his beautiful and bright melody. The song was intended to attract the attention of the audience and open the first session of Lux Cantio concert.

The next songs performed by Unpad Choir in this 23rd annual concert are mostly contemporary songs which some of them are traditional Latvian songs. It is also a representation of the Lux Cantio concert poster which portrays the city of Latvia as the poster’s concert icon.

The first session of Lux Cantio concert contained nine songs representing the theme of the concert. The song Atsalums (Jēkabs Jančevskis [b.1992]) became the last song in the first session and it was closed with the applause from the audience.

“It’s very pleasing to be able to watch this concert! Unpad Choir can really bring songs that can steal the hearts of the audience,” said Raditio, one of the audience.

Then the following begins again the second session of Lux Cantio concert which was opened with A Capella Overtures arrangement of Andy Beck who no less invited lively applause from the audience. There are eleven songs performed in the second session which are entertainment songs that more show the diversity of songs in this concert. Evolution of Music (as performed by Pentatonix) Ben Bram’s arrangement is a song that closes the second session as well as the end of the series of Lux Cantio annual concert that are highly appreciated by the audience.

Yogyakarta Concert

In addition to holding their 23rd annual concert in Bandung, this year Unpad Choir also held their annual concert in Yogyakarta on 1 December 2019, at Syantikara Youth Center. Holding a concert in Yogyakarta is a new thing that Unpad Choir has never done before. The city of Yogyakarta is a new destination for Unpad Choir, because several years before, Unpad Choir had always visited the same second city to hold their annual concert that is in Jakarta. On this occasion, Unpad Choir managed to step through the routine by holding a concert in Yogyakarta by collaborating with the Gadjah Mada University Choir (UGM Choir).

“Lux Cantio is a different and memorable concert. This is the third annual concert that I’ve done and the two previous concerts were always held in the same place, in Bandung and Jakarta,” said Rayhan M. Syafnur, one of the singers of Lux Cantio concert.

The concert in Yogyakarta was also divided into two sessions. However, the difference this time, the first song performed in the first session was Magnificat (Ēriks Esenvalds [b.1977]), which was the second song in the first session during the Bandung concert. In the second session, the Choir featured only nine songs from 11 songs performed in Bandung previously. This is a form of adjustment to the place that’s used to hold the concert. Nevertheless, the concert continues to run according to the same theme and carriage as during the Bandung concert and the enthusiasm of the audience is very big.

“It was very out of my expectation, the audience that came to watch were from a wide range of choir groups,” said Arvin Zeinullah, the main conductor of Unpad Choir and the conductor in the annual concert Lux Cantio.

The Syantikara Youth Center is arguably not too big, decorated by a full-seat audience with no gaps. The enthusiasm of the Yogyakarta concert’s audience can be seen from the room.

“I’m grateful that our plan and decision to hold a concert in Yogyakarta this year is considered appropriate because it relates also to the achievement that has just gained by Unpad Choir. I think it can be the appeal of the people to want to watch the Choir,” said Sanisha Olivia.

With the new decision taken, there also came new obstacles and challenges with it. “For the obstacles, it is mainly about time. The annual concert exercises were cut short by other activities outside this concert,” said Arvin Zeinullah. “One thing that had to be done was to remind all the elements of this concert to be aware of the role of each other in succeeding this annual concert,” he continued.

This Yogyakarta concert had also brought a chance for Unpad Choir to be able to cooperate with UGM Choir. “We are very grateful and thankful to be able to cooperate with other choir community outside of Bandung, that is with UGM Choir. I feel that the UGM Choir community is very sincere in helping us to succeed in holding the concert in Yogyakarta.”, said Sanisha Olivia. The UGM Choir also had the opportunity to sing three songs on the sidelines of Lux Cantio concert and also collaborated with Unpad Choir to sing the final song in the concert Lux Cantio with the song Mahasiswa conducted by Athitya Diah Natalia Monica, main conductor of UGM Choir.

And with the song ending, the annual concert Lux Cantio journey ended with the cheers and applause of the audience accompanied by the cheerfulness of the singers’ faces and all elements of the concert. “This great and passionate spirit signifies that what we strive for, so far had resulted a good feedback which is a reminder to maintain the quality of the Choir,” Arvin stated.

(Ridhadiyanti)