Gamelan Music of Bali (Full Album)
MountainWizzard MountainWizzard
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 Published On Jan 19, 2023

Another one found for free from the college library, here are some wild Gamelan tunes from back in the day.
Lyrichord Stereo LLCT 7179
Recorded in 1967

"SIDE 1:
Topeng Tua 0:00
Kebjar Teruna 3:16
Tabuhan Djoged 16:55

SIDE 2:
Segera Madu 25:12
Gamelan Angklung 28:26
Gambang Suling 34:53
Kebjar Hudjan Mas 43:50

Side 1 -- Topeng Tua
A performance of the Topeng is preceded by the appearance of several characters whose dances are simply a prelude to the actual story and have nothing whatever to do with the plot itself. One of them is an old (tua) man whose amusing movements bring waves of laughter from the audience. His dance consists of several attempts to move rapidly which invariably result in near collapse due to his advanced age. His movements, alternately fast and slow, are parreleled by the gamelan, in this case a Gamelan Angklung from south Bali.

Kebjar Teruna
The word kebjar means a sudden flare (e.g. the striking of a match) and fits the dramatic kebjar dance in which a female dancer dressed as a boy interprets the sudden changes of mood expressed by the gamelan. Musically the composition is a series of ostinato patterns which differ in length, moood, and character, thus allowing the dancer to express a wide range of emotions.

*Tabuhan Djoged
As the title suggests, this composition is based on a melody borrowed from the repertoire of the Gamelan Djoged. Since the Gamelan Djoged also uses a five-tone slendro scale, only slight changes were needed to convert this piece to one for Gamelan Angklung.

Side 2 -- Segera Mada
The village of Sajan, where this recording was made, is the home of one of the few remaining Gamelan Angklung in central Bali which still uses the ancient angklung instrument from which the gamelan takes its name. The angklung is a rattle made of bamboo tubes in a wood frame. The bamboo is tuned to one note in three octaves and the sound is produced by shaking the frame. Four angklung are generally used, one for each note of the scale and they are played in hocket style doubling the interlocking patterns of the metallophones.

Gamelan Angklung
Another example of the five-toned Gamelan Angklung found in south Bali, this piece is fairly recent and was composed by one of the drummers of the orchestra.

Gambang Suling
Several years ago, the song Gambang Suling was popular throughout Indonesia. Although originally written in the seven-tone pelog scale, it appears here as the basis for a full-scale gamelan piece for the Gamelan Gong Kebjar which uses the five-tone pelog syustem. Designed solely for the plistening pleasure of the audience, it illustrates the distinct style of the flute playing found in the north.

Kebjar Hudjan Mas
Composed in north Bali and recorded in the south, this composition combines elements of kebjar and genderan styles. The opening is dominated by the metallophones and they are later joined by the full gamelan in kebjar style. Although this piece often serves as an insrumental interlude, it is also used frequently as a prelude to a larger dance composition such as the Kebjar Teruna."

Discogs: https://www.discogs.com/release/11090...
Vinyl: https://www.discogs.com/master/804100...

Image Credit:
All except the last one: https://www.flickr.com/photos/east_me...
the Last one: https://www.flickr.com/photos/1286000...

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