This study aims to understand the song of Mate di Ranto from a musicological perspective. The main data of this research is the song of Mate di Ranto by Poster Sihotang. The analysis was done by observing the melody and the lyrics of the song. Based on the research it is concluded that the song of Mate di Ranto is a song of Toba people with the genre of andung-andung, which is a melancholic nuance and has a meaning as an expression of sadness. This song is inspired by the andung-andung of death ceremony. This song is the result of a blend of traditional singing style of andung-andung and popular music singing styles. This song uses a combo band accompaniment which is composed by combining elements of pop music and traditional Toba music.

After the fall of the Soeharto regime was like the fresh air for the ethnic Chinese in Indonesia in articulating cultural identities, especially after the issuance of Presidential decree Number 6 of 2000 which revoked Presidential Instruction Number 14 of 1967 on religion, beliefs, and customs of China. With that Presidential decree, Chinese people were free to celebrate the religious ceremony and customs, as well as featuring Barongsai (Lion Dance) in front of public. Consequently, Barongsai became popular and transformed into a cultural icon as well as "obligatory menu" for city event. Barongsai allegedly underwent commodification along with its popularity. However, that signal was responded by Barongsai activists as the consequence of efforts to survive and conquer the market. Through the mindset of yin and yang, commodification discourse is abrogated and appropriated by Barongsai activists, so commodification is not just an effort to maintain and preserve the ancestral cultural heritage, identity, and cultural pride due to the accomplishments achieved. ABSTRAKPasca lengsernya rezim Soeharto merupakan angin segar bagi etnis Cina di Indonesia dalam mengartikulasikan identitas kulturalnya. Apalagi setelah keluarnya Keputusan Presiden nomor 6 Tahun 2000 yang mencabut Inpres nomor 14 tahun 1967 tentang agama, kepercayaan, dan adat istiadat Cina. Dengan Kepres tersebut masyarakat Cina bebas merayakan upacara agama dan adat istiadatnya, serta menampilkan Barongsai di hadapan publik. Konsekuensinya Barongsai populer dan menjelma menjadi ikon kultural sekaligus "menu wajib" event kota. Barongsai disinyalir mengalami komodifikasi seiring dengan popularitasnya. Namun demikian, sinyal itu disikapi pegiat Barongsai sebagai konsekuensi dari upaya bertahan dan menaklukkan pasar. Melalui pola pikir yin dan yang, wacana komodifikasi diabrogasi dan diapropriasi oleh pegiat barongsai, sehingga komodifikasi tak lebih sekedar sebagai upaya menjaga dan melestarikan warisan budaya leluhur, identitas dan kebanggaan kultural karena prestasi yang ditorehkan.

Data shows that award-winning films are not always the best-selling films and vice versa. Therefore, it is interesting to investigate whether the director employs different art techniques for commercial and art films. This qualitative textual study examines the artistic treatments of both films and compares the narrative aspects of the story and the cinematic elements related to the film presentation techniques. The narrative aspects include (a) plot, (b) premise, (c) characters, and (d) conflict. The cinematic elements include (a) cinematography, (b) editing, (c) sound, and (d) setting. The results show that the director applies different art techniques for different films. For films orientated to commercial movie theaters, the narrative is more complex but presented in a cinematic that is easier for the audience to understand. For films in festivals, the narrative is more simple, but the cinematic aspect are more complex. These findings support the results of the data control, a combination of the best- selling and award-winning films, which shows that the film has a rather complex  narrative and visualizations but is relatively easy to understand. Aspek Naratif dan Sinematik dalam Film Komersial dan Film Seni Sebagai Olah Artistik Sutradara Film. Data menunjukkan bahwa film yang meraih banyak penghargaan di festival bukanlah film yang laris di bioskop serta sebaliknya. Fenomena ini menarik untuk diteliti dengan mengkaji apakah sutradara menerapkan perlakuan artistik yang berbeda antara film yang ditujukan untuk ditayangkan di bioskop dan film yang dikirim ke festival. Penelitian tekstual ini mengkaji pengolahan artistik yang dilihat dari dua aspek yaitu aspek naratif yang berkaitan dengan cerita serta aspek sinematik yang berkaitan dengan teknik penyajian film. Hasil yang didapatkan memperlihatkan bahwa sutradara mengolah artistiknya secara berbeda pada kedua ranah tersebut. Di ranah bioskop naratifnya lebih kompleks namun disajikan dalam sinematik yang lebih mudah dipahami penonton, sementara di ranah festival, naratifnya lebih sederhana tetapi olahan sinematiknya lebih kompleks. Hasil ini dipertegas dengan hasil kontrol data di ranah gabungan yang memberikan naratif yang agak kompleks melalui sajian yang agak kompleks namun juga relatif mudah dipahami.

The sitcom of Husbands fearing Wives (SSTI-Suami-Suami Takut Istri), is one of the private television sitcoms which highlights violence as a joke to provoke laughter of its audiences. In SSTI, the joke involves the concept of gender, exchanging the role of women and men which has been socially and culturally constructed. One of the main objectives of this study is to analyze the role of the interpretation community in understanding the gender relations in SSTI sitcom. The study aims to discover the media interpretation by a group of female audiences living in the village and sub-district of Tembalang, Semarang. The results show that the negotiation of interpretation community on SSTI sitcom is not in line with the goal of the media; because the nature of men and women roles that are exchanged is interpreted as an abnormal relation. Therefore, the hierarchical power relation between men and women which tends to disadvantage women, for interpretation community is regarded as a normal & natural.Tayangan sinetron komedi Suami-suami Takut Istri (SSTI), merupakan salah satu program televisi swasta yang menonjolkan kekerasan sebagai lelucon untuk tujuan memancing tawa. Dalam prakteknya SSTI melibatkan konsep jender, yang mempertukarkan sifat-sifat perempuan dan laki-laki sebagai hasil kontruksi secara sosial maupun kultural. Salah satu tujuan penelitian ini ingin menganalisis peran komunitas interpretasi dalam pemaknaan tentang relasi jender pada tayangan sinetron SSTI. Penelitian ini berlangsung pada penonton perempuan yang tinggal di perumahan dan perkampungan wilayah kecamatan Tembalang, kota Semarang. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa negosiasi komunitas interpretasi pada tayangan sinetron SSTI tidak sejalan dengan arahan media karena ternyata sifat laki-laki dan perempuan yang dipertuarkan dimaknai sebagai relasi yang tidak normal. Dengan demikian relasi kuasa hirarkis antara laki-laki dan perempuan yang cenderung merugikan perempuan bagi komunitas interpretasi justru dianggap sebagai suatu relasi yang normal serta dipahami sebagai kodrat kultural.