Purwanto was born in the Indonesian city of Surakarta in 1959. Her parents were Aysha Gani and Julian Purwanto who were both musicians. She took lessons in classical violin.[1] She has studied at the Arts Institute in Yogyakarta in Java and thanks to a scholarship from the Australia Embassy, at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music.[2] She also studied at the Institut Kesenian Jakarta [id].[3]
She is married to a Dutchman named Rene van Helsdingen and they lived and worked together in the Netherlands. The trio that she played with was called the Helsdingen Trio[1]
In 1985 she appeared at the North Sea Jazz Festival in The Hague in 1985 as a member of the Indonesian band Bhaskara.[2]
Luluk and Bhaskara are credited for composing the iconic theme tune for RCTI's flagship newscast, Seputar Indonesia in 1989, which is Indonesia's first newscast ever carried by a commercial television station. The track, which is titled "Betawi" or "Jakarta", became Seputar Indonesia's opening and closing theme for fourteen years (1989–2003).
She has lived in Munich in Germany.[2]
In 2006 Purwanto awarded the prize the New Generation Jazz Award for the best young jazz musician at JakArt@2006 to Quicky.[4]
