NON-EQUIVALENCE IN MUSICAL LANGUAGE: A CASE STUDY OF ENGLISH TERMS IN INDONESIAN MUSIC PRACTICE

Abstract

This research investigates the challenges associated with the translation of English musical terminology into Bahasa Indonesia, with a focus on five essential terms: groove, swing, soul, feel, and jam session. Empirical data were collected through a qualitative descriptive methodology, which included a literature review and semi-structured interviews conducted with five professional Indonesian musicians. The analytical framework is grounded in Mona Baker’s Theory of Non-Equivalence (1992), supported by semantic and pragmatic theoretical constructs. The results indicate that these musical expressions contain rich semantic layers and cultural nuances that do not have precise Indonesian equivalents. In Indonesia, musicians generally prefer to retain the original English terminology due to its expressive richness and functional clarity in practical contexts. Strategies such as borrowing, paraphrasing, and descriptive equivalence were found to be more effective.