Some 10,000 angklung players, most of them freshmen at Bandung's Padjadjaran University (Unpad), Monday broke the Indonesian record for the largest number of people playing the traditional bamboo instrument.

Their achievement bettered the previous record of 2,421 set by Bank Nasional Indonesia (BNI) employees in Jakarta on July 8, 2006.

Most participants in the record attempt, which included West Java Governor Danny Setiawan, looked nervous and at times missed their notes as they played the Sundanese musical instrument. But some players, such as Minister of Culture and Tourism Jero Wacik, Unpad rector Ganjar Kurnia and newly-crowned Miss Indonesia Ramidia Radisti, appeared to play the instruments with ease.

A freshman at Unpad's School of Social and Political Studies, Syahlan Nur, 19, said it was his first time playing the angklung, even though he had known of the instrument since kindergarten.

"I never played it even though they did have them at my previous school," said Syahlan, who graduated from the Gontor Islamic boarding school in East Java.

A freshman from Jambi who studies at Unpad's Economic School, Sandi Dwi Putra, 18, said he had never seen the angklung firsthand "despite the fact that many foreigners have played it".

Foreign student Faridatul Azizah from Selangor, Malaysia, said it was the first time she had played the angklung -- despite the fact her own home country had claimed inheritance to the instrument, dubbing it Bambu Malay.

"I'm also quite happy to play the angklung here," Azizah said.

Participants played Sundanese songs such as Tokecang and Ole-ole Bandung while being conducted by Sam from the Saung Udjo Angklung Studio.

The founder of the Indonesian Museum of Records, Jaya Suprana, declared the musical feat a world record.

Wacik said playing traditional music would raise feelings of national pride in the country and should be ingrained in the younger generation.

"A survey in 2005 indicated that 71 percent of Indonesians are proud of their arts and culture, and I have the same feeling that the recent survey shows that they are still our pride," Wacik said.

Wacik said angklung and batik were following shadow puppetry and kris swords in being registered as world heritage with UNESCO. Indonesia will feature an angklung ensemble during UNESCO's Indonesian Night this October.

For Saung Udjo, the only studio in Bandung to constantly promote the instrument, the record breaking feat came as a timely boost to efforts to keep the tradition of the angklung alive.

"We are very proud, honored and relieved with this promotion," Taufik from Saung Udjo said.

Yuli Tri Suwarni, The Jakarta Post, Bandung

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