Di studio musik kecil dekat kampus, band itu sedang membuat rekaman pertama mereka.

In a small music studio near campus, that band is making their first recording.

Breakdown of Di studio musik kecil dekat kampus, band itu sedang membuat rekaman pertama mereka.

• itu: that
• di: in
• dekat: near
• sedang: currently
• kecil: small
• membuat: to make
• pertama: first
• mereka: their
• kampus: the campus
• band: the band
• studio musik: the music studio
• rekaman: the recording

Questions & Answers about Di studio musik kecil dekat kampus, band itu sedang membuat rekaman pertama mereka.

Why does the sentence start with Di studio musik kecil dekat kampus and then have a comma? Could we put the location at the end instead?

Indonesian often puts the place or time at the beginning of the sentence to set the scene or topic.

• Di studio musik kecil dekat kampus, band itu...
  = At the small music studio near campus, the band... (location as topic)

You can absolutely put the location at the end:

• Band itu sedang membuat rekaman pertama mereka di studio musik kecil dekat kampus.

Both are correct. Starting with the location just emphasizes where first.
The comma after kampus marks the end of the fronted phrase and is normal in writing, but many people also omit it in less formal texts.

What exactly is the structure of studio musik kecil? Which word describes which?

The structure is:

• studio = main noun (studio)
• musik = noun acting like an adjective (music studio)
• kecil = adjective (small)

So studio musik kecil literally = studio music small → a small music studio.

General pattern:

• main noun first
• then any “describing” nouns
• then adjectives

So:

• studio musik besar = big music studio
• studio film baru = new film studio

Why is it di studio musik kecil and not pada studio musik kecil or ke studio musik kecil?

Because the band is already in the studio (location, no movement):

• di = at / in (static location)
• ke = to (movement toward a place)
• pada = more formal/prepositional “at/on” (used more with abstract nouns, time, etc.)

So:

• Band itu sedang di studio musik kecil. = The band is at the small music studio.
• Band itu pergi ke studio musik kecil. = The band went to the small music studio.

Pada here would sound odd or overly formal; di is the normal choice.

In dekat kampus, why is it just dekat kampus and not di dekat kampus or dekat dengan kampus? Are those different?

All are possible, with small nuances:

• dekat kampus – very common, informal–neutral; dekat works like “near”.
• di dekat kampus – slightly more explicit: at a place near campus. Often used if you want to emphasize location more clearly.
• dekat dengan kampus – grammatically fine, a bit more “full” and slightly more formal in some contexts.

In a noun phrase like studio musik kecil dekat kampus, dropping di and dengan is very natural.
So:

• studio musik kecil dekat kampus = a small music studio near campus
• rumah dekat stasiun = a house near the station

What does band itu literally mean? Is it “that band” or “the band”? Why use itu?

Literally:

• band = band
• itu = that / the (demonstrative; shows something specific/known)

In context, band itu usually means “the band (we both know about)”, not necessarily physically “that band over there”.

Uses of itu after a noun:

• to mark something specific/previously mentioned:
  • film itu bagus = that/the film (we talked about) is good
• to function like “the” in English when you need definiteness.

So band itu = that particular band / the band (in question).

There’s no plural marking on band. How do we know it’s a group, and how would we say “bands” in Indonesian?

In Indonesian, nouns usually don’t change form for singular/plural. Context tells you.

• band itu = that/the band (a group)
• ada banyak band di kota ini = there are many bands in this city

If you really want to emphasize plurality of countable things, you can:

• use a number / quantifier:
  • tiga band = three bands
  • banyak band = many bands
• or sometimes reduplicate:
  • band-band = bands (more explicit, often in written/teaching contexts)

But everyday speech often just uses band + context.

What does sedang do here? Could we leave it out? What about lagi?

sedang marks an action in progress, like English “is/are doing”.

• Band itu sedang membuat rekaman...
  ≈ The band is (currently) making their recording...

If you remove sedang:

• Band itu membuat rekaman pertama mereka.
  This can mean:
  • they are making (progressive, understood from context), or
  • they make / are making in a more general narrative sense.

lagi can also mark “in the middle of doing” and is more colloquial:

• Band itu lagi bikin rekaman pertama mereka. (informal)

Summary:

• sedang – neutral, standard, “in the process of”.
• lagi – informal, conversational, similar function.
• Omitting them – still grammatical; the progressive meaning often comes from context.

Why is it membuat rekaman and not just merekam? What’s the difference?

Both are related but not identical:

• membuat rekaman = to make a recording

  • membuat = to make
  • rekaman = a recording (noun: rekam
    • -an)
  • Emphasizes the product (the recording as a thing).

• merekam = to record (verb)

  • focuses more on the action of recording.

You could say:

• Band itu sedang merekam lagu pertama mereka.
  = The band is recording their first song.
• Band itu sedang membuat rekaman pertama mereka.
  = The band is making their first recording (emphasizes the resulting recording).

Both are natural; choice depends on whether you highlight the process (merekam) or the resulting recording (rekaman).

How is rekaman pertama mereka structured? Why does pertama come after rekaman?

The structure:

• rekaman = recording (noun)
• pertama = first (ordinal number)
• mereka = their

Word order in Indonesian noun phrases is generally:

noun + descriptor(s)

So:

• rekaman pertama mereka = their first recording
  literally “recording first their”.

Other examples:

• album kedua mereka = their second album
• konser pertama saya = my first concert
• lagu favorit saya = my favorite song

Adjectives, ordinals, and possessors usually follow the noun.

Why use mereka for a band? Isn’t band itu singular? Could we say rekaman pertama band itu instead?

Yes, band itu is grammatically a single group, but mereka refers to the people in the band (they). This is very natural:

• Band itu sedang latihan. Mereka sangat serius.
  = That band is practicing. They are very serious.

Possessive options:

• rekaman pertama mereka = their first recording (refers to the members)
• rekaman pertama band itu = that band’s first recording
• rekaman pertama mereka itu – possible but has a different nuance; usually you’d clarify earlier what mereka refers to.

All are grammatically fine; rekaman pertama mereka is a smooth, common pattern.

Could we say rekaman mereka yang pertama instead of rekaman pertama mereka? Is there any difference?

Yes, you can:

• rekaman pertama mereka
• rekaman mereka yang pertama

Both mean their first recording, but:

• rekaman pertama mereka is the default, more compact.
• rekaman mereka yang pertama slightly highlights “the one that is first among their recordings” – it can feel a bit more contrastive or explanatory in some contexts.

For everyday speech, rekaman pertama mereka is more common and neutral.

Is there any way to mark “a” vs “the” more explicitly, for example “in a small music studio near campus” vs “in the small music studio near campus”?

Indonesian doesn’t have strict a/the articles, but you can make the meaning clearer:

For a small music studio (indefinite):

• di sebuah studio musik kecil dekat kampus
  
  • sebuah = one / a (for countable objects)

For the small music studio (specific, known):

• di studio musik kecil dekat kampus itu
  
  • itu after the phrase signals a specific one: “that small music studio near campus”.

The original di studio musik kecil dekat kampus can mean either a or the, depending on context.