Gamelan
Gamelan (/ˈɡæməlæn/[2]) (Javanese: ꦒꦩꦼꦭꦤ꧀, Sundanese: ᮌᮙᮨᮜᮔ᮪, Balinese: ᬕᬫᭂᬮᬦ᭄) is the traditional ensemble music of the Javanese, Sundanese, and Balinese peoples of Indonesia, made up predominantly of percussive instruments.[3][4] The most common instruments used are metallophones (played with mallets) and a set of hand-drums called kendang, which keep the beat. The kemanak, a banana-shaped idiophone, and the gangsa, another metallophone, are also commonly used gamelan instruments on Bali. Other notable instruments include xylophones, bamboo flutes (similar to the Indian bansuri), a bowed string instrument called a rebab (somewhat similar to the gadulka of Bulgaria), and a zither-like instrument called a siter, used in Javanese gamelan. Additionally, vocalists may be featured, being referred to as sindhen for females or gerong for males.[5]
Classification
Traditional craftsmanship, oral traditions and expressions, performing arts, knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe, social practices, rituals and festive events
2021 (16th session)
Representative List
Music of Indonesia (Java, Sunda and Bali )
Although the popularity of gamelan has declined slightly since the introduction of modern popular music to Indonesia, the art form is still widely respected, being commonly played in many traditional ceremonies. It may also be performed as entertainment for some modern events, such as official cultural, corporate, government or educational functions, both formal or informal. Gamelan is also, traditionally, arranged and performed to accompany religious rituals, ceremonies, dance theatre, dance-drama, traditional Indonesian theater, wayang puppets theatre, singing, concerts, festivals, exhibitions, and many more. Many consider gamelan to be an integral part of Indonesian culture.[6]
In 2014, Gamelan traditions were recognized as part of the National Intangible Cultural Heritage of Indonesia by the Indonesian Ministry of Education and Culture.[7]
On December 15, 2021, Gamelan was inscribed onto the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The nomination builds on the archaeological connection to the Borobudur, and includes a focus on its role in fostering a sense of national identity and pride, in addition to wellbeing aspects such as mental health, the development of interpersonal skills and the connection between its cosmology and an ethics of mutual respect and care. The listing consists of Javanese gamelan (gamelan jawa) of Central Java and Special Region of Yogyakarta, Balinese gamelan (gamelan bali) of Bali, Sundanese gamelan (gamelan sunda) of West Java, Madurese gamelan (gamelan madura) and Banyuwangian Gamelan (gamelan banyuwangi) of East Java, Gendang beleq of West Nusa Tenggara, Banjarese gamelan (gamelan banjar) of South Kalimantan, Gamelan peking of Lampung, and Talempong of West Sumatra as a Masterpiece of Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity from Indonesia, and encouraged the Indonesian people and the Indonesian government to safeguard, transmit, promote, and develop the gamelan.[8] Methods include the support of national, international and provincial festivals, the establishment of educational curricula including the Gamelan Goes to School program, an intention to increase the numbers of regional gamelan associations, and cultural diplomacy by sending gamelan specialists to global universities.
Etymology[edit]
The word gamelan comes from the Javanese word gamel (ꦒꦩꦼꦭ꧀), which refers to playing of percussion instruments or the act of striking with a mallet, and the noun-forming suffix an.[9][5][10] The gamelan in the Sundanese is Degung (Degung), the word Degung apparently is an old Sundanese term, which refers to gongs and Gong ensembles. For this reason, the words degung and gong are essentially synonyms for the word gamelan. At the same time, the expression gamelan degung may be a way to point at a gamelan ensemble tuned to degung scale.[11] The term karawitan (ꦏꦫꦮꦶꦠꦤ꧀) refers to classical gamelan music and performance practice, and comes from the Javanese word rawit (ꦫꦮꦶꦠ꧀) of Sanskrit origin, meaning 'intricate' or 'finely worked',[10] referring to the sense of smoothness and elegance idealized in Javanese music. Another word, pangrawit (ꦥꦁꦫꦮꦶꦠ꧀), means a person with such sense, and is used as an honorific when discussing esteemed gamelan musicians. The high Javanese word for gamelan is gangsa (ꦒꦁꦱ), formed either from the words tembaga (ꦠꦼꦩ꧀ꦧꦒ) and rejasa (ꦉꦗꦱ) referring to the materials used in bronze gamelan construction (copper and tin), or tiga (ꦠꦶꦒ) and sedasa (ꦱꦼꦢꦱ) referring to their proportions (three and ten).[12]
Wayang Kulit performance with Gamelan accompaniment in the context of the appointment of the throne for Hamengkubuwono VIII's fifteen years in Yogyakarta, between 1900 and 1940
A gamelan ensemble with a group of singers (Sindhen (Female) and Gerong (Male) at the Mangkunegaran Royal Palace in Surakarta, Central Java, between 1870 and 1892
A Gamelan Ensemble was played to accompany the inauguration of the Prince of the late Paku Alam VII at Pakualaman Palace, Yogyakarta, Indonesia, before 1949
A Dalang (puppeteer), Sindhen (singer) and Wiyaga (gamelan musicians) with a Javanese gamelan at Keraton Yogyakarta, the sultan's palace in Yogyakarta c. 1885
Sekaten, Gamelan Sekaten Kanjeng Kiai Guntur Madu (One of Some Javanese Sacred Gamelan) is usually beaten every day for a week during the Sekaten celebration at the Keraton Yogyakarta. The community was very enthusiastic about listening to the strains of the heirloom gamelan, on 26 November 2017
Galungan, a Balinese holiday celebrating the victory of dharma over adharma in Besakih temple complex in Karangasem, Bali, Indonesia
Kyai Barleyan, a Javanese gamelan at Oberlin College in Ohio. Acquired in 1970, it is believed to be the third-oldest gamelan in use in the United States.
Gamelan Son of Lion, a Javanese-style iron American gamelan based in New York City that is devoted to new music, playing in a loft in SoHo, Manhattan, United States in 2007
Sundanese Gamelan Degung being played in Museo Nacional de las Culturas Mexico, Indra Swara Gamelan Group, on 2 April 2018
Gamelan is widely known in Indonesia and abroad. There are many gamelan groups outside Indonesia. This is due to several factors like Indonesian migration (Javanese, Balinese, or Sundanese) and cultural interest, which brought and introduced gamelan abroad. The government of Indonesia is also actively promoting culture abroad through cultural missions and actively opening Darmasiswa[66] Scholarships for foreign students and lecturers who want to learn Indonesian culture, one of the most preferred is Gamelan. Indonesia has exported hundreds of gamelans and supplied gamelan all over the world. Gamelan has spread to almost all continents such as America (United States,[67] Mexico, Canada, Suriname), Europe[68] (United Kingdom, Russia, Belgium, Czech Republic, Italy, France, Spain, Ireland, Germany, Switzerland, Netherland, Poland, Portugal), Asia (Singapore,[69] Malaysia, Thailand, China,[70] Japan, Korea), Australia and New Zealand.[71]
Golek Ayun-Ayun Dance performance accompanied by gamelan ensemble at Bangsal Sri Manganti Keraton Yogyakarta.
The Sundanese Jaipongan dance performance accompanied by a gamelan ensemble in West Java Pavilion, Taman Mini Indonesia Indah, Jakarta.
Gamelan ensemble (or gambelan in Balinese term) accompanying barong performance (Bali lion dance) at Garuda Wisnu Kencana cultural complex, Bali, Indonesia.
Telek (masked) dance accompanied by gamelan ensemble in Bali, between 1950 and 1957.
A gamelan set in an exhibition at the museum of the Royal Batavian Society of Arts and Sciences (Now, National Museum of Indonesia), Batavia, circa 1896.
Gamelan Sekati (One of Some Javanese Sacred Gamelan in the Keraton Yogyakarta) is being played to accompany Sekaten Ceremony in front of Kauman Great Mosque in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, on 27 April 2004.
