Introduction

GAMELAN

In Indonesia, whether in small villages or lavish royal estates, alone or accompanying dance, drama, and puppet theater, gamelan music is considered essential for official ceremonies, life-cycle rituals, and celebrations.  (See Gamelan).  The instruments comprising the Yale Gamelan Ensemble came to Yale in 2006 (See History of Gamelan Suprabanggo)” . . On hearing gamelan for the first time, some people are struck by the complexity of the relationships between the melody lines of the different instruments … . others focus on the mellifluousness of the sound and the soothing, meditative quality of some of the music. Still others are excited by the multileveled interlockingness of the texture, comparing it to the experience of listening to several, incredibly good jazz solo players improvising together.” -