Admired by Pulo Lasman Simanjuntak’s Poetry, Composer Ananda Sukarlan: Creating Poetry from Poetry Definitely Explosive in Character
JAKARTA-JAYA NEWS.COM – I have always been amazed by the poetry of poet Pulo Lasman Simanjuntak, which serves as historical documentation. When history cannot document reality, literature (and art in general) records it for our posterity.
This was stated by composer and pianist Ananda Sukarlan in a special interview in Jakarta on Friday morning (10/10/2025), when asked for his opinion on several of Pulo Lasman Simanjuntak’s poems that have been adapted into poetic songs (art songs) and composed using artificial intelligence technology.
“In Pulo Lasman Simanjuntak’s poetry, sometimes the metaphors are quite subtle, sometimes they are explicit. But from that, we understand history, not in terms of data, but in terms of emotion,” said Ananda Sukarlan.
“Just like when I learned about the Diponegoro War in school, I didn’t feel its heroic value. I just memorized that it lasted only five minutes, from 1825 to 1830. However, once I read the poetry of the great poet Chairil Anwar, or the paintings of Raden Saleh, I understood his heroism. And I delved deeper into Diponegoro,” he added.
Well, with Pulo Lasman Simanjuntak’s poetry, people will understand the situation and what it’s like to live in Indonesia in 2025.
Answering a question about the song “Corruption in the Land of Footprints,” whose lyrics are also taken from the poetry of the poet Pulo Lasman Simanjuntak—a creative process by the Cirebon poet Wawan Hamzah Arfan—composer Ananda Sukarlan said it was excellent.
And its character is clear, whose creative process is indeed different from that of poetic songs or art songs.
In musicalization, words transform into melody and realize what is known as heightened speech.
“If I were to create a poetic song based on that poem (which is what I want to do, ed.), the character would definitely be very explosive in the accompanying instruments for the vocalist, because I would extract the emotions triggered by the highly explosive poetic text,” he concluded.**
Contributor: Lasman Simanjuntak
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Photo Notes:
Indonesian composer and pianist Ananda Sukarlan, who often elevates poetry into poetic songs or art songs, has achieved international acclaim. One such poem is “Meditations on the Stone,” by the poet Pulo Lasman Simanjuntak from Jakarta.
(Photo: Courtesy/Kir/Lasman)
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