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Music 63 - Music of the Peoples of the World

Listening list #8: Indonesia

Click here for class syllabus.
Track Country/Region Title Instrumentation Notes Performance recorded Timing

I. Java
1 Central Java Examples of some Javanese gamelan instruments: Saron, Kenong, Ketuk, Kempul, Gong See Music of the Peoples of the World, p. 340-342 0:42
2 Central Java Pangkur Javanese gamelan Ladrang slendro manyura. See Music of the Peoples of the World, p. 347-352 Ensemble Karawitan Raras Raos Irama, gamelan Kyai Sekar Tunjung, pesinden Mugini. 15:31
3-7



Central Java Individual instrument parts to Pangkur[track 2]: 3. Gender barung, 4. Rebab, 5. Gambang, 6. Kendang, 7. Bonang Barung In these examples, a master Javanese musician plays each of five prominent instruments from Ladrang Pangkur (track 6). In some tracks he is accompanied by slentem playing the balungan (main melody) in the background to provide orientation. See Music of the Peoples of the World, p. 347-348, 352 Trustho 1:11
1:17
1:05
1:18
1:01
8 Central Java Excerpt from Pangkur (pelog) Javanese gamelan Ladrang pelog barang. 2:55
9 Central Java Excerpt from Srimpi Sangapati Javanese gamelan Ketuk 2 kerep pelog barang. This is a highly refined, courtly dance for four women representing stories from Islamic epics in highly symbolic movements. The entire performance in this version lasts just over an hour. Royal gamelan of the court at Surakarta 3:59
10 Central Java Excerpt from Danaraja Gadon Ketuk 4 arang minggah ketuk 8, slendro sanga. Performed by gadon, a chamber group featuring only the elaborating instruments of the full gamelan: rebab, suling, and gender barung. Sarasehan Krawitan Surakarta, directed by Saptana. 4:22

II. Bali
11 Bali Gending Pengalang Bebarongan Gamelan gong kebyar See Music of the Peoples of the World, p. 360-362 Gamelan Punia Bhakti directed by I Nyoman Wenten 5:28
12 Bali Balinese Gamelan examples: detuning, pokok (core melody), polos (interlocking part 1), sangsih (interlocking part 2), kotekan (interlocking parts together), kotekan with pokok See Music of the Peoples of the World, p. 359 0:59
13 Bali Purana -- Hujan Mas [Golden Rain] Gamelan gong kebyar This is a gamelan gong kebyar composition from the 1960s that typifies the genre. 6:26
14 Bali Excerpt from Baris Gamelan semar pegulingan The classic warrior dance of Bali. This gamelan is a gamelan semar pegulingan, an ancient and now uncommon 7-tone gamelan, though Baris is more commonly played on the usual gamelan gong kebyar.
See Music of the Peoples of the World, p. 357-358		 Gamelan "Tirta Sari" of Peliatan, Bali 3:35
15 Bali Sekar Sungsang Gender wayang A performance of gender wayang, the quartet of slendro-tuned metallophones that traditionally accompany the wayang shadow puppet play in Bali.
See Music of the Peoples of the World, p. 33, fig. 5.2		 6:00
16 Bali Kecak excerpt Chorus A performance of kecak, also known as cak or "monkey chant," the famous interlocking chant of Bali in which voices imitate the instruments of the gamelan. This piece accompanies a dance representing a particular scene from the Ramayana.
See Music of the Peoples of the World, p. 358		 Kecak chorus of Peliatan. 4:44
17 Bali Gending Sekar Gadung Gamelan selunding A performance on the gamelan selunding -- a rare and very sacred ensemble made up entirely of iron metallophones, not the bronze instruments found in common gamelan.
See Music of the Peoples of the World, p. 11 fig. 2.4		 Gamelan selunding ensemble of Tenganan village, directed by I Nyoman P. Gunawan. 7:54

III. American Gamelan
18 United States Lou Harrison -- Threnody for Carlos Chávez (1979) Gamelan degung (from West Java) The American composer Lou Harrison has written a large amount of music for gamelan, but deriving as much from his experience as a composer in the American experimental tradition as from traditional Javanese theory. His pieces often incorporate Western instruments into gamelan. This piece is a threnody, or lament, on the death of the Mexican composer Carlos Chávez featuring solo viola.
See Music of the Peoples of the World, p. 364		 Gamelan Sekar Kembar, Susan Bates, viola. 7:05