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» Add News | Dewa Budjana
Guitarist, composer and producer. Born I Dewa Gede Budjana on 30 August 1963 in Waikabubak, West Sumba,
Indonesia. Based on a solid body of work as a jazz artist in his solo albums whilst also being the lead guitarist
and songwriter of the band Gigi, Dewa Budjana’s ability to bring together rock and jazz has firmly established
his position as one of the top Indonesian guitarist.
Dewa Budjana’s journey as a musician started at the early age of eleven when he bought his first guitar.
His passion and talent for the instrument was further nurtured when the Balinese native moved to th ...read more
Guitarist, composer and producer. Born I Dewa Gede Budjana on 30 August 1963 in Waikabubak, West Sumba,
Indonesia. Based on a solid body of work as a jazz artist in his solo albums whilst also being the lead guitarist
and songwriter of the band Gigi, Dewa Budjana’s ability to bring together rock and jazz has firmly established
his position as one of the top Indonesian guitarist.
Dewa Budjana’s journey as a musician started at the early age of eleven when he bought his first guitar.
His passion and talent for the instrument was further nurtured when the Balinese native moved to the city of
Surabaya where he was introduced to the music of Leo Kristi and John Denver. During this period, his
tendencies varied from jazz rock to progressive influencedby John McLaughlin of the Mahavishnu Orchestra,
Yes, Gentle Giant, ELP and later by Keith Jarret, Jan Garbarek, Chick Corea, Bill Frissell, Jeff Beck, Pat Metheny
and Weather Report as he was more drawn to jazz.
With his first band Squirrel, 1980 became the year Dewa Budjana started his journey as a guitaristand composer
while still in high school. The band’s repertoire included Budjana’s original instrumental compositions at a time
when local jazz bands were mostly playing covers of famous bands. It was his composition Nusa Damai (Peaceful
Island) that won Squirrel’s title as best band in the highly regarded Light Music Contest in 1984.
Budjana’s intrepid experimentations blending jazz with the traditional sounds emergedsince early on in his career
as evident in Nusa Damai with its sounds of Javanese and Balinese gamelan (traditional musical ensemble). Nusa
Damai would later become the title of his first solo album. Upon graduation he made the decisive move to Jakarta
to further pursue his career.
In Jakarta Dewa Budjana met and tutored under the Indonesian jazz legend, Jack Lesmana who introduced him
to the principles and basics of jazz. It was Jack Lesmana’s son, Indra, who suggested Budjanato become a
session player. This period was the beginning of his first professional performances with among others Isbandi in
Telerama, a musical show on national TV, Twilite Orchestra with Addie MS, Erwin Gutawa Orchestra and Elfa’s
Big Band.
In 1987, Dewa Budjana joined Spirit Band releasing two albums before leaving to join Indra Lesmana’s band,
JavaJazz to release Bulan diatas Asia (1993). With JavaJazz he performed in the North Sea Jazz Festival.
Dewa Budjana earned his fame as the founding member of Gigi Band in 1994 and has released 23 albums to date,
firmly establishing Gigi as one of the biggest pop rock bands in the country. 1997 marked the beginning of
Budjana’s solo career with the release of Nusa Damai, a recording of his early compositions from 1994 to 1997.
Gitarku (2000) with its meditative sounds and Samsara (2003) in whichDewa Budjana collaborated with Peter
Erskine (drums), the late Dave Carpenter (bass) and Ernie Adams (drums) added to this body of work. This album
was earned the Best World Music Award, Anugrah Music Indonesia 2002
A tribute album for the Asian tsunami victims, Home (2006) was released in collaboration with Peter Erskine,
the late Dave Carpenter and Reggie Hamilton (bass). His compositions in these solo albums incorporated jazz,
pop and traditional sounds to produce music that is personal yet universal. A deep believe in harmony through
music is reflected in Budjana’s frequent interfaith collaborations with his band Gigi and other artists.
His vision for peace through the universal language of music led to the creation of Nyanyian Dharma foundation.
Through this foundation and with the collaboration of numerous artists, he produced three albums of music and
song inspired by Hindu philosophies. (www.dewabudjana.com)
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