Balinese Gamelan music at Miami University
Background History
The performance and study of Balinese gamelan music began in 2002-03 as a result of Dr. Albin’s fieldwork at the Yayasan Polosenni school in the Ubud region of Bali. Douglas Myers, director of Yayasan Polosenni, was instrumental in acquiring a set of gamelan instruments for Miami University. He also arranged for Albin’s study of repertoire over the ten-year period, 2002-2012. The fieldwork resulted in collection of musical transcriptions for these instruments. This archive documents Albin’s repertoire collection using video taped recordings and notated transcriptions.
The funding sources for the instruments and the fieldwork is as following:
- Dean Pamela Fox, Dean of the School of Fine Arts
- SFA 21 Fund
- Department of Music
- Faculty Research Grant
- Elaina Hampton Fund for International Initiatives
- Sigma Chi-Huffman Foundation Scholars-in-Residency
Defining gamelan
The traditional music of Indonesia and surroundings regions is performed on various types and sizes of gamelan instruments. The term gamelan, meaning to strike or hit, is a term with several meanings. It can refer to the instruments themselves; however, more frequently gamelan refers to the music itself. Gamelan music exists in various types, styles, and genres whose evolution is affected by region, religion, and social history. The one commonality among gamelan orchestras is the predominance of pitched and non-pitched percussive instruments.
The gamelan instrument collection, acquired by by Miami University in 1975, is a Gamelan Gong Kebyar orchestra. A gamelan gong kebyar consists of 20-30 instruments organized as follows: Bronze-keyed melodic instruments (gangza), tuned and un-tuned gongs, paired drums (kendang), a single stringed instrument (rebab), and bamboo flutes (suling).
Gamelan Gong Kebyar
The gamelan gong kebyar, according to recognized scholar Michael Tenzer, is “the most popular and influential genre of twentieth-century music developed on the Indonesian island of Bali.” The gong kebyar (also referred to as gong) is the largest orchestra used in Balinese traditional music, consisting of 20-30 individual instruments and players. The repertoire, which is still growing today, is primarily an instrumental music that is also used to accompany dance, opera, and dance theater productions.
Miami’s Gong Kebyar Collection
Miami’s gamelan gong kebyar collection was made possible by funding from Dean Pamela Fox, The School of Fine Arts, and Miami University Department of Music. The instruments were acquired with assistance from Australian Ethnomusicologist, Douglas Myers. Mr. Myers is an Australian Ethnomusicologist and director of Yayasan Polosseni (Foundation for the Pure Arts). http://polosseni.powweb.com/index.html
The bronze used in creating Miami’s instruments originated from a gamelan produced in the 1950s-60s. The bronze keys, along with the tuned gongs, are superior in sound and quality compared to a newly forged set of instruments. The tuning, however, is approximately a half step lower than gamelan gong kebyar instruments currently being manufactured. The more contemporary cases for the Miami’s set of bronze keys were carved and assembled in 2002. An MU logo was carved into the center of the cases (instrument stands) along with the more traditional carvings of animals, flowers, and icons associated with Balinese version of Hinduism.
