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FOR TRAVELERS, late November in Yogyakarta offers the pinnacle of classical immersion: a symphony of traditions under ancient skies, where East and West harmonize eternally.
In the cultural heart of Indonesia, Yogyakarta pulses with anticipation as two prominent virtuoso pianists from two different countries and cultural background, Dr. Taras Filenko from Ukraine and Ananda Sukarlan from Indonesia grace the city at month’s end. Filenko, also a respected ethnomusicologist weaves Ukraine’s resilient melodies with scholarly depth.
Sukarlan performs his latest pieces on the theme of world peace, and of course they will be playing Sukarlan’s new work for 4-hand piano. Their visit culminates the Kompetisi Piano Nusantara Plus (KPN+) finale, and their concert will be held on November 30th, the day after the competition, also featuring collaborations with winning vocalists of what is now the biggest classical music competition in Indonesia. Both the competition and the concert will take place at the auditorium of Sagan Heritage Hotel.
The KPN+ itself will be on November 29th starting from 10 a.m, and will be participated by young musicians from Central Java, in the categories of piano, strings and classical voice.
At the moment Taras Filenko is touring Mexico (Mexico City, Zacatecas and Morelia, capital of the state of Michoacan) where he is performing works by Mykola Lysenko and other Ukrainian composers as well as Sukarlan’s Rapsodia Nusantara no. 29, which is based on folktunes from Mentawai Islands, West Sumatra, which he will also perform in Yogyakarta.
Ananda Sukarlan has been an important musical figure in Mexico. He was a visiting artist and professor at the Universidad Autonoma de Nueva Leon, Monterrey where the faculty also studied and performed his music. One of his masterpieces is “Frida’s Monkeys” a trio for oboe, violin and piano based on paintings by Frida Kahlo who he deeply adore.
Hailed by the Sydney Morning Herald as “one of the world’s leading pianists at the forefront of championing new piano music”, his interview with the Mexican newspaper Vanguardia is also inspiring: https://vanguardia.com.mx/show/artes/2750907-ananda-sukarlan-el-moderno-bernstein-OTVG2750907
Ananda Sukarlan was honored with the Cavaliere Ordine della Stella d’Italia bestowed by the Italian President Sergio Mattarella in 2020 and the Royal Order of Isabel la Catolica by HM King Felipe VI in 2023, the highest recognition from the Kingdom of Spain in 2023, for his outstanding contributions the world of classical music.
Ananda is the first Indonesian citizen to receive this prestigious medal. The honor is bestowed by the King of Spain.
Dr. Filenko is the recipient of both Fulbright and Petesh Scholarships. He has participated in numerous musicological conferences and in international symposia around the world. In 1990, Dr. Filenko was invited to Edmonton, Alberta, to conduct research at the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies.
Since 1998, Dr. Filenko is on the faculty of the City Music Center, at Duquesne University. He currently resides in Pittsburgh, PA, where he maintains a highly regarded private piano studio.
After Yogyakarta, they will travel to Jakarta where they will perform a concert at Deheng House, Kemang, on December 5th. This is a fundraising concert for the victims of war in Ukraine.
Amid gamelan echoes and Ukrainian melodies, these fusion promises transcendence — Javanese subtlety meeting Western grandeur.
Together, their music offers a bridge of energy that lifted the underprivileged—children with empty bellies from war-torn lands, elders displaced by famine—offering not just melodies, but hope. In their harmony, differences faded into irrelevance, proving that true artistry blooms in service to humanity’s shared soul, uniting strangers in a polyphony of compassion that echoed far beyond any horizon.
This also marks the beginning of Ananda Sukarlan’s collaboration with Superhumans, a Ukrainian institution working for the rehabilitation of the victims of war who lost their limbs.
Taras Filenko’s visit to Indonesia is organized in partnership with Rotary Club of Jakarta Menteng, the Delegation of the European Union to Indonesia and Brunei Darussalam, Olena Zelenska Foundation, Nirai Music School (Yogyakarta), Sagan Heritage Hotel Yogyakarta, Kompetisi Piano Nusantara Plus and Yayasan Musik Sastra Indonesia (Indonesian Classical Music Foundation). [traveltext.id]
