Giri Kusuma

Bridges Hall of Music (Little Bridges)
December 6, 2021 at 8:00 p.m.

This is the Balinese Gamelan concert! 

(You might was to go the previous post where I've made a parallel track of the features in YouTube. It is possible there to have an experience of what I saw at Little Bridges using very similar videos on YouTube.)

1. "Beleganjur" We began with this marching feature.   There were dozens of people entering from the back door  in costume! These were the four dancers, the rest of the Gamelan players, and two actors, one from "Baris" (the 6th number) and one from "Jauk," (the 7th) who was "demonic"! We'll get to them in a minute. In our dance, the dancers carrying the cymbals leaned far to the right, and then to the left.
 

2. "Bapang Selisir" The program says that this is a traditional piece derived from an early style of gamelan pengabuhan. Bapang refers to meter and rhythmic foundation for the piece, while selisir refers to the type of pentatonic scale used by the ensemble. It is quite similar to the other compositions  by the "Baris" and "Jauk" dancers.

3. "Lecture Demonstration" This was similar to the one Bill Malm did years ago. Nyoman Wenten, the Music Director, arose from the orchestra and commentated. He did interlocking claps, first on one side of the audience, the on the other. I remember my claps, just barely! I don't know what the first one was. One, pause, then, quickly, three claps. He said, "we were doing good"!  The overall had something to do with the foundation of rhythmic discourse!

4. "Pendet" Here the focus is on the four women. They grasp in the right hand the branch and with their left hand, they perform elaborate gestures or "mudra's." They open and close the fingers, just so, and they vibrate the shoulders also. while rotating the hand. The head rotates, left and right. They lean forward also. In performing the the four women seen from the front were four and then two (one behind the other) and then four.

5. "Baris" This is the traditional male warrior dance, according to the program, it is learned and performed as way demonstrating physical prowess and martial skill. Baris dancers typically wear a sheath containing a kris, or dagger, on their backs. The cues from the vigorous displays of the dancer guide the music.

6. Gendér Wayang: Angkat-angkatan, Batel Music for the Balinese shadow puppet theater (wayang), according to the program, usually provided by four musicians playing ten-keyed mettallophones known as gendér. It's like having a small jazz group!

7. "Jauk" This is the "demonic" dance. It begin with "sets," arrested states of the dancer in various sets of head and feet. The music is timed to this. But most predominately it is the hands! The dancer has on gloves where the fingers quite slim and fanned out. He goes through "flapping" contortions opening and closing the hands.

8. "Penyuwud" According the the program, this is a traditional piece that is played for the conclusion of a performance. The word penyuwud means "ending."