Soloevent.id – For eight days, 9-16 August 2018, Solo City will have a big celebration called the 2018 International Gamelan Festival. Now, to welcome the event, Soloevent wants to discuss about the gamelan of the archipelago.

Gamelan is a group of musical instruments with different knock patterns used to play gending. Gamelan comes from the Javanese language which means to beat or hit. Gamelan emerged when Hindu-Buddhist culture began to dominate the archipelago. Gamelan music instruments consist of kendang, bonang, bonang successor, demung, saron, peking, kenong, ketuk, slenthem, gambang, fiddle, gong, kempul, gender, flute, and siter.

Gamelan is not only in Java, but has spread throughout the archipelago. Where have you been? Here’s the review.

Javanese Gamelan

Javanese karawitan gamelan consists of bonang, demung, saron, gambang, kenong, slenthem, rebab, gong, and kendang. Javanese gamelan consists of 2 tone dates, namely pelog and slendro. Javanese gamelan presents a soft and smooth sound. Javanese gamelan is usually used to accompany wayang kulit performances, wayang orang, ketoprak, dance, Sekaten ceremonies, marriages, circumcisions, diversity, or even accompany traditional ceremonies.

Balinese Gamelan

Balinese gamelan has basic musical instruments that are similar to Javanese gamelan. The difference lies in a smaller size, a louder sound, and a lighter beat. Balinese Gamelan has a fast and rather rowdy tone. Balinese gamelan instruments consist of ugal, gangsa, jublag, jegogan, gong gede, kempur, klenthong, reyong, trompong, kendang, ceng-ceng, suling, rebab. Balinese gamelan is usually displayed during traditional rituals, religious ceremonies, and accompanying art performances.

Sundanese Gamelan

Sundanese gamelan usually accompanies sinden. Typical instruments using degung. Sundanese gamelan presents a seductive tone and is dominated by flute sounds. Sundanese gamelan consists of flute gamelan, rebab, kecapi, bonang, kulanter, saron, gambang, jengglong, panerus, kendang, and gong.

Gamelan Banjar

Gamelan which has this distinctive sound developed among the Banjar Tribe, South Kalimantan. Banjar Gamelan has two versions, namely palace and people. The Keraton Banjar Gamelan consists of baboons, dawu, sarun 1, sarun 2, sarun 3, kanung, kangsi, and gong. For their residents gamelan consists of baboons, dawu, sarun, sarantam, kanung, kangsi, large gongs, and small gong.

The types of art accompanied by Banjar gamelan include dance, gipang horses, Banjar masks, and Banjar puppets. Performing art performances accompanied by Banjar gamelan are often used at ceremonial and sacred events.

Minang Gamelan

Besides being thick with regional rules that are still strong with its mystical impression, West Sumatra has a lot of artistic wealth, one of which is gamelan art. The musical instruments used are saluang, bansi, talempong, rabab, pupui.

The tone of the gamelan from the Minang land tends to be typical towards Malay music. The performance of gamelan music typical of West Sumatra is held as community entertainment.