By Rivaldi Ihsan
Who doesn't know the Saluang wind instrument, almost all Minangkabau people know Saluang through bagurau performances, an oral literary performance art form with Saluang wind instruments. Saluang is an aerophone instrument, meaning a musical instrument that originates sound from air vibrations. Almost all traditional artists and academic artists in West Sumatra utilise the Saluang instrument as a medium to produce traditional music and modern music today. In addition, Saluang music performances are often performed at baralek events, or Minangkabau customs events, and government events.
There are so many traditional artists of Saluang Minangkabau craftsmen in West Sumatra. One of the maestro figures of West Sumatra Saluang who has countless hours of flying both at the national and international levels is Muhammad Halim or with the nickname Mak Lenggang. Mak lenggang was born on 30 December 1963 in Lasimudo, District IV Angkat Andung, Agam Regency, West Sumatra. Mak lenggang inherited the artistic blood from his mother who had a hobby of playing Saluang, but was not performed at the Minangkabau community event only as a hobby to fill the void when he was at home, he explained.
Mak Lenggang's identity as a Saluang artisan has been felt while still in elementary school with curiosity to learn Saluang since the fifth grade. At first Mak Lenggang was interested in the Sarunai musical instrument made from rice stalks. He made it herself without the help of others and then studied organology (the science of studying instruments based on the source of sound, how to play, and their function). He learnt Sarunai autodidactically or through self-learning skills from the elders in his village. The way he learnt was by watching and listening to the artists and then practising it. Since Mak Lenggang felt proficient in making Sarunai and blowing Sarunai with salisihhango technique (blowing long without breaking) by himself. He also felt unsatisfied because the tones produced from playing the Sarunai were very limited, thus making her curiosity continue to grow to re-explore the wind instrument, Saluang.
During the sixth grade of elementary school, Mak lenggang became interested in the Saluang wind instrument. He learnt to make Saluang instruments by himself by watching and observing senior Saluang artists in his Nagari. From there he felt a match with the Saluang instrument. Where Saluang can produce more varied scales that can be diatonic or pentatonic that developed in Minangkabau society. However, Mak Lenggang explained that the actual Saluang scales are in accordance with the musical sense system of the Saluang maker, not the diatonic and pentatonic scales.
Mak Lenggang is currently fifty-six years old with the musical maturity to play Saluang. It is proven that he is still active in the arts both as a Karawitan lecturer at ISI Padang Panjang and as a Minangkabau music maestro. It is proven that Mak Lenggang's existence as a Minangkabau music maestro is appreciated among academics and among traditional artists in West Sumatra. As for what causes the survival of Mak Lenggang's existence as follows; the concept of music is in accordance with the needs of the show. If a performance requires the performance of traditional Saluang Minangkabau music, then he will play traditional Minangkabau music. However, if a performance requires the presentation of experimental music and world music performances, he will present musical performances according to the concept of the needs of the show owner's request.
For the creation method, Mak Lenggang adopts the concept of minimalist music or simple music, new and influenced by ethnic music (Dieter Mack, 2009: 268). One of the works of Mak Lenggang's various musical works is minimalist music which is the final project of the Master of Nusantara Music Art Creation entitled ‘sikembar dalam copy'an’ in 2007 at ISI Surakarta. The birth of the work ‘sikembar dalam copy'an’ through the phenomenon of Mak Lenggang's anxiety experience playing Saluang during bagurau performances. Where the dendang man could not follow the notes of the Saluang man, so the Saluang man always tried to follow the vocal notes of the dendang man, from there the work ‘sikembar dalam copy'an’ was born.
After the phenomenon of the experience of anxiety, Mak Lenggang determines the idea of music creation and then determines the craftsmen or musicians according to the needs and specifications of minimalist music performance needs. The musical performance of ‘sikembar dalam copy'an’ was quite interesting for the examiners because Mak Lenggang performed alone using a projector. The projector recording was a recording of Mak Lenggang's dendang vocals accompanied by Saluang Mak lenggang during the performance. This caught the examiner's attention because it was innovative, usually there are many musicians in the performance but she was alone, he explained.
As a music maestro, Mak Lenggang realises the development and needs of music in West Sumatra. So he must be able to adjust to the performance concept needed by the community. Artists can be idealistic, but they must know their time and space. For example, when he is invited by her friends to play traditional music, he plays traditional dendang. But when he is invited to play experimental music or world music, he borrows the concept of Western music in his performances. He is also often invited by her friends to create dance music or play Saluang dangdut.
Meanwhile, from the perspective of the audience, Mak Lenggang's Saluang playing performance in bagurau performances knows the characteristics of her Saluang playing character. The characteristics include baganto-ganto (talking), singkop (up beat) playing on the Saluang tone, stakato (attacking short or broken notes), and interlocking with the drummer. Mak Lenggang's Saluang character is more pronounced in the sai (incision) melody of the Saluang sound that is most favoured by listeners. In addition, there are also audiences who prefer the dendang text according to the audience's personal experience in the daily social life of the Mingkabau community. Sometimes bagurau audiences shed tears during the performance because the message of the dendang text represents the feelings of the audience.