2.3 Balinese gamelan  (Page 6/7)

Gamelan angklung is named for the shaken bamboo instruments that originally dominated the ensemble, but in recent times these have largely been replaced by four-note metallophones . It typically accompanies temple festivals.

Gender wayang is a small ensemble of only four (sometimes only two) ten-key gender metallophones . Typically accompanying shadow-puppet plays, the instruments are played with softer mallets so that the storyteller may be heard. Gender wayang technique is very complex and difficult, earning great respect among Balinese musicians.

Gamelan gong kebyar is a newer ensemble; it arose in northern Bali in the early 1900's and has since become one of the most popular types of ensemble all over the island, and a favorite with tourists. Gong kebyar is a large, loud ensemble that normally accompanies women's dancing.

Gamelan gong kebyar

Gamelan gong kebyar instrumentation

• Hung Gongs - The form of the piece is outlined by various hung gongs. The largest one or two, the gong ageng , play on the important divisions of the form (for example, on the final note of each cycle). If there are two gong ageng , they are of different sizes and play at different times, not together. Less important divisions of the form may be played on the medium-sized kempur or the small kemong .
• Core melody gender instruments - Carefully tuned pairs of gender instruments, with five keys each, are struck with soft mallets, playing the most basic version of the melody, which usually stays the same for most repetitions of the cycle. The jegogan have the lowest range of these instruments. An octave higher are the calung , and yet another octave higher are the penyacah . (Some ensembles do not use penyacah .)
• Elaborated-melody gender instruments - These instruments may have between 7 and 12 keys each. They play the melody with complex flourishes and elaborations that often change from one cycle to the next. The lowest-voiced, the ugal , is a single rather than a paired instrument. The ugal player leads the section, sometimes improvising extra elaborations. The two pairs of pemade are an octave higher than the ugal , and the two pairs of kantilan are yet another octave higher. The highest instruments in this category use kotekan technique to play very showy, high-speed elaborations.
• Kettle gongs - A simple, steady beat is played on the kempli , helping to keep all of the instruments on a very precise beat. Two kinds of gong chime may be used. The trompong is played by a soloist. The reyong is played by four people at once, using kotekan techniques.
• Drums - Gong kebyar is typically led by two kendang , the lanang smaller and higher-pitched than the wadon . Both are cylindrical asymmetric double-headed drums, with the head on one end being noticeably larger than the one on the other end. Played directly with the hands and fingers, they often have intricately interlocking parts that reflect the kotekan parts. A kendang wadon player is usually the rehearsal leader and composer for the group, as well as the individual responsible for signaling tempo , dynamics , and section changes. Since these must be closely coordinated with the dancers during the performance, and since a very clean, tight ensemble coordination at fast tempos is one of the most important aesthetic goals in gamelan music, this is a major responsibility. This is considered the most difficult instrument in the ensemble, sometimes playing highly virtuosic, improvisatory parts. Although in some older music styles a reserved approach is considered more appropriate, a good gong kebyar drummer may put on a very showy, visually dramatic performance.