Dewa Budjana
Encyclopedia
I Dewa Gede Budjana or Dewa Budjana is an Indonesia
n guitarist
, songwriter
and composer
. He is the lead guitarist and songwriter of the band Gigi
. Budjana’s style changed dramatically to jazz
as he got to know John McLaughlin
, Pat Metheny
, Jeff Beck
, John Abercrombie
, Chick Corea
and Weather Report
. In his early experience, he established a band called "Squirrell" which was popular in the local community. Throughout his musical experience in Indonesia, Dewa Budjana has collaborated with many famous guitarists such as Tohpati, Ridho and Abdee Negara
. His ability to combine jazz and rock has put him among the top Indonesian guitarists.
in Klungkung, Bali
. Budjana’s first teacher was a construction worker who lived nearby. He stole money from his grandmother to buy his first guitar He prioritised guitar in his life, and started to teach himself by playing rock songs. He became more passionate about music, and was reflected when Budjana moved to Surabaya
, East Java
, where he took a classical music course, performed with a band and participated in many of music performances. After graduation, he went to Jakarta to pursue a career as professional musician. While there, he came across Jack Lesmana, a jazz maestro
and father of jazz musician Indra Lesmana, who taught Budjana the philosophy of jazz.
(an Aria
Pro II) and started to play with many different people. Slowly, his musical style changed from pop rock to jazz, as he started to incorporate influences from John McLaughlin
of the Mahavishnu Orchestra, Chick Corea
, Yes
, Gentle Giant
, Kansas
, Tangerine Dream
, American Garage
, Bright Size Life
, Pat Metheny
and Allan Holdsworth
.
In 1980, Budjana started Squirrel, his first jazz band, with his schoolmates in Surabaya. Squirrel participated in a number of national music events, including Light Music Contest in 1984 at Teater Terbuka, TIM, Indonesia. Though many contestants participated, it was Budjana and his fellow bandmates who outperformed the competition and won. One year after that, Budjana decided to fly to Jakarta in order to expand his music career. This journey lead him to Jack Lesmana, an Indonesian jazz legend
, who introduced him to other professional musicians.
. A few years later, Budjana joined the band Spirit
, which included Baron, Gigi's former guitarist. With Budjana, Spirit released one self-titled album, before Budjana decided to leave the band and joined Java Jazz. He also sat in with many other bands — including the Jimmy Manopo Band, Erwin Gutawa, Elfa's Big Band and Twilite Orchestra
— and participated in the North Sea Jazz Festival, a world jazz convention
in Den Haag, the Netherlands
.
His current band, Gigi, was formed in 1994 with Baron (guitar), Thomas (bass), Armand (vocal) and Ronald (drum). Since then, Gigi has released six albums. He has also released his own solo albums: Nusa Damai; Gitarku; Samsara; and Home, a tribute album to the December 2004 tsunami
victims.
Fly Delux as his main guitar, occasionally using Klein and Gibson
guitars SG series instead. Budjana also owns a double neck Klein guitar which was used on his latest album, Home, and pictured on the CD cover. For his rig
, Dewa Budjana mainly uses Mesa Boogie rectifier and Carvin Legacy amplifier that are connected to the Line 6 Ax2 212.
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
n guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
, songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
and composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
. He is the lead guitarist and songwriter of the band Gigi
Gigi (band)
Gigi itself is named after the laugh members of the group had after the name "Orang Utan" nearly was decided as the name of the band.-History:Aria Baron, Thomas Ramadan, Ronald Sristisnto, Dewa Budjana and Armand Maulana...
. Budjana’s style changed dramatically to jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
as he got to know John McLaughlin
John McLaughlin (musician)
John McLaughlin , also known as Mahavishnu John McLaughlin, is an English guitarist, bandleader and composer...
, Pat Metheny
Pat Metheny
Patrick Bruce "Pat" Metheny is an American jazz guitarist and composer.One of the most successful and critically acclaimed jazz musicians to come to prominence in the 1970s and '80s, he is the leader of the Pat Metheny Group and is also involved in duets, solo works and other side projects...
, Jeff Beck
Jeff Beck
Geoffrey Arnold "Jeff" Beck is an English rock guitarist. He is one of three noted guitarists to have played with The Yardbirds...
, John Abercrombie
John Abercrombie (guitarist)
John Abercrombie is an American jazz guitarist, whose work often explores jazz fusion and post bop. Abercrombie has played with Billy Cobham, Jack DeJohnette, Michael Brecker and Randy Brecker...
, Chick Corea
Chick Corea
Armando Anthony "Chick" Corea is an American jazz pianist, keyboardist, and composer.Many of his compositions are considered jazz standards. As a member of Miles Davis' band in the 1960s, he participated in the birth of the electric jazz fusion movement. In the 1970s he formed Return to Forever...
and Weather Report
Weather Report
Weather Report was an American jazz-rock band of the 1970s and early 1980s. The band was co-led by the Austrian-born keyboard player Joe Zawinul and the American saxophonist Wayne Shorter...
. In his early experience, he established a band called "Squirrell" which was popular in the local community. Throughout his musical experience in Indonesia, Dewa Budjana has collaborated with many famous guitarists such as Tohpati, Ridho and Abdee Negara
Abdee Negara
Abdee Negara is an Indonesian guitarist, back vocalist, songwriter and record producer. He is best known as Slank's guitarist with fellow guitarist, Ridho, and also has played with many national and international guitarist, including Paul Gilbert. Besides working with Slank, his main band, he is...
. His ability to combine jazz and rock has put him among the top Indonesian guitarists.
Early life
Budjana's passion and talent in music, especially guitar, has been very dominant since he was in an elementary schoolElementary school
An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...
in Klungkung, Bali
Bali
Bali is an Indonesian island located in the westernmost end of the Lesser Sunda Islands, lying between Java to the west and Lombok to the east...
. Budjana’s first teacher was a construction worker who lived nearby. He stole money from his grandmother to buy his first guitar He prioritised guitar in his life, and started to teach himself by playing rock songs. He became more passionate about music, and was reflected when Budjana moved to Surabaya
Surabaya
Surabaya is Indonesia's second-largest city with a population of over 2.7 million , and the capital of the province of East Java...
, East Java
East Java
East Java is a province of Indonesia. It is located on the eastern part of the island of Java and includes neighboring Madura and islands to its east and to its north East Java is a province of Indonesia. It is located on the eastern part of the island of Java and includes neighboring Madura and...
, where he took a classical music course, performed with a band and participated in many of music performances. After graduation, he went to Jakarta to pursue a career as professional musician. While there, he came across Jack Lesmana, a jazz maestro
Maestro
Maestro is a title of extreme respect given to a master musician. The term is most commonly used in the context of Western classical music and opera. This is associated with the ubiquitous use of Italian vocabulary for classical music terms...
and father of jazz musician Indra Lesmana, who taught Budjana the philosophy of jazz.
Early experience
In 1976, when he was thirteen, Budjana's name started to be seen in the music world in Surabaya. Later, in 1981, he bought a "real" electric guitarElectric guitar
An electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
(an Aria
Aria
An aria in music was originally any expressive melody, usually, but not always, performed by a singer. The term is now used almost exclusively to describe a self-contained piece for one voice usually with orchestral accompaniment...
Pro II) and started to play with many different people. Slowly, his musical style changed from pop rock to jazz, as he started to incorporate influences from John McLaughlin
John McLaughlin (musician)
John McLaughlin , also known as Mahavishnu John McLaughlin, is an English guitarist, bandleader and composer...
of the Mahavishnu Orchestra, Chick Corea
Chick Corea
Armando Anthony "Chick" Corea is an American jazz pianist, keyboardist, and composer.Many of his compositions are considered jazz standards. As a member of Miles Davis' band in the 1960s, he participated in the birth of the electric jazz fusion movement. In the 1970s he formed Return to Forever...
, Yes
Yes (band)
Yes are an English rock band who achieved worldwide success with their progressive, art, and symphonic style of rock music. Regarded as one of the pioneers of the progressive genre, Yes are known for their lengthy songs, mystical lyrics, elaborate album art, and live stage sets...
, Gentle Giant
Gentle Giant
Gentle Giant were a British progressive rock band active between 1970 and 1980. The band was known for the complexity and sophistication of its music and for the varied musical skills of its members. All of the band members, except the first two drummers, were multi-instrumentalists...
, Kansas
Kansas (band)
Kansas is an American rock band that became popular in the 1970s initially on Album-Oriented Rock charts, and later with hit singles such as "Carry On Wayward Son" and "Dust in the Wind"...
, Tangerine Dream
Tangerine Dream
Tangerine Dream is a German electronic music group founded in 1967 by Edgar Froese. The band has undergone many personnel changes over the years, with Froese being the only continuous member...
, American Garage
American Garage
-Track listing:-Personnel:* Pat Metheny - 6 & 12-String Guitar* Lyle Mays - Piano, Oberheim, Autoharp, Organ* Mark Egan - Bass* Dan Gottlieb - Drums-Charts:Album - Billboard-Trivia:...
, Bright Size Life
Bright Size Life
Bright Size Life is Pat Metheny's debut album, released in 1976, when Metheny was only 21. It is notable for the maturity of its compositions as well as the strength of Metheny's sidemen, as fellow fusion pioneer Jaco Pastorius was on bass along with drummer Bob Moses.-Track listing:-Personnel:*Pat...
, Pat Metheny
Pat Metheny
Patrick Bruce "Pat" Metheny is an American jazz guitarist and composer.One of the most successful and critically acclaimed jazz musicians to come to prominence in the 1970s and '80s, he is the leader of the Pat Metheny Group and is also involved in duets, solo works and other side projects...
and Allan Holdsworth
Allan Holdsworth
Allan Holdsworth is an English guitarist and composer. He has released twelve studio albums as a solo artist and played many different styles of music over a period of four decades, but first drew attention for his work in jazz fusion...
.
In 1980, Budjana started Squirrel, his first jazz band, with his schoolmates in Surabaya. Squirrel participated in a number of national music events, including Light Music Contest in 1984 at Teater Terbuka, TIM, Indonesia. Though many contestants participated, it was Budjana and his fellow bandmates who outperformed the competition and won. One year after that, Budjana decided to fly to Jakarta in order to expand his music career. This journey lead him to Jack Lesmana, an Indonesian jazz legend
Legend
A legend is a narrative of human actions that are perceived both by teller and listeners to take place within human history and to possess certain qualities that give the tale verisimilitude...
, who introduced him to other professional musicians.
Professional career
Although Jack provided Budjana with opportunities in his Indonesian music career, it was Indra who first asked him to became a session playerMusician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
. A few years later, Budjana joined the band Spirit
Spirit
The English word spirit has many differing meanings and connotations, most of them relating to a non-corporeal substance contrasted with the material body.The spirit of a living thing usually refers to or explains its consciousness.The notions of a person's "spirit" and "soul" often also overlap,...
, which included Baron, Gigi's former guitarist. With Budjana, Spirit released one self-titled album, before Budjana decided to leave the band and joined Java Jazz. He also sat in with many other bands — including the Jimmy Manopo Band, Erwin Gutawa, Elfa's Big Band and Twilite Orchestra
Orchestra
An orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...
— and participated in the North Sea Jazz Festival, a world jazz convention
Convention (meeting)
A convention, in the sense of a meeting, is a gathering of individuals who meet at an arranged place and time in order to discuss or engage in some common interest. The most common conventions are based upon industry, profession, and fandom...
in Den Haag, the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
.
His current band, Gigi, was formed in 1994 with Baron (guitar), Thomas (bass), Armand (vocal) and Ronald (drum). Since then, Gigi has released six albums. He has also released his own solo albums: Nusa Damai; Gitarku; Samsara; and Home, a tribute album to the December 2004 tsunami
Tsunami
A tsunami is a series of water waves caused by the displacement of a large volume of a body of water, typically an ocean or a large lake...
victims.
Equipment
Since Dewa Budjana started his professional career as a musician, he has mainly used a ParkerParker Guitars
Parker Guitars is an American manufacturer of electric guitars and basses, started by luthier Ken Parker in the early 90s. Parker is most famous for making the Parker Fly....
Fly Delux as his main guitar, occasionally using Klein and Gibson
Gibson Guitar Corporation
The Gibson Guitar Corporation, formerly of Kalamazoo, Michigan and currently of Nashville, Tennessee, manufactures guitars and other instruments which sell under a variety of brand names...
guitars SG series instead. Budjana also owns a double neck Klein guitar which was used on his latest album, Home, and pictured on the CD cover. For his rig
Rig
Rig may refer to:* Rig, Something that a dog pulls when Mushing* Rig, a slang term referring to a tractor unit* Drilling rig, a structure housing equipment used to drill or extract oil from underground* Gaming rig, a PC built for high-performance gaming...
, Dewa Budjana mainly uses Mesa Boogie rectifier and Carvin Legacy amplifier that are connected to the Line 6 Ax2 212.
Discography
- Gigi
- Angan (1994) -Dream-
- Dunia (1995) -World-
- 3/4 (1996)
- 2 x 2 (1997)
- Kilas Balik (1998) -Flash Back-
- Baik (1999) -Good-
- The Greatest Hits Live (2000)
- Untuk Semua Umur (2001) -Unrated-
- The Best Of Gigi (2002)
- Salam Kedelapan (2003) -The 8th Greeting-
- OST. Brownies (2004)
- Raihlah Kemenangan (2004) -Seize The Victory-
- Raihlah Kemenangan (repackage) (2005)
- Next Chapter (2006)
- Solo
- Nusa Damai (1997) -Peace Island-
- Gitarku (2000) -My Guitar-
- Samsara (2003)
- Home (2005)