Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Panggung yang dipakai band itu kecil, tetapi lampunya terang dan warnanya hangat. - The stage that the band uses is small, but its lights are bright and warm in color.

memakai = to use (active)
- Band itu memakai panggung kecil. = That band uses a small stage.
dipakai = to be used (passive)
- Panggung kecil itu dipakai band itu. = The small stage is used by that band.

In the sentence, the focus is on the stage (panggung), not on the band doing the action, so the passive form dipakai is natural.

Indonesian uses passive a lot when the object (here, panggung) is the “topic” or focus of the sentence.

Who is actually doing the action in yang dipakai band itu? It looks like the band is after the verb.

The doer (agent) is band itu (that band).

In Indonesian passive sentences:

The thing being acted on comes first.
The verb is in passive form (di-).
The agent can come after the verb (with or without oleh).

So you have:

panggung (thing used)
yang dipakai (that is used)
band itu (by that band)

You could also say:

panggung yang dipakai oleh band itu – more explicit, adds oleh = “by”
panggung yang band itu pakai – active-style relative clause, more colloquial

All three have the same basic meaning, but the original yang dipakai band itu is concise and very natural.

Why is it band itu, not itu band?

In Indonesian, demonstratives like ini (this) and itu (that) usually come after the noun:

band itu = that band
orang ini = this person
rumah itu = that house

Putting itu before the noun (like itu band) is not standard for normal “this/that” meaning. You mainly see itu before a clause or sentence when it refers back to something entire, more like “that (thing you just mentioned)”. For normal “that [noun]”, use [noun] + itu.

What exactly does lampunya mean? Is -nya “its” or “the”?

Lampunya = lampu + -nya.

The suffix -nya can mean:

Possessive his/her/its/their
- lampunya = its lights / their lights
A kind of definite “the” when context is clear
- lampunya terang can be understood as “the lights are bright” (of this stage/venue we’re talking about).

In this sentence, lampunya is effectively “its lights” (the stage’s lights) or “the lights” (the lights associated with that stage). Indonesian doesn’t always spell out the possessor (like lampu panggung itu) if it’s already clear from context.

Why is there no plural marker like lampu-lampu for “lights”?

Indonesian usually leaves plural unmarked if it’s obvious from context.

lampu can mean “light” or “lights”
lampu-lampu is also correct and clearly plural, but is often more formal/written or used when you want to emphasize “many” individual items.

In lampunya terang, the situation (stage lighting) strongly suggests more than one light, so lampu alone is enough.

Similarly:

buku di meja = book(s) on the table
anak bermain di luar = child/children are playing outside (context decides)

Why is there no word like “is/are” before kecil, terang, and hangat?

Indonesian usually does not use a separate verb like “to be” before adjectives in simple statements.

So:

Panggung … kecil = The stage is small.
Lampunya terang = The lights are bright.
Warnanya hangat = The colors are warm.

You don’t need adalah here. Adalah is used mainly:

before a noun (not an adjective):
- Dia adalah guru. = He/She is a teacher.
or in more formal/written contexts, often for emphasis.

Putting adalah before kecil/terang/hangat would sound unnatural or too formal in this kind of sentence.

What does warnanya hangat mean exactly? Do the colors feel physically warm?

No physical temperature is implied; it’s the same metaphor as in English “warm colors” (reds, oranges, yellows, etc.).

warnanya hangat = its colors are warm / the colors are warm
(in the visual, emotional sense)

Some related adjectives:

hangat – warm (temperature, but also warm colors / warm atmosphere)
panas – hot (too strong for “warm colors”)
cerah – bright/clear (e.g. sky, colors; suggests brightness, not warm vs. cool)

So warnanya hangat is a natural way to describe stage lighting that feels cozy or uses warm tones.

What’s the difference between tetapi and tapi here? Could I say tapi instead?

Yes, you can say tapi instead of tetapi in this sentence:

… kecil, tetapi lampunya terang …
… kecil, tapi lampunya terang …

Meaning is the same: “but” / “however”.

Difference:

tetapi – more formal, often used in writing, speeches, or careful speech.
tapi – more colloquial and very common in everyday conversation.

In normal spoken Indonesian, tapi is probably more frequent. The rest of the sentence is neutral enough that either one fits.

Could I say panggung yang band itu pakai kecil instead of panggung yang dipakai band itu kecil?

You can say panggung yang band itu pakai kecil; it is grammatical and understandable. It uses the active verb pakai instead of passive dipakai:

yang band itu pakai = that the band uses

Differences in feel:

yang dipakai band itu (passive)
- very typical, slightly more neutral/formal
- focuses a bit more on the stage as the thing being used
yang band itu pakai (active)
- feels more conversational or “spoken”
- puts a bit more focus on band itu as the user

Both are fine in everyday speech, but learners will encounter the passive pattern yang dipakai [agent] very often, so it’s good to be comfortable with it.

Why use the relative clause at all? Could I just say Panggungnya kecil, tetapi lampunya terang dan warnanya hangat?

Yes, Panggungnya kecil, tetapi lampunya terang dan warnanya hangat is natural and often what people would say in context.

Panggungnya here means “the stage (we’ve been talking about)” or “its stage”.

The original panggung yang dipakai band itu explicitly specifies which stage: “the stage used by that band”. If it’s already clear which stage you mean (for example, everyone is watching that band on that one stage), you can safely shorten it to Panggungnya kecil ….

So:

With relative clause: clearer, self-contained description.
Without relative clause: shorter, relies on shared context.

How does Indonesian express tense here? How do we know if dipakai means "was used", "is used", or "will be used"?

Indonesian verbs do not change form for tense. Dipakai simply means “be used” (passive), and the time is understood from context or from time words.

Depending on context, panggung yang dipakai band itu could mean:

the stage that the band is using (right now / tonight)
the stage that the band used (yesterday, last week)
the stage that the band will use (tomorrow, next month)

If you need to be explicit, you add time expressions:

Panggung yang dipakai band itu tadi malam kecil.
= The stage that the band used last night is small.
Panggung yang akan dipakai band itu besok kecil.
= The stage that the band will use tomorrow is small.

Akan can mark future; past is usually just signaled by context or time words (e.g. kemarin, tadi malam).