The beams hit the obelisk first  blue light fanning out from the stage floor, climbing 132 meters until it hit the gold flame at the top. Below it, thousands of people held up their phones instead of applauding, because applause doesn't show up on video and this moment was built for both.

That was the opening scene of Konser Akbar Monas 2026, an open-air classical concert staged at Monumen Nasional (Monas) in Central Jakarta on July 18, 2026, organized by Aula Simfonia Jakarta together with Jakarta Simfonia Orchestra and Jakarta Oratorio Society. It's a free, public performance combining Indonesian folk repertoire with European classical staples, closing on Beethoven's Symphony No. 9, "Ode to Joy" a piece most Indonesians have heard in a movie trailer but never live, let alone outdoors, with a monument as the backdrop.

At a glance:

• Date: July 18, 2026, Monas plaza, Jakarta
• Organizer: Aula Simfonia Jakarta, with Jakarta Simfonia Orchestra and Jakarta Oratorio Society
• Three conductors on the program: Eunice Tong, Rebecca Tong, and Stephen Tong
• Fourth edition of the series, following debuts in 2019, 2022, and 2023

What Was on the Program?
The night split cleanly into three acts. It opened with Indonesian repertoire  Sudharnoto's "Garuda Pancasila," Marzuki's "Rayuan Pulau Kelapa," Gombloh's "Kebyar-Kebyar," Surarjo's "Dari Sabang Sampai Merauke," and Marzuki's "Indonesia Pusaka," all arranged by Addie MS and Singgih Sanjaya for full orchestra.

Then came the European set: Rossini's "La Gazza Ladra" overture, Strauss's "Frühlingsstimmen," Tchaikovsky's Serenade for Strings waltz, Vivaldi's "Spring," Brahms's Hungarian Dance No. 5, and Verdi's "Brindisi" from La Traviata. The evening closed on Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 finale, sung by a full choir under the monument's lights.

Three conductors split the podium duties across the night  Eunice Tong, Rebecca Tong, and Stephen Tong  a family arrangement that's become something of a signature for Aula Simfonia Jakarta's large-scale outdoor productions.

Why Stage Beethoven at a National Monument?

This wasn't the first time. The concert series began in 2019, paused, then returned in 2022 and 2023  each time using Monas as more than scenery. The pitch, according to the event's own program notes, is that classical music shouldn't stay locked inside concert halls; it should be something a general audience walks into by accident on a Saturday night and leaves talking about.

That's also the counterintuitive part: classical music in Indonesia is usually framed as a niche, ticketed, indoor pursuit. Putting a full symphony and choir in a public square, free to enter, flips that positioning  treating orchestral music the same way the city treats a concert or a national holiday fireworks show.

The scale showed in the production, too a two-tier lighting rig, side-stage LED screens relaying close-ups of the choir and brass section to the back of the crowd, and a sound system built to carry Beethoven's finale across an open plaza without losing the strings under the wind.