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HAVING a holiday in Indonesia, wanting to go to touristic spots like Yogyakarta, Salatiga, Lake Toba or Bali but also wanting to listen to some western classical music? Even more, are you curious of how the Indonesian classical music sounds like, and how are the young classical musicians are doing?
Or meeting and chatting with Indonesia’s most widely performed composer (and pianist) Ananda Sukarlan, who is listed as one of the 100 “Asia Most Influential” people in the arts world by the Tatler Asia Magazine in Hongkong? Starting September 2025, your wish is fulfilled.
While having a weekend escape, you might like to listen to the young classical musicians participating at the Kompetisi Piano Nusantara Plus (KPN+ or Indonesian Piano Competition Plus) when you are not outdoors admiring the landscape.
The Nusantara Piano Competition Plus was established by the renowned composer and pianist Ananda Sukarlan, described by the Sydney Morning Herald as “one of the world’s leading pianists, at the forefront of championing new piano music.”
First held in 2016 in a select number of cities, the competition was placed on hiatus during the pandemic. It was successfully relaunched last year in an expanded format designated KPN+. The addition of “plus” reflects its broadened scope beyond piano to include all classical instruments as well as vocal performance.
Aimed at younger musicians, KPN+ maintains more accessible terms and conditions than the Ananda Sukarlan Award (ASA), Indonesia’s most prestigious classical music competition. It is intended to serve as an ideal preparatory platform for the next edition of the ASA.
This year’s KPN+ will take place in 11 cities, starting with Medan (North Sumatra). Registrations are still open to participate. The winners of the KPN+ of each city / region are entitled to enter the grand final round in Jakarta on December 11th to the 13th, 2026, and it will be decided who will receive the “Golden Tickets to Ananda Sukarlan Award (ASA)”, which allow them to advance directly to the final round of Indonesia’s most difficult and demanding but also its oldest (now legendary!) competition, bypassing the previous rounds.
The schedule for the semi-final round of the Nusantara Plus Piano Competition is: Medan on August 29-30th, Bandung September 13th, Bekasi September 27th, Yogyakarta October 10th, Bandar Lampung October 17th & 18th, Salatiga October 25th, Tangerang October 31st, Surabaya November 7th, Denpasar (Bali) November 28th and finally Jakarta December 5th.
“Last year alone there were 587 participants, and we have organizing partners in 11 cities. This year more cities are interested in joining, so we have to “merge” some cities, such as Bandar Lampung and Palembang which will be held in Bandar Lampung (Hotel Akar) on the 17th and 18th of October,” he said..
Ananda explained that this high interest and participation has made KPN+ the biggest (in terms of participation) Classical Music Competition in Indonesia: In 2024, Palembang even broke the record for participants with 119 musicians. This is a new breakthrough that will be very important for the “epidemic” of classical music in Indonesia.
But if you would just like to meet Ananda Sukarlan, definitely Indonesia’s most widely performed composer internationally, there are also events of talkshows with him, with titles such as “A.I (Ananda’s Insights)”, “AAA or Triple A (Ask Ananda Anything)” and Indonesian titles such as “Ngobras (Ngobrol dengan Ananda Sukarlan)”.
Those are discussions where Ananda invites the audience to ask anything and he will also play some bits and pieces of music on the piano. Those events are mostly free, but you have to reserve your seat to the local organizers (their contact numbers can be asked through the Instagram @pianonusantaraplus). They will be held in: (1). Bandung, at Institut Francais d’Indonesie, 13 September at 4 p.m., afternoon, after the winners’ announcement of KPN+, organized by the local organizer of KPN+ in Bandung.
(2). Cirebon, at Auditorium Kawai Music Cirebon, Monday & Tuesday 14 & 15 September, (3). Yogyakarta, at Joglo Pajang, Wednesday 16 September at 18.00 followed by masterclasses (open for public) on the 17th (organized by two pianists & piano teachers graduate of Institut Seni Indonesia, Rachel Nadia and Ananya Laoctadufa), (4). Balikpapan, at Hotel Zurich Balikpapan, Saturday19 September organized by NYMO or Nusantara Youth Music Olympics), (5). Bekasi, at Hotel Santika Mega, Saturday September 26th at 16.30 diselenggarakan oleh Signature Music Academy who also organizes the KPN+ in Bekasi at the same location the day after, Sunday September 27th.
“Last year, the winners of the KPN+ Poetic Song category included soprano Ratnaganadi Paramita who is also an American-trained neuroscientist, Fae Bernice Robin who also holds the title of Puteri Anak Indonesia Pendidikan 2023 from Palembang who is also our youngest winner, and baritone Wirawan Cuanda who holds a Masters in Vocals from the University of York, England and for the past few months they have performed at various concerts and have attracted a lot of public attention,” Ananda Sukarlan affirmed.
Ananda Sukarlan urged participants to showcase “local wisdom” in their repertoire. “For example, Balinese vocalists can choose poetic songs based on poems from Balinese poets such as Wayan Jengki Sunarta or Tan Lioe Ie. This is important because for me, artists must also act as ambassadors of their native culture, who then become ambassadors of their country when they perform abroad,” said the pianist who is known for his virtuosic works for piano “Rapsodia Nusantara”.
Ananda Sukarlan is more active now as a composer and touring around the world as a guest lecturer or as “Composer in Residence” in various conservatories and music faculties. His music has been studied and researched for doctoral thesis and dissertations by international scholars and students, as well as analyzed in various music conferences. He now dedicates much time in nurturing young musicians in Indonesia. [traveltext.id]
