Some collaborations start to happen in shared studios. Duori started across continents. Ever since they met in Bandung in 2017, Italian producer Heith (Daniele Guerrini) and Indonesian duo Tarawangsawelas (Teguh Permana and Wisnu Ridwana) have been working towards a shared musical language. Ideas travelled back and forth between Europe and Indonesia – on recording devices, old hard drives, and long-deactivated eSIM cards, transformed through time, distance, and multiple exchanges. The result is what they describe as “5th world music in low data mode”: music that is not so much concerned with geographical origins as with the paths along which it travelled.
The soundscapes of West Java are the starting point: Tarawangsa, suling, kacapi, and small gamelan gongs meet Heith’s delicate electronics, digital manipulations, and blurry textures. This blend, however, is not merely a fusion of two traditions, and the pieces remain in constant flux. They emerge from the interplay of different languages, rituals, and recollections from the night-time Jaipong clubs in Bandung, European tours, and conversations about spirits, friendship, and the journey of sounds. The music feels familiar and unfamiliar at once. Melodies surface to soon dissolve again; electronic fragments are layered over traditional instruments, field recordings, and voices. Sound is a vehicle for connecting places, people, and the stories they share.
Heith and Tarawangsawelas will present Duori live in Berlin at Roter Salon.