Burhan Sukarma (Artistic Director/Composer/Musician) is first and foremost a virtuoso on the suling bamboo flute. Burhan has performed as a soloist for the prestigious national radio station RRI Bandung, on countless Indonesian recordings (many of which have been distributed internationally), and on tours to France, Germany, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Saudi Arabia, Canada, and the United States, expanding the suling's role as a solo instrument. His ability to make this simple instrument produce soulful, expressive melodic lines that speak across cultural boundaries has earned him an international reputation. Burhan currently records for MTR and Jugala recording companies in Indonesia and Sakti Records in the US. Since 1987, he has taught at the University of Washington, San Jose State University, UC Santa Cruz, and UC Berkeley, while continuously directing Pusaka Sunda.

Undang Sumarna (Musician) is one of West Java's most accomplished musicians. He comes from a family of musicians and is renowned for his Sundanese drumming. Undang has taught at KOKAR and ASTI in Indonesia, and since 1974 has taught Sundanese gamelan at UC Santa Cruz. During these years, he has introduced hundreds of American students to Sundanese music and has toured throughout the United States.

Pusaka Sunda Pusaka Sunda (Musicians), a gamelan degung group under the direction of Burhan Sukarma. Formed in 1988, Pusaka Sunda is dedicated to performing and recording traditional and contemporary music of West Java. The group has performed throughout the US and has recorded two CDs, Lolongkrang and Samagaha. Members of Pusaka Sunda are all accomplished musicians who have studied with various Sundanese master musicians in Indonesia and the US.

The gamelan degung ensemble is a gong-chime orchestra indigenous to the Sunda area of Indonesia (in West Java). Primarily an instrumental ensemble, gamelan degun is played at soft, dynamic levels dominated by the suling bamboo flute melody. Gamelan degung was originally played in the courts of the Pajajaran kingdom, but by the 20th century, degung music had moved to the cities. While gamelan degung music today continues to grow and evolve, its popularity has expanded beyond the boundaries of West Java.

Sri Susilowati (Choreographer/Dancer) is originally from Indonesia where she worked on a wide variety of artistic projects: choreography for large venue rock concerts, creative movement for film, and creation of village community performances as well as dancing in many classical Javanese and contemporary works. In addition, she taught Sundanese and Javanese dance, trained actors in dance movement, and started a program in creative movement for adults. On moving to the United States, Sri established an Indonesian dance studio and formed the group Harsanari, (Old Javanese for “Dancing Joy”) based in San Francisco, that frequently performs at the San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festival and other venues. Sri has also maintained an active schedule as a solo dancer around the country. She is a graduate of the Indonesian Institute of the Arts in Yogyakarta and is currently in the second year of the MFA program in the Department of World Arts and Cultures at UCLA.

For a second, high resolution photo of Sri Susilowati click here...

Aleida Lumintang Crocker (Dancer) was born and raised in Jakarta, Indonesia, and is a graduate of a foreign language academy in Bandung, West Java. Aleida began learning classical Javanese dances at the age of five from Mr. Sampan Hismanto in Jakarta. Internationally, she has performed in Singapore, France and West Germany. Since 1992 she has performed in Colorado for the Four Corners Dutch-Indonesian Club, at the Indonesian Embassy in Washington, DC, and around the Bay Area, at UC Santa Cruz, UC Berkeley, the Indonesian Consulate, Indonesia Day, and many other occasions. In 1999, she participated in the Ethnic Dance Festival with Lestari Indonesia dance group.

Henry Spiller (Literary Director/Lecturer/Musician) is an ethnomusicologist specializing in West Javanese music and dance. He holds a Ph.D. from UC Berkeley in music and is a Lecturer in the music department at Cal Poly State University, San Luis Obispo, where he teaches courses in world music, music theory, and gamelan.