Ir. James F. Sundah (born James Freddy Sundah) is an Indonesian songwriter, of Manadonese descent. He was born in Semarang on December 1, 1955. A prominent figure in the Indonesian music industry, Sundah is best known for his evergreen song "Lilin Lilin Kecil" (Little Candles), sung by

Chrisye Hajji Chrismansyah Rahadi (; 16 September 1949 – 30 March 2007), born Christian Rahadi (), better known by his stage name Chrisye (), was an Indonesian progressive pop singer and songwriter. In 2011 ''Rolling Stone Indonesia'' declared h ...

(released in 1977). Which won the "Listeners' Favorite Choice" Award from the prominent Prambors Rasisonia Radio in Jakarta.

Career

Sundah's musical career began at a very young age. His father, Alfred Sundah, is known as one of the most important cultural figures in North Sulawesi especially for his efforts to preserving

Kolintang Kolintang is a traditional Minahasan percussion instrument from North Sulawesi, Indonesia, consisting of wooden blades arranged in a row and mounted on a wooden tub. Kolintang is usually played in ensemble music. Kolintang in the Minahasan commu ...

and bamboo music. He began playing for his father's recordings at the age of 8. In 1977, Sundah got his breakthrough for winning the "Listeners' Favorite Choice" Award in the Youth Songwriting Competition (Lomba Cipta Lagu Remaja – LCLR) hosted by Prambors Radio. The competition and the song are often credited as the turning point of the pop era in the Indonesian music industry. "Lilin-lilin Kecil" was on top of the Indonesian charts for more than one year and sent

to prominence. In the late 1970s, Sundah collaborated with Yockie Soerjoprajogo on '' Jurang Pemisah'' (The Severing Abyss). The album is considered a collectible and a high value item for Indonesian collectors. He is credited for discovering the talents of

Vina Panduwinata Vina Dewi Sastaviyana, better known by her stage name Vina Panduwinata, is an Indonesian singer and songwriter. The song "Kumpul Bocah" is cited as her signature song. Her song "Burung Camar" was listed by ''Rolling Stone Indonesia'' as the 28th- ...

, Ruth Sahanaya,

Krisdayanti Kris Dayanti Trenggono (born 24 March 1975), often written mononymously as Krisdayanti (or shortened as KD), is an Indonesian singer and actress. She is the younger sister of Yuni Shara, another Indonesian singer. She is the daughter of Trenggono ...

, all of whom are considered Indonesian divas. He has worked with a wide range of musicians throughout his career including Vina Panduwinata, January Christy,

Sheila Majid Yang Hormat Dato’ Sheila Majid (born Shaheila binti Abdul Majid, 3 January 1965), is a Malaysian pop singer who is best known for her 1986 song, "Sinaran". Her musical prowess especially in the genre of jazz music has led her to be dubbed ...

(Malaysian), Ismi Azis, Fairuz Hussein (Malaysian),

Blue Diamond Blue diamond is a type of diamond which exhibits all of the same inherent properties of the mineral except with the additional element of blue color in the stone. They are colored blue by trace amounts of boron that contaminate the crystalline l ...

(Dutch),

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(Philippines), Ruth Sahanaya,

, Yockie Soerjoprajogo, Erwin Gutawa, and many others. Sundah was instrumental in the formation of the group Suara Persaudaraan (Voices of Brotherhood) in 1986, which, according to a Rolling Stones article, is considered as the largest "jamboree" of musicians of all times. Sundah participated in Pacific Harmony in 1995, and collaborated with top notch artistes from USA and Europe including Lois Walden and

Cathy Dennis Catherine Roseanne Dennis (born 25 March 1969)Gregory, Andy (2002) ''International Who's Who in Popular Music 2002'', Europa; , p. 133 is a British singer, songwriter, record producer and actress. She was the vocalist for D Mob, which had the s ...

. With

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, Ahmad Albar, Bimbim Slank, Nicky Astria,

Iwan Fals Virgiawan Listanto or better known as Iwan Fals (born September 3, 1961) is an Indonesian singer, songwriter and guitarist of Javanese descent. In 2002, ''Time'' named him as a Great Asian Hero. Early life Iwan was born Virgiawan Listanto in J ...

, Doel Sumbang, Franky Sahilatua and the

Scorpions Scorpions are predatory arachnids of the order Scorpiones. They have eight legs, and are easily recognized by a pair of grasping pincers and a narrow, segmented tail, often carried in a characteristic forward curve over the back and always end ...

, he wrote "When You Came Into My Life", on their 1996 album '' Pure Instinct''. The song was later re-released as a Single and was produced by the award-winning producer

David Foster David Walter Foster (born November 1, 1949) is a Canadian musician, composer, arranger, record producer and music executive who chaired Verve Records from 2012 to 2016. He has won 16 Grammy Awards from 47 nominations. His music career spans mor ...

Activism

"No Song, No Music Industry," is one of Sundah's most popular quotes that have been published by numerous media.Rolling Stone Magazine, December 2009 Issue and MTV Trax Magazine, October 2007 issue A staunch advocate against piracy, Sundah is currently Chair of Information Technology Department at the Indonesian Association of Singers, Songwriters and Arrangers (PAPPRI), Indonesia's musician union, is also known an https://web.archive.org/web/20080318004731/http://www.suarapembaruan.com/News/2006/05/22/Editor/edit01.htm. He is also known a
expert on cultural issues
often writes, and represents Indonesia in various forums abroad. In Solo International Ethnic Music 2007, he introduced the concept of "Generasi Edan" (Madness Era), marked by the speedy development of technology. E-d-a-n, in Indonesian literally means madness, is a term coined by

Rangga Warsita Raden Ngabehi Ranggawarsita (14 March 1802 – 24 December 1873, jv, ꦫꦢꦺꦤ꧀ꦔꦧꦺꦲꦶꦫꦺꦴꦁꦒꦮꦂꦰꦶꦠ, Raden Ngabehi Ronggawarsita, ) was a Javanese philosopher and poet. He was born into the famous literary Yasadipura ...

, a famous Javanese poet, predicting the coming of the madness era. Creatively, Sundah broke down "edan" as an abbreviation of Electronic – Digital – Angka-angka (numbers) – New norm, explaining that to remain in tune with the world development today, one must adapt to the "new" things which were considere
many years back

Awards and honors

In addition to the "Listeners' Favorite Choice" Award in the Youth Songwriting Competition, Sundah won several BASF Awards, which is the highest award in Indonesian music, most notably for his work with Voices of Brotherhood, Ruth Sahanaya, and

. In 1996, Sundah's signature song "Little Candles" was chosen as the theme song of the International AIDS Memorial celebration in Indonesia. In 2002, Minoru Endo Music Foundation in Japan selected "Little Candles" as one o
South East Asian evergreen songs

Personal life

Sundah is married to Lia Sundah Suntoso and has one child. He made international headlines in 2009 when he had to re-take his driver's license exam three times becaus
he refused to pay bribes to the officials
to get his lost copy replaced. He now lives in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

with his family.

Discography

* ''Lilin-lilin Kecil'' (1977) * ''Jurang Pemisah'' (1979) * ''Citra Biru'' (1980) * ''Citra Pesona'' (1982) * ''Melayang'' (1986) * ''Suara Persaudaraan'' (1986) * ''Ozon'' (1989) * ''Basa-Basi'' (1990) * ''OST Catatan Si Emon'' (1991) * ''Tak Kuduga'' (1989) * ''Legenda'' (1990, re-released 2009) * ''The Slow Collections'' (1990) * ''Indonesian Top Ten'' (1990) * '' Pure Instinct'' (1996) And many others.

References

External links

Republika Newspaper, August 25, 2010

BBC News

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sundah, James F. 1955 births Living people Minahasa people Indonesian Christians Indonesian songwriters People from Semarang