In March 1942, the public radio system of the East Indies government was closed and requisitioned by the Japanese Army Propaganda Department, ending almost nine years of broadcast activity. The broadcasting system was NIROM, the Nederlands Indische Radio Omroep Maatschappji (Netherlands East Indies Radio Broadcasting Company). NIROM had two programs: NIROM I, the Western broadcast (Omroep bagian ke-Baratan), in Dutch, and NIROM II, the Eastern broadcast (Omroep bagian ke-Timoeran), in Indonesian. It also issued an Indonesian language program magazine from Surabaya called Soeara NIROM (Voice of NIROM) for listeners of NIROM II.

This paper attempts to depict the musical cultures of the time by quantifying the frequency of music programs for each broadcast station in October 1936 and January 1942 in the program listings of Soeara NIROM and to analyze musical trends by genre and broadcast station in order to reconfirm the social characteristics of each geographical region at this important moment in Indonesia’s musical and national culture.2 Although the 1930s was a period of darkness for the political nationalist movement, it was the dawn of a new age for musical culture. The late nineteenth century Western invention of public media, such as radio and gramophone record, had made their way to colonized Indonesia, greatly changing the production, consumption, and fashion of music. This period is therefore relevant to point out the direction of Indonesia music culture in the context of the popularization of music as well as the cultural integration of Indonesia.

It is also important in the historical development of Dangdut, a popular music of modern Indonesia. Dangdut developed from the fusion of different musical elements using Melayu music as its base. “Melayu” has various meanings (Reid 2004), making it difficult to specify a single definition, but in this paper I use it in a geographical/linguistic sense to indicate ethnicity of Malay-speaking Muslims in the Malay peninsula and Indonesia from Sumatra’s east coast to western Kalimantan.3 Therefore Melayu music means all music performed by them, particularly  non-traditional musical styles using western instruments introduced in the late nineteenth century, like harmonium (discussed below) and violin. Elsewhere I have discussed the development of Melayu music from the late nineteenth century to 1960 in the context of the historical development of Dangdut (Takonai 1997; 1998), but much is still unknown about the development of Melayu music from 1920 to 1940. The use of historical materials to draw out the development of Melayu music at the dawn of the media age is therefore one of the purposes of this paper.

Another purpose is to verify previous scholarship on Kroncong music (discribed below), the focus of much previous research on this period.4 Kenji Tsuchiya discussed Kroncong’s transformation into an “Indonesian” musical form as a result of being featured on the air from the start of radio broadcasting in 1925. He argued that Kroncong played an important role in the formation of Indonesian nationalism (Tsuchiya 1991: 193-195) and in the cultural integration of Indonesia at the grass roots level (Tsuchiya 1992: 115). However, Tsuchiya did not show any clear and concrete position of Kroncong music in the musical culture of Indonesia at the time. I hope to verify this in the present paper.

I have seen only a few copies of Soeara NIROM and therefore cannot say that this paper will comprehensively clarify Indonesian musical culture of the period. Still, despite this limitation, I am convinced that some concrete information on it can be provided.

The Development of Radio in the Netherlands East Indies

Following dramatic improvements in radio broadcasting in America in the 1920s, the Dutch government determined to adopt new ways to connect its overseas colony with the metropole, and radio was extended rapidly to the Netherlands East Indies (NEI). On June 16, 1925, a Dutch-staffed amateur station called BRV (Bataviasche Radio Vereniging; Batavia Radio Broadcast) began its first broadcast. On April 1, 1933, the first Indonesian-staffed broadcast station, SRV (Solosche Radio Vereniging), was established in Solo (Wild 1987:18-19). By the mid 1930s, Java had thirty amateur broadcast stations (McDaniel 1994: 30).

The East Indies government regulated broadcasting through the radio law (Radiowet) in 1934 and put all broadcast stations under a single administration. A specific frequency was allocated to each station and broadcast output was reduced. On April 1, 1934, the East Indies government established NIROM as a nationwide broadcasting network and incorporated already functioning stations in Java into this network.

In 1935, reception of NIROM’s broadcast became possible throughout Java, and by the late 1930s, reception was possible in almost all parts of the Netherlands East Indies. Certainly, the number of radio receivers in the colony was fewer than in a place like America.  Table 1 estimates radio ownership in the NEI at only 0.17% in 1940 (calculated using the 1930 population of 60,727,233). However, one radio could be often shared by more than one hundred listeners, so the number of listeners was probably much higher than the ownership figure suggests.

Initially, NIROM broadcast mainly western programs, but from January 1, 1935, decided to provide subsidies for Indonesian broadcast stations to air Indonesian programs. These stations (called Eastern Stations) began broadcasting as NIROM II (McDaniel 1994: 21).5 However, in 1936, NIROM announced a new policy that all Eastern programs be produced directly by NIROM and broadcast by its Surabaya station. The Eastern stations strongly resisted this policy, and in November of the same year, Sutardjo Kartohadikusumo took up this problem in the Volksraad. (Sutardjo also submitted a petition in July 1936 calling for greater automony for Indonesia.) Finally, the East Indies government promised that NIROM’s Eastern broadcasts would be handed over to a body organized by the Eastern radio stations themselves.

The Eastern Radio Station League (Perikatan Perkumpulan Radio Ketimoeran; PPRK), comprising the six NIROM II stations, was inaugurated on March 28, 1937. However, negotiations for the handover of authority and for the amount of subsidy did not advance smoothly. It was more than three years after the inauguration of PPRK, on June 30, 1940, that authority for Eastern broadcasting was formally transferred from NIROM. On November 1 of the same year, on the day of Eid al-Fitr, PPRK realized its dream of broadcasting by and for the Indonesian people.6

The development of radio broadcasting in the 1930s was supported by the growth of the record (gramophone) industry. From the early 1900s, companies like Gramophone (of the UK), Beka (of Germany), and Odeon recorded much Gamelan and Kroncong music (Tan 1996/97: 2). Up to the Japanese occupation beginning in 1942, locally produced music from the Netherlands East Indies and British Malaya is said to have totaled around ten thousand records (Yampolsky 1999: 1). Radio broadcasting became an important mediator between record producers and consumers and an essential medium for the advertisement of records. At the same time, recorded music was the indispensable resource with which radio broadcasters could build stable programs.

Additionally, popular novels of the time reflect how residents of the Netherlands East Indies experienced radio broadcasting. One of these is A. Damhoer’s Zender NIROM (NIROM Broadcast), published in Medan in 1940. This novel describes the love-hate relationship between young sisters, who liked to look for their favorite singers on the Batavia and Medan stations; it includes the real names of popular Kroncong singers7 and describes fan letters arriving at the Medan station not only from Indonesia, but also from British Malaya, Thailand, and Burma.

The Musical Culture of Soeara NIROM

With the exception of the broadcasts of the Bandung and Surabaya stations, which were directly produced by NIROM, we can assume that the musical program listings in Soeara NIROM reflect the Indonesian musical situation of the time. Although the analysis of the Bandung and Surabaya programs requires more careful consideration, we see no evidence from the tables below of the East Indies government exercising arbitrary power over the musical programming of these stations.

Table 2 shows the broadcast subject, wavelength, and broadcast of each broadcasting station. Wavelengths which exceeded 100m were mainly broadcast to the surrounding area, while wavelengths below 100m were broadcasting to the whole country.

In the description and analysis below, musical programs are classified into six main genres (Kroncong, Javanese, Sundanese, Melayu, Chinese, and Arabic), plus other music. A brief explanation of these genres and other programming is as follows. First, Kroncong is a musical mixture that developed around the Tugu district of Batavia; influenced by Portuguese music, it does not belong to any ethnic group. Other musical genres are specific to different localities or ethnicities: Gandrung is from the Banyuwangi area of East Java; Gambang Kromong, an ensemble form developed by Chinese society in Batavia, absorbed a variety of musical elements such as Kroncong and music from mainland China; Tiong Hwa refers to Chinese music; Gambus indicates a type of Arabic music as well as an instrument. (Where a term refers to both a genre and an instrument, the lower case – gambus – will be used to indicate the instrument.)

Radio Tonil is a radio play; the etymology is from the Dutch toneel. It featured Komedie Stambul and Bangsawan, theater genres which were highly popular in many parts of Indonesia from the late nineteenth century and extended its activity to the new medium of radio in the 1930s. Although the programming was not essentially musical, it is considered as musical genre in this paper because the plays were accompanied mainly by Kroncong music. In the same way, the central Javanese theater forms of Wayang and Ketoprak are considered here as musical genres. And although Gamelan music is normally performed in a play, it is also treated as an independent musical genre here.

Soeara NIROM in 1936

    

Table 3 quantifies the program content of different radio stations from October 16 to October 31, 1936, and Table 4 shows the percentage of musical and other programs, which included poetry reading, fairytales, description of foreign countries, Islamic services (azan), religious lectures, health guides, etc. On all but the Yogyakarta and Solo stations, news (relaying the content of newspapers) was broadcast once a day for fifteen minutes. Table 5 shows the actual broadcast time of musical programs, and Table 6 shows the percentage of broadcast time of musical and other programs. On average, music accounted for 71.3% of programs and 83.8% of programming hours.

The six main musical genres of Javanese, Kroncong, Arabic, Sundanese, Chinese, and Melayu music comprised approximately 50% of the number of programs and approximately 60% of program hours. However, these six genres were not broadcast the same amount on every station and differences between regions can be observed. For example, while Javanese and Kroncong music were on average the most broadcast overall, Javanese music was not dominant in the big cities of Batavia and Surabaya, where the frequency of Kroncong was higher. The six main genres were followed in frequency by Hawaiian music and Gambang Kromong. Hawaiian music had been introduced to Indonesia around 1910 and by the 1920s was popular in British Malaya too. For example, in 1925, a Hawaiian group in Batavia called Malay Hawaiian Troubadours held performances in British Malaya (Tan 1993: 76). Hawaiian music was also popular among the Dutch, and the popular Kroncong band Lief Java organized a Hawaiian band called The Sweet Java Islander to appeal to them (Esha 2005: 20). In the 1930s, a popular band called Hawaiian Syncopators (Pasaribu 1955: 63-67) is confirmed in the pages of Soeara NIROM. It is not clear if these bands had Indonesian members, but a picture in Soeara NIROM of Orkest South Sea Crooners  shows that some members look Indonesian.

Trends in different broadcast stations

The Bandung station, in the central region of Sunda, programmed more Sundanese music than other stations, but as a nationwide broadcaster, it also aired both Kroncong and Javanese music at the same level of frequency. These were followed by Arabic, Melayu, Chinese, and Hawaiian music.

The Batavia station also frequently aired Kroncong music, along with Arabic, Sundanese, Melayu, Chinese, Javanese, and Gambang Kromong music. Whereas other broadcast stations had regional characteristics, the Batavia station aired the main musical genres in nearly equal amounts. The diversity of Batavia’s mestizo culture can thus be confirmed through its musical culture.8

In central Java, the Yogyakarta station aired Javanese music quite frequently, and the Solo station mainly broadcast Klenegan (Javanese court music9) live from the royal palace. The live broadcast was relayed to the Yogyakarta and Semarang stations in cooperation with the Solo station.

The Semarang station also broadcast Javanese music frequently, but aired nine genres compared to Yogyakarta’s six. Semarang, the third largest city following Batavia and Surabaya, had a more diverse population than Yogyakarta,10 which served as the background for its musical preferences. The frequency of Kroncong music was lower than in Batavia and Surabaya because the Semarang station relayed the broadcast of Javanese music programs from the Solo station. The reason for Melayu music having a higher frequency than on other broadcast stations is unclear.

Finally, NIROM directly produced the Surabaya programming, its central broadcast station, and the content of that station’s programs was detailed on almost one whole page of Soeara NIROM (in contrast with one page for the other five stations together). Although Surabaya is the central city of eastern Java, its station broadcast Kroncong music more frequently than Javanese music. Surabaya had a similar population composition to Batavia,11 but didn’t have as complex a mixed society as Batavia, judging from the musical trend.

Musical genres

In this section, the program listings for Kroncong, Melayu, Arabic, Javanese, Sundanese, and Chinese music are examined in more detail.

Kroncong music

Many Kroncong programs were titled Recorded Performance of Kroncong Music and Stambul (Memperdengarkan Krontjong dan Stamboel dari Piringan Itam) and Kroncong Orchestra (Krontjongorkest), with the singer and song name appearing in the title. Kroncong Rumba was a fusion of Kroncong music and rumba, a Cuban music which had worldwide popularity following the 1930 hit “El Manicero.”12 Most Kroncong titles were in Indonesian, although some were in Dutch, such as “O mijn schat” (Oh, My Darling). The names of bands affiliated with the Surabaya station, such as De Nachtegaal (Nightingale), and with the Bandung station, such as Jong Indonesische Moesik (Young Indonesian Music), were in Dutch. The singers were mostly Indonesian (pribumi), with some Eurasians like Leo Spell (Photo 3).13 Judging by programming frequency, the most popular singers were S. Abdullah and Miss Iem. S. Abdullah was a member of Lief Java, a popular Kroncong orchestra that held a concert in Singapore in 1938 (Tan 1996/97: 15). Others who appeared frequently in the program listings were Miss Eulis (Photo 4),14 Miss Moor (Photo 5), Miss Jacoba (Photo 6), Miss Lee, Miss Tioe, and Soekamto.

Melayu music

Most of these programs were titled Melayu Songs (Lagoe Melajoe). Occasional titles like Performance of Melayu Music (Permainan Musik Melajoe) and Melayu Music of Singapore (Lagoe Melajoe dari Singapura) are also included in this category. In many cases the names of both singer and song are clearly described in the program; these indicate an overwhelming number of singers from Bangsawan theatrical groups from British Malaya. Examples are Miss Maimoon and Miss Salmah from Dean’s Grand Opera, and Miss Tijah (Tan 1996/97: 16-18). Indonesian groups and singers included the Sumatran Orchestra Old Sword (Orkest Soematra Tikam Toea), Siti Amash (Photo 7), and Miss Dja of the Dardanella (Inomata 1996: 42-47, 124-126).

Arabic music

Most of these programs were titled Arabic Songs (Lagoe Arab), but I included titles like Turkish Songs (Lagoe Toerki) and Gambus15 Orchestra (Gamboesorkest) under this category as well. The Arabic music played fifteen minutes before and after azan (Islamic services) was excluded because it was not a musical program. One reason for the frequent broadcast of Arabic music was the popularity of Egyptian movies. Although Egyptian movies only ranked eighth among movies imported into the Netherlands East Indies,16 some of their songs were played on the radio. For example, the 1936 movie Wedad, featuring the legendary female singer Omme Kolsoum (1904-1975), was shown in the Netherlands East Indies and songs from the movie were played on the radio.

Gambus Orchestra was especially popular in East Java and its main city of Surabaya, where Arab residents accounted for 1.6% of the population.17 The Gambus Orchestra, led by Syech Albar (Syech bin Abdullah Albar, 1908-1947)

(Photo 8), frequently held live performances at the Surabaya Station. A Hadhramaut Arab born in Surabaya, he was a popular gambus player and singer. His songs were often played on the radio before the Friday salat and his records were said to be widely circulated in British Malaya and the Arab world (Republika 2005). This indicates that people of Hadhramaut descent played a important role in the musical culture of Indonesia.

Javanese music

Javanese music (Lagoe Djawa) covered a broad array of music, including Klenegan, Gamelan, Oejon-oejon, Loedroek, and Gending-gending.

Sundanese music

Sundanese music (Lagoe Soenda) included Sundanese songs (Lagoe Sunda), Gamelan Soenda, Degoeng, Ketjapi Orchestra (Ketjapi Orkest), Sundanese Concert with Ketjapi and Suling (Concert Soenda Dengan Ketjapi dan Soeling), Kliningan, and Tjelempoengan. Of these the programming of Ketjapi Orchestra, which used a Sundanese harp, had the highest broadcast frequency.

Chinese music

Chinese (Tiong Hwa) programming included occasional programs titled Chinese Cinema songs (Lagoe Tiong Hwa Cineme) and Chinese Modern Songs (Lagoe Tiong Hwa Modern). In 1940, the import of Chinese movies ranked second (12.8%) after American films,18 and movie songs were frequently broadcast in this category. Other Chinese programming included the Yangcin Orkestra (Yang Khiem Orchest) (Photo 9), which performed in Surabaya and Batavia.

Soeara NIROM in 1942

The year 1942 saw big changes in Indonesian radio, with authority for the Eastern Broadcast completely transferred to PPRK; broadcasting was also expanded to Sumatra with the opening of the Medan station. Politically, the Netherlands had been occupied by the German Army since 1940, and in the Netherlands East Indies the threat of the Japanese Army was imminent.19 Table 7 shows the frequency of programs aired by the different broadcast stations from January 4, 1942, to January 31, 1942.

Tables 8 to 10 show the percentage of musical programs and other programs, actual broadcast time of the musical programs, and the percentage of broadcast time of musical and other programs.

The proportion of 1942 broadcasting devoted to music was approximately 43.7% of programs and 68.7% of program hours, a decline of 27.6% and 15.1% respectively from 1936. Other (non-news) programming increased by 18.5% and 5.7% respectively, and news increased by 9.3% and 9.4% respectively. Non-music programming had diversified since 1936, and included programs on religion, local regions (i.e., outside Java), foreign countries, health, Dutch language, Chinese culture, cooking, poetry, literature, and the war. The number of fifteen-minute news broadcasts expanded to two to six per day, except from the Medan station. After the start of war against Japan, the East Indies government broadcast important speeches every night during the evening news and aired a program explaining the latest war news.

Soeara NIROM reflected the diversification of musical programming as well, with apparently large decreases in the six main musical genres of 23.5% (number of programs) and 38.6% (program hours). This conclusion must be provisional because much is unclear about the music and bands classified as “other music”; these ratios might change if their content became clearer. Of the six genres, Chinese music increased to the highest frequency of programming, although the number of broadcast hours remained less than that of Javanese or Kroncong music.20 The frequency and hours of Arabic music also increased significantly, while the frequency of Kroncong music relatively declined. The number of local music genres increased from eight to twelve. Among the latter were Sumatra-based genres like Batak, Aceh, and Minangkabau music that had not been broadcast in 1936. We can assume this was an effect of opening the Medan station, but Minangkabau and Batak music were also broadcast in Java, reflecting a nationwide trend. Ambon and Menado music increased in broadcast frequency from 1936 as well. The frequency of Gambang Kromong continued to be comparatively high.

Finally, we can point to the emergence of harmonium music, a new genre that did not exist in 1936 but was aired by all stations in 1942. The harmonium is a manual windbag or organ-type instrument that was brought into Malay society from India in the late nineteenth century. It was frequently used in Bangsawan and is understood to have been indispensable for Melayu music. Like the Gambus, it is both the name of an instrument and the name of a musical genre.

Trends in different broadcast stations

In Batavia, the national broadcast station, the frequency of the six main genres was lower than that of other music, indicating very diverse music programming. Chinese music had the highest frequency, Arabic and Melayu music had increasing frequency, and Kroncong and Javanese music had decreasing frequency. Eight kinds of local music could be confirmed, with Batak, Gambang Kromong, and Minangkabau music played most frequently.

In West Java, the ratio of musical programs was about 30%, which was lower than that of other stations and a 20% decline from 1936. The frequency of the six main genres was a bit higher than that of other music, with Sundanese and Chinese music having the highest frequency and Sundanese the highest number of program hours. The frequency and hours of Kroncong and Melayu music decreased, while the frequency and hours of Arabic music increased.

In Central and East Java, the six main genres also remained dominant but had declined 25%. Javanese and Chinese music had the highest frequency and Javanese music an exceptionally high number of program hours. The frequency and hours of Kroncong music were decreasing, while the frequency of Arabic music compared to other regions was higher. Seven kinds of local music were programmed, with Minangkabau, Ambon, and Batak music played most frequently. Gambang Kromong, which was not broadcast at all in 1936, had the same level of frequency as Batak music.

Musical programming at the Medan station was the highest, at about 60%, and the share of the six main genres – at over 30% – was 10% higher than other music. As at other stations, regional characteristics can be seen, with Melayu music having the highest frequency and number of hours, Kroncong music having almost the same number of hours, and Arab music following. Hawaiian and Batak music had higher frequency and hours than Chinese, Sundanese, and Javanese music. Five kinds of local music were programmed, three Sumatran plus Ambon and Gambang Kromong. Indian music was more prominent than on other stations, reflecting the comparatively high number of Indians resident in Medan.21

Musical genres

This section discusses musical trends in Kroncong, Melayu, and Arabic music, as well as the new genre of Harmonium music. (Because the frequency and content of Javanese and Sundanese music were almost the same as in 1936, they are omitted here.) In 1942, the space in Soeara NIROM devoted to introducing musical programs had decreased significantly due to expanded broadcasting hours. As a result of this, even if we can confirm the names of the singer and the band, there is less information about the name of songs than in 1936.

Kroncong music

Aside from Original Kroncong (Krontjong Asli) and Modern/New Kroncong (Krontjong Modern/Baru), many programs were attached to the name of famous singers, such as Voice of Miss Roekiah (Soeara Miss Roekiah). The activity of at least ten orchestras can be confirmed, including Lief Java (discussed above), one orchestra affiliated with the Bandung station led by Ismail Marzuki,22 and one orchestra affiliated with the Surabaya station led by Soekarno. Singers who appeared frequently were Miss Roekiah (Photo 10), Miss Netty (Photo 11), Miss Jacoba, Miss Moor, S. Abdullah, and Tan Tjeng Bok; except for Miss Netty, this is the same line-up as in 1936. It cannot be confirmed that another new style of Kroncong (like Kroncong Rumba) was created or powerful new singers emerged.

Melayu music programs were attached to titles like Melayu Songs (Lagoe Melajoe), Melayu Selection (Boenga Rampai Melajoe), and Original/Modern Melayu Songs (Lagoe Melajoe Asli/Modern). Whereas in 1936 Bangsawan singers from British Malaya were dominant, the activity of local orchestras was prominent in 1942. New orchestras performing Melayu music, like Young Lover (Patjaran Moeda) and Moesi River (Soengai Moesi), were formed in Batavia and other cities. The existence of Light of Medan

(Sinar Medan) can also be confirmed, but it was different from the orchestra with the same name active in the 1950s.23 Also, the use of the term orkes Melayu (Malay orchestra), which was frequently used after 1950, cannot be confirmed in 1942.

Arabic music

Arabic music program titles included Arabic Songs (Lagoe Arab), Gambus Songs (Lagoe Gamboes), Desert Songs (Lagoe dari Padang Pasir), Egyptian Songs (Lagoe Mesir), Qasidah Songs (Lagoe

Kasidah), Voice of Omme Kalsoum (Soeara Oum Kalsoum), Gambus Melayu (Gamboes Melajoe), and Voice of Syech Albar (Soeara Sech Albar). As in 1936, the Egyptian singer Omme Kalsoum and the Surabaya singer Syech Albar accounted for more than half the programs. Aside from these, new Gambus orchestras were active in Batavia, Semarang, Garut (West Java), and Medan. We can confirm the existence of the Gambus orchestra Al Wardah, predecessor of the orkes Melayu Sinar Medan which was popular in the 1950s and also the Gambus orchestra Betawi Youth (Pemoeda Betawi), with which Abdul Halik was affiliated. He would lead the orkes Melayu Bukit Siguntang, which was considered representative of the genre in the 1950s (Takonai 1997: 361).

Chinese music

The following programs are categorized as Chinese music: Music of Chinese Movies (Lagoe Cinema Tionghoa), Shanghai Songs (Lagoe Sjanghai), Beijing Songs (Lagoe Peiping), Cantonese Songs (Lagoe Canton), Mandarin Songs (Lagoe Mandarijn), and Yangcin Music (Musik Yang Khiem). There is evidence that music from mainland China increased from 1936, and the Indonesian term referring to China changed from Tiong Hwa to Tionghoa. There is also evidence of a fusion of Hawaiian and Chinese music called Modern Chinese Songs (Lagoe Tionghoa Modern), featuring bands with names like Chinese Hawaiian Srenaders [sic].

Harmonium: A new musical genre

This section will analyze the new genre of Harmonium music (Lagoe/Musik Harmonium or Konsert Harmonium), which appeared in Soeara NIROM in 1942. Harmonium orchestras – which existed only from the late 1930s until around 1942 – were said to be the prototype of orkes Melayu,24 which performed Melayu music in the first half of the 1950s and whose music was the predecessor of Dangdut (Takonai 1997:138).25

A photograph of a Harmonium orchestra (Photo 13, thought to have been taken in early 1940) shows the composition of the musical instruments; harmonium, viola, maracas, gendang, contra bass, guitar, and saxophone. It maintains two basic musical instruments of Melayu music– harmonium and gendang – but all the other instruments are Western and the clothes of the members seem to be Western as well. Moreover, the picture is captioned “Performance of Melayu Music.” Thus the short-lived Harmonium music genre was not considered as a part of Gambus music, but if pushed hard could be included under Melayu music.

If we synthesize these observations, we can say that Harmonium music was born in the latter 1930s under the popularity of Gambus. Orchestras which performed Melayu music started playing Gambus music and to emphasize that they were playing a new


style of Melayu music, borrowed a symbolic instrument name and referred to the music as Harmonium.

In the 1950s, when a Malay movie starring P. Ramlee became a big hit, the Harmonium orchestra incorporated the movie’s theme songs and its performances of Gambus music practically stopped. The harmonium was dropped and the orchestra’s name changed to Orkes Melayu. After the 1950s, when the popularity of Malay movies was replaced by Indian movies, Orkes Melayu adopted the melodies and rhythms of those movies’ songs. Melayu music continued to change its musical style and instrument composition until the early 1970s, when it earned the new name of Dangdut.

Conclusion

This paper has used the musical program listings of Soeara NIROM in 1936 and 1942 to document the existence of a varied musical culture marked by (1) strong regional characteristics; (2) the popularity of Kroncong music in the latter 1930s; (3) the decreasing frequency of Kroncong and increasing frequency of Chinese, Melayu, and Arabic music in the early 1940s; and (4) the appearance of Harmonium music.

Broadcast trends in individual radio stations reflected regional ethnic characteristics, but it was Kroncong music that went beyond regional borders to find “nationwide” popularity. We can say that Kroncong music did not necessarily obtain outstanding popularity, but Tsuchiya’s opinion of Kroncong music as popular nationwide somehow reflects the actual situation at that time. Tsuchiya’s assessment about the ethnicalization of Kroncong music is therefore certainly correct: during the 1920s, Kroncong musicians were mainly Eurasian and by the late 1930s they were mainly pribumi (native Indonesians). However, while rumba, Hawaiian, and other foreign music inspired new developments in Kroncong music in the 1930s, its broadcast frequency began to decline in the early 1940s. This trend continued after 1950, since which time Kroncong music became immobilized and institutionalized (Takonai 1998: 361).

The genres which enjoyed relative increases in broadcast frequency were Chinese, Melayu, and Arabic music. The frequency of Melayu music in nationwide broadcasts in 1942 was the same as that of Kroncong, and if we include Harmonium music in the genre, Melayu music was second to Chinese music in frequency. After the early 1950s, the popularity of Melayu music surpassed that of Kroncong, a trend that can be traced to the early 1940s. That is to say, the integration of Indonesian culture on the grassroots level was not advanced exclusively by Kroncong music.　

The period of the late 1930s through early 1940s was a time of “cultural controversy” (polemik kebudayaan) marked by extensive debate between those oriented toward “Western modern culture” and those proponents of “native culture” (Yamamoto Haruki 1981). However, there was no concrete discussion of what the contemporary culture of Indonesia that served as the basis for this debate looked like. As the magazine of Soeara NIROM demonstrates, various international and local musical genres were mixed and intertwined to form the musical culture of the time. Indonesian musicians incorporated influences from outside to advance their own music. Penetration of mass media such as records and radio broadcasting enabled them to do it.

The significance attached to the development of musical culture through radio broadcasting is not only confined to the formation of national culture. Radio broadcasting seems to have played an important role in the formation of the Indonesian nation-state as well. What role did listeners in Sulawesi or Aceh play in the formation of the nation state when they listened to Javanese music through radio broadcasting? Considering the low literacy rates of the time,29 a more effective medium than newspapers, magazines, or other printed media in forming a collective consciousness would probably have been music, which could be listened to by anyone.30 While this question is not a direct concern of this paper, it is an intriguing implication of the development of musical culture in late colonial Indonesia.