Introduction to Gamelan

Gamelan (lit: gamel: to strike or hammer) is a term for the many traditional music ensembles found in many parts of Indonesia, primarily on the islands of Java and Bali. There are many types of gamelan ensembles, which are usually made from bronze, brass, iron or sometimes bamboo. The music is percussive and the ensembles are made up of metalaphones, xylophones and gongs of different shapes and sizes. The texture of the gamelan music is built up of several layers of different timbres, pitches, melodic patterns and tempi. Javanese gamelan ensembles also have different two tuning systems (slendro and pelog), which are different to the diatonic tuning system.

There are three major areas of Indonesia where gamelan music exists: Central and East Java; Sunda (West Java) and Bali. Although the character and repertoire of these musical traditions are very different, they do share some similarities, such as some tuning systems, layered musical textures, percussive instruments, and the close relationship of music with dance and theatre traditions, based on many of the same epic stories (Ramayana and Mahabaratha).

Javanese traditional music and culture has fascinated Europeans since the first european performance of Javanese gamelan in the 1800s. The first gamelan performance in the UK was on 6th September 1882 at the Royal Aquarium in Westminster, London. Seven years later, gamelan music played an important influence on Claude Debussy's musical works after he attended Javanese gamelan performances in Paris.

Nowadays the number of people learning gamelan music has grown rapidly around the world, including in the UK. There are about 100 sets of gamelan instruments either used in residencies in schools, universities/colleges and community centres, or owned by individuals across the country.

Current Javanese gamelan music has been developed and improved over hundreds of years by Javanese gamelan masters. These developments have produced a huge repertoire of beautiful music, which combines simplicity and complexity.

The Javanese gamelan music has two tunings: slendro and pelog. The slendro tuning contains 5 equidistant notes.
The pelog tuning has 7 notes.
The instruments are dominated by percussion instruments, metalaphones and gongs, that are made from bronze, brass or iron.
The other instruments in a complete ensemble are rebab (a 2 string-fiddle instrument), suling (bamboo flute), siter and/or celempung (zither), gambang (wooden xylophone), and kendhang (drums).

Gamelan music has a rich texture and sonority and a wide range of both simple and complex playing techniques. For those learning to play gamelan this provides a great deal of interest and many new, exciting challenges. The rich texture and sonority will be particularly interesting to people who would like to explore the gamelan as a new media for expression, and learning a wide range of playing techniques will be attractive to people of all abilities.

Gamelan music has always played an important part in Javanese society. The Javanese perform gamelan music as part of ceremonies, celebrations and important social events as well as for performances (with or without dance and puppetry).

Why gamelan?

Here are some reasons why more and more people become interested in gamelan music.

• People find it easy to use the gamelan as a media for expression. Gamelan music does not need any previous musical training. However the ability to listen to one another and work as a team is extremely important.


• Gamelan music gives the space for individuals to interact with each other closely. Gamelan music requires a strong relationship and interaction among the players.


• Playing gamelan can encourage self-esteem and self-confidence because every individual has an equally important contribution to make to the music.


• The tunings, sonorities, musical forms and playing techniques, which are very different to the western music, provide an exciting musical challenge for those coming to gamelan for the first time and for anyone who look for any inspirations for their new composititions.

"Learning the gamelan instruments is an interesting creative experience".

The links below provide you more information about the Javanese gamelan.

Outcomes

• In Javanese gamelan music all musicians make equal contributions to the music and there is a strong interaction between the musicians. By experiencing Javanese gamelan music participants will gain: confidence, self-esteem, listening skills, social interaction, and ability to share and work together.


• Participants will gain knowledge and awareness of Javanese culture and Indonesian culture in general. (In every gamelan project on the list, the tutor(s) will also give an introduction to Javanese and Indonesian culture).


• Gamelan instruments will be the main media of expression for the participants. When composing new music for these instruments the participants can explore their creativity.


• We can provide documentation such as photographs, video, or audio recordings of your projects where requested.


• We encourage the participants to make a performance at the end of the workshop or project using the material that they have learnt.

Articles

• Link to Balungan, a gamelan journal published by American Gamelan Institute which contains Dr Rahayu Supanggah's article about gatra (pdf), a concept of Javanese gamelan melody.

Educational Tools

• GO GAMELAN! Lesson Plan sheet(pdf)
• GO GAMELAN! Questionaire and Feedback sheet(pdf)
• GO GAMELAN! Certificate (pdf)

Recordings

Sorry, there are no recordings ready to be uploaded at the moment.