Listening to the music of this Javanese maestro is akin to sitting in a forest. Occasionally the sounds around you are all too familiar while at other times the noises are completely foreign and you start scratching your head. The former journalist decided to change direction in life completely in 1998, when he switched to the arts and launched his first album "Pada Suatu Ketika." The concept of words as music was groundbreaking for the Indonesian music industry and although his lyrics were in Javanese, more than Javanese people appreciated the cross-cultural approach.

Pak Tejo is also a traditional wayang puppeteer, a musician, a theatre and film actor and an author. In the field of music, he has succeeded in mixing traditional music with modern instruments such as the saxophone, harmonica, violin and accordion. As an author he has published "Kelakar Madura Buat Gus Dur," "Dalang Edan" and "The Sax."

Giving workshops in acting and puppet mastery is one way Pak Tejo has chosen to pass on his knowledge, particularly through the EKI Dance Company in south Jakarta, where he teaches acting to resident dancers. He continues to compose musical arrangements for EKI performances and is at work on another album due out some time in 2007.