Bali music, practiced by young and old

Bali music can be heard throughout the island, in small restaurants, resort hotel lobbies, every spa venue but most of all in the numerous temples, during ceremonies and in Balinese villages.

Old men and young kids seem to share their love for the music and practice as much as they can on the many parts of the gamelan.

The gamelan originated in Indonesia and can be found on several islands, each having its own style and type of gamelan instruments. The word ‘gamel’ means ‘to strike or hammer’ in Javanese.

 

Balinese men behind their beloved instrument

 

The gamelan is a set of instruments and often includes bamboo flutes, gongs, xylophones (instrument of small and large bamboo bars struck to make sound), metallophones (which has bronze metal bars), drums, bells, cymbals and a bamboo rattle called ‘angklung’.

The instruments of the gamelan are kept at the ‘balai banjar’, which is the communal meeting hall within the walls of a Balinese compound.

Nobody owns the instruments, it belongs to the whole community and this is also the place where numerous kids and old men practice their musical skills.

 

Instruments stowed in the village banjar

 

When you walk around typical Balinese villages you can hear the exotic sounds of the gamelan coming from the various compounds where new music is written and practiced.

Even when I tour around on motor scooter I see Balinese men practicing Bali music on gamelan or performing a new piece of music for locals.

The Balinese love to mix old Bali music with new influences and practice for months until it’s perfect. They will not mix any of the religious old songs though.

The Balinese believe the sounds of gamelan instruments can ward of evil spirits.

 

Men usually play the gamelan but in Ubud Village
there is one exception...

 

When you see a Legong dance, Barong dance, Baris dance or many of the other dances you’ll see a group of men accompanying the dancers by playing gamelan.

What’s funny is that they seem to play uncontrollable and quickly but every player has a special role in the whole orchestra of men.

Also when you see Wayan puppet performances the gamelan players accompany the Wayang puppet players on the lines of the story.

One of the few Bali dances where you’ll not find any gamelan instruments is the Ramayana Monkey Chant, Kecak. Here you’ll only hear the ‘chak-a-chak-a-chak’ sounds of the bare-chested choir of men and the low deep voice of the storyteller.

If you want to learn more about the gamalan and actually try to play it, then you can join the many Bali courses offered in Ubud.