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Scholarly Portfolio
Research Projects
Here are my current research projects.
Date
2025-2026 (ongoing)
Welcome to my scholarly portfolio, showcasing my latest research.
Gondang Sabangunan: Mangongkal Holi Music Ritual of Toba Batak People.
I am conducting research on the contemporary performance of gondang music within the mangongkal holi ritual, focusing on an ethnographic study of the "Sianjur Mula Group"—a traditional ensemble that performs during this ritual in Sianjur Mula village, located in the heartland of the Batak indigenous region in North Sumatra, Indonesia. This project examines the performative aspects, preservation efforts, adaptation processes, and continued relevance of the gondang repertoire in adat (customary) practices, highlighting the group's role in maintaining the authenticity of gondang performance. Through the lens of ritual music and performance, this study aims to provide new perspectives on contemporary Toba Batak cultural expressions.
Honoring Ancestors; Mangongkal Holi Ritual of Toba Batak People.
I am conducting an ethnographic research on the mangongkal holi ritual of the Toba Batak people, North Sumatra, Indonesia. The ritual is located in Samosir Island Regency, Sianjur Mula-Mula village, the indigenous site of Toba Batak. This dissertation project explores the performative dimensions of the mangongkal holi ritual—a sacred ancestral bone exhumation ceremony—offering new insights into Toba Batak contemporary cultural ritual practices through the lens of traditional music and ritual performance.
Pustaha Book of Ritual Knowledge (Pustaha)
Toba Batak people
19th–early 20th century
One of the central objects of my interdisciplinary research is the Pustaha, the traditional divination book used by Batak priest-scribes (datu). Several books are archived and exhibited at the MET Art museum in NYC and Yale University Gallery. This book will intertwine with the life cycle rituals of the Toba Batak people. My further research is an ethnographic field study of Pustaha in the United States (The Project is in progress from June 2025 to 2026).
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