Gamelan

INDONESIAN MUSIC
WHAT IS GAMELAN?
GAMELAN ORCHESTRA
 Gamelan music is the most
popular and important kind
in Indonesia. Gamelan
orchestras accompany all
dances and dramas. Gamel
means ‘to hammer’, and
most of the instruments of a
gamelan orchestra are
struck with wooden mallets,
padded sticks or hammers.
The conductor of a gamelan
orchestra is a drummer who
is part of the orchestra.
GAMELAN MUSIC
 Gamelan music is
complicated. It is an
ancient form of music
and has been handed
down for many
generations, never
written down, but
learned by being played.
Gamelan is an essential
part of Indonesian life. It
is slightly different from
island to island.
GAMELAN MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS
INSTRUMENTS OF THE JAVANESE GAMELAN
 INSTRUMENTS

 A complete orchestra could have about 40 or more different

instruments. There would be instruments that are struck to produce
sound, such as drums, xylophones (idiophones), and gongs of various
sizes. There would be a wind instrument, a bamboo flute called a
suling, and string instruments such as a zither or lute. There would be
instruments whose sounds are produced by vibration, such as drums,
bells, cymbals and gongs.
 There are also two sets of instruments that are tonal: the slendro
tuned to five tones and the pelog, tuned to seven tones. The slendro is
used to suggest festivity or cheerfulness, and is believed to have
developed in Java in the eighth century. The pelog is used to express
sadness, and is also very ancient in its origins. These two cannot be
played together, but are used according to the mood of the piece
being played. – Tuned to two different scales.
SHAPING THE SOUND OF BRONZE VIDEO
GAMELAN PERFORMANCE
GAMELAN REFERNENCE WEBSITES
 Information used in slide show - http://www.asian-
recipe.com/indonesia/id-information/traditional-indonesian-
music.html
 GCSE Bitesize Gamelan -
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/music/world_music/ga
melan_music1.shtml
 Encyclopedia Britannica -
http://global.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/224911/gamelan
 Bali and Beyond - http://www.balibeyond.com/gamelan.html
 Tons of Gamelan and some other musics from Indonesdia -
http://www.coastonline.org/mml/topic/topicsSearch_detail.php?id=
302
 Lots of Links - http://indonesia.elga.net.id/music.html