Guigou Chenevier ricorda l'incontro - forse irripetibile - promosso qualche anno fa assieme a un drappello di giovani rockettari francesi con sei maestri del gamelan di Giava da cui prese vita il progetto Balungan: l'entusiasmante concerto tenuto nel 2017 a Cavaillon, vicino ad Avignone, è ora documentato in cd per Cuneiform Records, Kudu Bisa Kudu. “On different occasions journalists would ask us why we were doing this project,” he says. “And generally the Javanese people, they were answering in a way that a French guy never would, which was that it was just about fraternité. That was very beautiful and very simple, and at least as important as the rest of the project: the human exchange, the way they welcomed us when we were there, and also the incredible places where we played some concerts in Java. They were just amazing. I never could have imagined such a thing before.”
Will he imagine such a thing again? That remains to be seen, Chenevier admits. Between the Covid-19 pandemic, hardening racial attitudes in France, and the perils of the global economy, it seems unlikely that Balungan will have a second act - although his memories of this beautiful project and the circumstances that shaped it will remain. Even now, he says, he still dreams of all-day rehearsals in the heat and humidity of Central Java, the cooling rains that would come every night, and the hair-raising scooter rides home afterwards. “It’s a strong memory,” he says, “a very deep impression that will stay inside me forever.” And listeners may well feel the same once they hear this music.