The James F. Sundah Foundation and ISI Yogyakarta Present Scholarship Program for Royalty and Copyright Research

James F. Sundah (doc. James F. Sundah)

JAKARTA - The family of late composer James Freddy Sundah has established The James F. Sundah Foundation. This non-profit foundation was formed to preserve his thoughts and struggles in the Indonesian music industry.

As a first step, the foundation partnered with the Indonesian Institute of Arts (ISI) Yogyakarta to launch a research scholarship program - named the James F. Sundah Fellowship Program - aimed at final-year students who focus on researching copyright, royalties, and intellectual property rights (IPR) protection in the digital era.

The founder and chairman of The James F. Sundah Foundation, Priscillia Sundah Suntoso, said that this foundation is a direct trust from her late husband. During his life, the creator of the song "Lilin-Lilin Kecil" was known to be very vocal in voicing the rights of songwriters.

"James always says, 'no song, no music industry', a belief that creators are the foundation of the music industry and must be valued and protected. Through the James F. Sundah Fellowship Program with ISI Yogyakarta, we hope to encourage the birth of research that strengthens understanding of copyright and intellectual property and provides real benefits for future generations," said Priscillia in her statement.

This program not only involves ISI Yogyakarta, but also collaborates with AAPI Creative New York, which is a creative network of Asian and Pacific Islanders in the United States.

A number of cross-disciplinary figures in Indonesia were also appointed to the scholarship selection committee, including former Minister of SOEs Dahlan Iskan, senior musician Aminoto Kosin, entrepreneur Adi Harsono, TV director Naratama Rukmananda, to former music journalist Wendi Putranto.

Wendi Putranto, who acts as a spokesperson and member of the selection board, assessed that this program is an oasis in the midst of the chaos of royalty and copyright management of music in Indonesia which until now still faces major challenges.

"James F. Sundah's greatest legacy is not only in his songs, but also in his various thoughts and struggles to place songwriters in a decent and strategic position in the Indonesian music ecosystem. This research scholarship is the right way to continue this thinking to the new generation," said Wendi.

Furthermore, Prof. Dr. Irwandi, M.Sn. as the Rector of ISI Yogyakarta also welcomed this initiative. According to him, research on the legal and economic aspects of a work of art is still very minimal, although this education is crucial for art students before they enter the professional industry.

"This will strengthen the literacy needed by the art community and the general public, especially regarding the intellectual property aspect of artists, which still requires a lot of research and education for art stakeholders," said Irwandi.

Whatever the registration for this initial research scholarship program is scheduled to open in the 2026-2027 Academic Year for students who meet the scientific selection criteria of the oldest state art campus in Indonesia.

For information, James F. Sundah himself died on May 7 and left a legacy of great works that left a mark in the history of Indonesian pop music.