The Baliem Valley Cultural Festival officially opened on Thursday, August 7, 2025. The opening ceremony of the festival, which was centered in Usilimo Village, Wosilimo District, Jayawijaya Regency, Papua Mountains, was attended by thousands of spectators.
The opening of the 33rd FBLB was marked by cultural performances and the singing of the Pikalu song, accompanied by the pikon, a traditional musical instrument of the Dani Tribe in Jayawijaya Regency. This cultural attraction also broke the record of the Indonesian World Records Museum (MURI) with a performance by 1,500 Pikon musicians.
This musical instrument is made from a type of segmented and hollow bamboo called hite. This bamboo was chosen because it has good sound quality when blown. The pikon is played by blowing into one end of it. By adjusting the blowing strength and lip position, players can produce a wide range of tones.
Appreciation from the Ministry of Tourism Fajar Hutomo, the Expert Staff to the Minister of Tourism (Menpar) in the Field of Crisis Management, from the Ministry of Tourism, appreciated the hard work of the Jayawijaya Regency Government, which allowed the festival to be held for 33 years since 1992. “We are very impressed by this folk cultural festival that has been held consecutively for 33 years without interruption. “We (the Ministry of Tourism) greatly appreciate the Jayawijaya Regency Government for consistently holding this event sustainably,” he said in Wamena on Thursday.
According to him, this shows the spirit of developing the tourism sector in Jayawijaya Regency thru the organization of the FBLB event. “Jayawijaya Regency should be grateful for God’s gift of natural beauty and the cultural strength of its people,” he said.
He explained that promoting a community’s tradition as a tourist attraction thru the organization of activities is a very appropriate method, allowing for a layered or multiplier effect.
“On this auspicious occasion, we would also like to convey that in 2025, the Ministry of Tourism targets 14.6 to 16 million foreign tourist visits to Indonesia, 1.8 billion domestic tourist movements, and benefits for 25.8 million workers in the tourism sector,” he said.
He added that this aligns with the essence of the purpose of organizing regional tourism activities to attract tourist visits. “We hope that thru the organization of regional tourism activities like this, we can contribute significantly to achieving the government’s target. We must realize together that achieving this target will also have a direct impact on improving the regional economy where the activity is held,” he said.
https://www.tempo.co/hiburan/atraksi-1-500-pemain-pikon-buka-festival-budaya-lembah-baliem–2056335
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