ABSTRACT
Multiethnic Indonesia features a great variety of individual music cultures, that is, “social and geographical locales,” in which individuals and communities experience distinct kinds of music. Contemporary Christian churches are platforms where different musical tastes are fulfilled and fostered. Inculturational music constitutes a particular segment of the entire Christian church repertoire in Indonesia; one of many kinds of music that flourish in the church, it is practiced and performed alongside music labeled popular, classical, and contemporary. Inculturational music is the result of creative energy of local people, who either through institutions, or on their own, strive to integrate their religious and cultural or musical worlds. Music, as a means of expression with many layers of culturally defined meaning, is a creative force in shaping identity, nearly as powerful as ethnicity and language. The chapter also presents some closing thoughts on the key concepts discussed in the preceding chapters of this book.
