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The Malay Gamelan is distinctly
different from the Javanese or Balinese Gamelan, not so much in the instruments
used but rather in the music played. The gamelan was brought over to Pahang
in Malaysia in 1811 from Riau-Lingga (Zakaria
Ariffin 1990) and spread to Terengganu
shortly afterwards through a royal marriage. From the over 60 songs initially
brought over, about half died with the original players and of the 30 remaining
only about 12 are regularly performed today. Malay gamelan music is very
simplistic in that nearly all instruments play the melody, unlike the intricately
locked parts of the Javanese gamelan. There is currently a revival of interest
in Malay gamelan music, led by Ariff Ahmad of Universiti
Malaya, with many new pieces being written out for the ensemble. Cipher
notation, common to Javanese gamelan and Chinese music, is used. Instruments
used include: saron (a metallophone),
gambang
(a
xylophone), keromong or bonang
(sets of small kettle gongs), kenong
(larger kettle gongs), gong and
gendang
or drums. As is customary in gamelan performance, players move around between
instruments from piece to piece. Malay gamelan music is usually played
during royal and formal occassions and that performers are specially trained
in royal palaces. Ariff Ahmad would like to see gamelan music being performed
more frequently for all occassions and has expended much effort in promoting
and writing music for the Universiti
Malaya gamelan troupe which performs regularly for various occassions.
Besides
Universiti Malaya, various
other local insitutions of higher learning have set up their own gamelan
troupes, the most prominent of these being the Universiti
Sains Malaysia group in Penang which in 1995 performed the Concerto
for Piano and Gamelan by Lou Harrison.
Further
information on Gamelan (External Site)
Musical Instrument
Index | MIDI Archive
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