ArtistInfo

Al Ismono

perc, voc, *1962
Singer of Jazz

Monos, as he is also known, was born in Jakarta on January 31, 1962. He cannot read music and is largely self-taught. As a teenage pop singer, Monos won an East Jakarta singing contest and joined his first group, a pop band called Maskita. Later, Monos performed with his Stone Crazy Band at Festival Rock Never Die in East Kalimantan. In the early 1990s, he traveled around Sweden, performing in pubs, other venues and on radio with many local artists such as Victor Rompas and the vocalist Ani Rae. “I was like a troubador,” Monos says. Ani Rae became his mentor and taught him how to be "not just a singer, but also a great entertainer". After returning to Indonesia, Monos formed the band W&B in the mid-1990s with renowned Jakarta vocalist Bertha, now an acclaimed vocal trainer, whose students have included a daughter of former Indonesian President Soeharto. Monos joined Tropical Transit as a vocalist in 1998. For the past two years, Monos and Tropical Transit have performed in a World Music style, with Monos taking the role of a Dalang (puppet master) in the original composition "Para Dewa", which showcases his rich baritone voice.

Instruments

• Percussion
• Vocals

Plays With

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Acknowledgements

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