Solo Klenengan
Home | Reports | Audio

Budgeting Details

(These notes were adapted from an e-mail sent by Kitsie Emerson to potential donors in May of 2001. Some particulars have since changed)

Why this klenengan will be more expensive than the original minggu wagen

The original malam minggu wage klenengan (which ran for 7 months) cost Rp. 2,600,000 a shot (approximately $260). We paid the musicians well, and there was tea, coffee, snacks, a rice dish, cigarettes (sorry, its just expected), and alcohol for everyone. This klenengan would be a bit more expensive, as were opening it up to more musicians, which means not only more fees but more food. Also, being at Mas Muls house, there will be more spectators and therefore need to be even more food. We plan to do the food with an in-house catering service (either Mas Muls wife or Pak Wakidjos wife), so it will be much less expensive than the food we used to get for minggu wagen -- also more flexible for the more unexpected numbers of people. Mas Mul will also need to be given a small fee (but I suspect very, very little, as he is quite charitable about and interested in these types of things these days--he had always wanted the minggu wagen to be at his house).

An estimated budget for the current klenengan

  • 36 invited musicians x Rp. 60,000 each (were raising it from 50,000) = Rp. 2.160.000
  • 2 pesindhen x Rp. 200.000 each = Rp. 400.000
  • 10 (?) uninvited younger musicians x Rp. 15.000 each =Rp. 150.000
  • Food (tea, coffee, snacks, rice, "light" alcohol, cig.) x 12,000/head x 70 = Rp. 840.000
  • "Seksi Repot" = Rp. 200.000
  • Mas Muls rental fee (wed just put this in with the food money) = Rp. 100.000
  • pembantus to serve the food, clean up, etc x 3 at Rp. 20.000 each = Rp.
  • 60.000

Minimal total without unexpected expenses: Rp. 3.910.000 = currently $ 391 a klenengan

Why this klenengan will be more expensive than others currently running in solo

There are currently two other monthly klenengan similar to this in Solo -- malam Selasa Kliwon at SMKI, and malam Jumat Wage at Pak Panggahs house on Rainer's (a German student) gamelan. These are significantly cheaper klenengan, and we want people to understand why so they don't wonder why ours cant be done in a cheaper way.

Selasa Kliwon at SMKI is an old, old tradition in Solo and full of status for those who attend. No one is paid, and it only costs Rp. 200.000 or so for light snacks and the cost of the recording SMKI makes. (They used to serve a full meal also, but have cut down due to expense.) The gendhing are set ahead of time by a specified elder musician and notation is all made up. And by the way, the money for this event currently comes 100% from USA/German/and Japanese funds collected years ago via Marc Perlman, Susan Walton, Daniel Wolf, and Kaoru "Jepang". The principal was originally Rp. 9.000.000 and is down to Rp. 4.000.000 (some was used for medical expenses of participants). Pak Dalimin now runs this event, since Pak Walidi's passing, and Kaoru "Jepang" administrates it. (ASIDE: The Tuesday sindhen rehearsal at the Mangkunegaran also continues to be sponsored with money from USA and European sources, collected by Susan Walton and Rainer.)

Pak Panggah's klenengan is a new event (started March of 2000). It has many similarities to the one were proposing, but is heavier in STSI people. Big gendhing are encouraged, notation is prepared. Although it happens to be on Rainers gamelan, it is not at all seen as Rainers klenengan -- it is 100% Pak Panggah's event in every way. I believe that no one is paid, but Im not sure about that -- the sindhen may be given something. But again, it is a status symbol to go to the director of STSIs house and play, with "ekhlas" for free, much like the SMKI event. However, I personally know a number of people who dont go because they cant justify the expense of going out that far when they get nothing at all. Its kind of a "heavies" and STSI-types event only.

We cant expect a foreign-sponsored, recently initiated event to run the same way as these, and as our intention is also to financially help the musicians, we must make minguu wagen a paying event. It will be announced as an American/Canadian sponsored event, and made clear that our intention is to give something back to all the teachers and players who inspired us. We know from the previous experience with minggu wagen, this will take nothing away from the other events in the hearts of the musicians. In other words, we feel sure the musicians wont start to feel "malas" to go to Panggahs or SMKI after being paid to go to minggu wagen (since this never happened before with SMKI) -- it seems they just understand the events to be very different in intent and purpose.