"Lilin-Lilin Kecil" (, English: "Little Candles") is an

Indonesian Indonesian is anything of, from, or related to Indonesia, an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. It may refer to: * Indonesians, citizens of Indonesia ** Native Indonesians, diverse groups of local inhabitants of the archipelago ** Indonesian ...

pop song Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form during the mid-1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom. The terms ''popular music'' and ''pop music'' are often used interchangeably, although the former describe ...

written by James F. Sundah for the Prambors 1977 Teenage Song-Writing Competition ( id, Lomba Cipta Lagu Remaja) and performed 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 hi ...

. To date it has been covered over fifty times. ''

Rolling Stone Indonesia ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' listed it as the thirteenth best Indonesian song of all time.

Writing

James F. Sundah wrote "Lilin-Lilin Kecil" for the Prambors Teenage Song-Writing Competition of 1977. The initial song was written in D and F.Sakrie, Denny. "150 Lagu Indonesia Terbaik Sepanjang Masa: 13. Lilin-Lilin Kecil." ''

''. December 2009. P. 47. (Indonesian)

was chosen to be the singer for his smooth vocals.Endah, Alberthiene
Chrisye: Sebuah Memoar Musikal

Gramedia Toko Buku Gramedia (''Gramedia Bookstore'') is an Indonesian bookstore owned by Kompas Gramedia. Established in 1970, Gramedia Asri Media has contributed to give inspiration through knowledge, endeavor and direct participation to society for mo ...

. 2007. Pp. 119. (Indonesian) The song was

arranged In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orchest ...

Jockie Soerjoprajogo Jockie Soerjoprajogo (; Perfected Spelling: Yockie Suryoprayogo; 14 September 1954 – 5 February 2018) was an Indonesian musician and songwriter. Jockie began his musical career while a junior high school student in Balikpapan, East Kalimantan. ...

.Yudono, Jodhi (ed.
Jockie Soeryo: Musik di Balik 'Diana'
" ''

Kompas ''Kompas'' () is an Indonesian national newspaper from Jakarta which was founded on 28 June 1965. The paper is published by PT Kompas Media Nusantara, which is a part of Kompas Gramedia Group. Its head office is located at the Kompas Multimed ...

''. 7 July 2010. (Indonesian)

Themes

According to Sundah, "Lilin-Lilin Kecil" is about his friends who had difficulties in life when older generations had successful careers. It has also been described as a

memorial A memorial is an object or place which serves as a focus for the memory or the commemoration of something, usually an influential, deceased person or a historical, tragic event. Popular forms of memorials include landmark objects or works of a ...

song.Prayers, candles to remember Bali bomb victims
. ''ABS CBN News'' 10 October 2008.

Reception

"Lilin-Lilin Kecil" placed fifth in the competition and was the most popular of the finalists on the ''Lomba Cipta Lagu Remaja'' album. "Lilin-Lilin Kecil" launched

's career and has been called his

signature song A signature (; from la, signare, "to sign") is a Handwriting, handwritten (and often Stylization, stylized) depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and ...

. He considered its success to be due to its immersing melody and romantic lyrics with his smooth vocals. "Lilin-Lilin Kecil" has been covered by over fifty singers and bands, including

Blue Diamonds 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 la ...

Victor Wood The name Victor or Viktor may refer to: * Victor (name), including a list of people with the given name, mononym, or surname Arts and entertainment Film * ''Victor'' (1951 film), a French drama film * ''Victor'' (1993 film), a French shor ...

, and Arie Kosmiran. Instrumental versions were released by Alex Faraknimella and Yockie Soerjoprajogo. ''

'' listed "Lilin-Lilin Kecil" as the thirteenth best Indonesian song of all time. "Lilin-Lilin Kecil" has been used as a memorial song, such as at the sixth anniversary of the

2002 Bali bombing The 2002 Bali bombings occurred on 12 October 2002 in the tourist district of Kuta on the Indonesian island of Bali. The attack killed 202 people (including 88 Australians, 38 Indonesians, 23 Britons, and people of more than 20 other nationalit ...

References

{{authority control 1977 songs Indonesian songs