Music of Indonesia
Indonesia is
culturally diverse, and every one of the 18,000 islands has its own cultural and artistic history and character
[Indonesian Geography http://countrystudies.us/indonesia/28.htm]. This results hundreds of differernt forms of music, which often accompanies dance and theater. The musics of
Java,
Sumatra,
Bali,
Flores and other islands have been documented and recorded, and research by Indonesian and international scholars is ongoing.
Tembang sunda or usually called as Seni Mamaos Cianjuran or just Cianjuran is a form of sung poetry which arose in the colonial-era
Kabupaten of
Cianjur. First known as an aristocratic art, Cianjuran composer was R.A.A Kusumahningrat ( Dalem Pancaniti ) ruler of Cianjur (1834 - 1862). the instrument of Cianjuran is Kacapi Indung, Kacapi rincik and suling or bamboo flute and Rebab for Salendro composition. The lyrics are typically sung in free verse, but a more modern version,
panambih, is metrical.
Kecapi suling is a type of
instrumental music that is highly improvisational and popular in parts of
Java. It is related to
tembang sunda. Danu Sukmawijaya
The most popular and famous form of Indonesian music is
gamelan, an ensemble of tuned
percussion instruments that include
metallophones,
drums,
gongs and
spike fiddles along with
bamboo flutes. Similar ensembles are prevalent throughout Indonesia and
Malaysia, but gamelan is from Java, Bali and
Lombok. There are rivalries between different regions' variations of gamelan, especially Java and Bali.
Central Java
Central gamelan is intricate and meticulously laid out. The central melody is played on a metallophone in the center of the orchestra, while the front section plays elaboration and ornamentation on the melody, and, at the back, the gongs slowly punctuate the music. There are two tuning systems - the 5-tone
slendro scale and the 7-tone
pelog scale. Unlike Western music, there is no standard tuning system. Each Gamelan is tuned to itself, and the intervals between notes on the scale vary between ensembles.
The metallophones cover four octaves, and include types like the
slenthem,
demung,
saron panerus and
balungan. The soul of the gamelan is believed to reside in the large gong, or
gong ageng. Other gongs are tuned to each note of the scale and include
ketuk,
kenong and
kempul. The front section of the orchestra is diverse, and includes
rebab,
suling,
siter,
bonang and
gambang. Male choruses (
gerong) and female (
pesindhen)
solo vocalists are common.
History
Gamelan is rooted in
Hinduism and
Buddhism, though the island of Java is almost entirely Muslim today.
Islam arrived in the
15th century, filtered through
Hindustani
Indians. With the arrival of the
Dutch colonizers, a number system called
kepatihan was developed to record the music. Music and dance at the time was divided into several styles based on the four main courts in the area --
Surakarta,
Yogyakarta,
Pakualaman and
Mangkunagaran.
West Java
West Java, or
Sunda, has a diverse brand of gamelan.
Gamelan Degung,
gamelan salendro and
tembang sunda are three primary types.
Degung is accessible and enjoyable, using a small variety of instruments, most notably the distinctive Sundanese
suling, a type of bamboo flute. Degung developed in the courts controlled by the Dutch. A
pop form, called
pop Sunda, became internationally famous in the
1970s.
Gamelan salendro
Gamelan salendro is used primarily to accompany classical or more modern social dances, and is considered a low-class form. The
20th century saw a rise in the popularity and importance of female singers.
East Java
Gamelan from eastern Java is less well-known than central or western parts of the island. Perhaps most distinctive of the area is the extremely large
gamyak drum.
Osinger
The
Osinger minority in Java are known for social music for weddings and other celebrations, called
gandrung, as well as
angklung, played by young amateur boys, which is very similar to
Balinese gamelan.
Indonesian pop and folk is quite diverse, embracing rock, house, hip hop and other genres, as well as distinctly Indonesian forms. There are several kinds of "ethnic" pop music, generally grouped togheter as
Pop Daerah (regional pop). These include Pop Sunda, Pop Minang, Pop Batak, and others. The regional pop musics mostly use local languages and a mix of western and regional style music and instruments.
Kroncong
Kroncong has been evolving since the arrival of the
Portuguese, who brought with them
European instruments. By the early
1900s, it was considered a low-class urban music. This changed in the
1930s, when the rising Indonesian film industry began incorporating kroncong, and then even more so in the mid- to late
1940s, when it became associated with the struggle for independence.
Perhaps the most famous
song in the kroncong style is
Bengawan Solo, written in 1940 by
Gesang Martohartono, a
Solonese musician. Written during the
Japanese Imperial Army occupation of the island in
World War II, the song (about the
Bengawan Solo River, Java's longest and most important river) became widely popular among the Javanese, and then later nationally when recordings were broadcast over the local radio stations. The song also became quite popular with the Japanese soldiers, and when they returned to
Japan at the end of the war re-recordings of it (by Japanese artists) became best-sellers. Over the years it has been re-released many times by notable artists, mainly within Asia but also beyond, and in some places it is seen as typifying Indonesian music.
Gesang himself remains the most renowned exponent of the style, which although it is seen now as a somewhat starchy and "dated" form is still popular among large segments of the population, particularly the older generation.
Langgam jawa
There is a style of kroncong native to
Surakarta (Solo) called
langgam jawa, which fuses kroncong with the
gamelan seven-note scale.
Tembang jawa
Similar in style is tembang jawa. Perhaps its greatest current star is
Didi Kempot.
Gambang kromong
Early in the
20th century, kroncong was used in a type of theater called
komedi stanbul; adapted for this purpose, the music was called gambang kromong.
Dangdut
Dangdut is a form of
dance music that has been popular since the mid-
1970s. Dangdut is based around the singers, and stars include
Rhoma Irama and
Elvy Sukaesih (the King and Queen of Dangdut), along with
Inul Daratista,
Evie Tamala,
Mansyur S,
A. Rafiq,
Dewi Yull and
Fahmy Shahab.
Jaipongan
Jaipongan is a very complex rhythmic dance music from
Sunda. The rhythm is liable to change seemingly randomly, making dancing difficult for most listeners. Its instruments are entirely from Sunda, completely without imported instruments from the West, China, Japan or elsewhere. It was invented by artists like
Gugum Gumbira after
Sukarno prohibited
rock and roll and other western genres.
Qasidah modern
Qasidah is an ancient
Arabic word for religious poetry accompanied by chanting and percussion.
Qasidah modern adapts this for pop audiences.
Gambus
Gambus literally means
oud, referring to a type of
lute. It is used to denote a type of orchestra and the music it plays, believed to be introduced by Muslim settlers from
Yemen. Though popular among Arabs in Indonesia, it has gained little popularity elsewhere.
Tapanuli ogong
From
Tapanuli,
tapanuli ogong is a form of
dance music played with a type of
lute,
trumpet and
flute.
*
List of Indonesian composers*
Culture of Indonesia*
Music of Java*Bass, Colin. "No Risk -- No Fun!"". 2000. In Broughton, Simon and Ellingham, Mark with McConnachie, James and Duane, Orla (Ed.),
World Music, Vol. 2: Latin & North America, Caribbean, India, Asia and Pacific, pp 131-142. Rough Guides Ltd, Penguin Books. ISBN 1-85828-636-0
*Heaton, Jenny and Steptoe, Simon. "A Storm of Bronze". 2000. In Broughton, Simon and Ellingham, Mark with McConnachie, James and Duane, Orla (Ed.),
World Music, Vol. 2: Latin & North America, Caribbean, India, Asia and Pacific, pp 117-130. Rough Guides Ltd, Penguin Books. ISBN 1-85828-636-0
*
Smithsonian Folkways Recordings
