Time For Traditional Music Learning To Get A Place, Nadiem Emphasizes This

Minister of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology Nadiem Anwar Makarim has a dialogue with the maestro of culture in Samosir Regency, North Sumatra, Tuesday night, October 26. (Photo of HO BKHM Kemendikbudristek)

JAKARTA - Minister of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology Nadiem Makarim said that traditional music learning would be included in formal and informal education programs.

"One of the important recommendations from the Nusantara Tradition Music Congress which will take place in September 2021 is to provide and incorporate traditional Nusantara music learning in formal and informal education so that Indonesian children will also become cultural preservers," he said in Samosir Regency, North Sumatra, Wednesday 27 October as reported by Antara.

Nadiem visited Samosir Regency to attend the 2021 Indonesian Traditional Music Festival series of events, which were held in Lake Toba, Labuan Bajo, and Tidore.

He stated that the intergenerational collaboration in the Indonesian-Lake Toba Traditional Music Festival is part of an effort to promote culture.

“We have seen for ourselves that by collaborating we are able to move together to advance culture. Let's create a happy Indonesia with cultural independence," he said.

Director General of Culture of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology Hilmar Farid said, the 2021 Indonesia-Lake Toba Traditional Music Festival focuses on the issue of generational transfer in an effort to preserve culture.

"The important message from this activity is generation transfer. So there is a regeneration of traditional music. We are certainly happy that many young people who are still in junior high and high school have joined the work. We hope this activity can instill a new spirit among young people to get to know traditional music," he said.

Hilmar hopes that the younger generation can take a big role in determining the direction of cultural advancement.

Meanwhile, Batak cultural activist, Ojax Manalu, said that the Indonesian Traditional Music Festival could also foster pride and optimism among the people who live in the Lake Toba area.

"This is the first time that four clans in the Batak community, namely Toba, Karo, Simalungun, and Pakpak collaborate in a festival," he said.