Instrumentation

What is a Gamelan?

The word gamelan means "to hammer;" the term refers generically to the large percussion orchestras of Java and Bali. The primary instruments are gongs, metallophones and hand drums, with cymbals, vocals, bamboo flutes, and spiked fiddles used as well.

Gamelan is the primary source of all music in Bali, both sacred and secular. The Balinese people are ardent practitioners of a unique form of Hinduism, and gamelan is necessary for all ritual events, as well as to mark any large social occasion. There are dozens of different types of gamelans in Bali, ranging from large metal orchestras to bamboo ensembles, vocal groups, and groups dedicated to the imitation of frog sounds. All the music is marked by the use of one of two non-tempered pentatonic scales - pelog or slendro - and by rhythmically precise interlocking parts known as kotekan.

Gamelan Gong Kebyar
Our main instruments are a modified gamelan pelegongan, and were custom-made by I Wayan Beratha of Denpasar, Bali. This ensemble is made up of 25-30 players on gongs, drums, 16 metallophones and flutes. The gong kebyar is tuned in the Balinese pelog tuning.

Gender Wayang Duo or Quartet
Gender is the music of the Balinese shadow puppet shows, the wayang kulit. With 2 or 4 players, this is the smallest complete Balinese gamelan. For more information, please visit www.genderwayang.com. The genders are tuned in slendro, a quasi-equal tempered pentatonic scale common in Bali and Java.

Beta Gamelan
Designed in 2005 by Evan Ziporyn and Dewa Ketut Alit, our Beta Gamelan is tuned in Just Intonation, using perfect intervals and A 440, but its tuning resembles the Balinese slendro tuning. Ziporyn commissioned this new gamelan in order to perform more easily (and more in tune) with western ensembles. This gamelan requires 10 players.

Angklung Banyuwangi
This special gamelan from Banyuwangi, Java is the only one of its kind in America. The tuning is slendro, and the keys are made of iron (as opposed to the bronze used in Bali). Smaller than the gong kebyar, the Angklung Banyuwangi has a unique repertoire which bridges the gap between Javanese and Balinese music, and also resembles the music of Borneo.