Gamelan Laras Tentrem, Essay Example

The concert that I am reviewing was entitled Gamelan LarasTentrem and was performed by the Tufts University Gamelan Ensemble. It was a unique experience because it featured a guest artist performance by I.M. Harjito, a renowned Japanesemusician and composer who is currently a faculty member of Wesleyan University. The production itself was directed by Barry Drummond. The performance Gamelan LarasTentrem was founded in 1979 and was one of the first independent gamelan ensembles in America dedicated to the traditional music of Central Java, which makes it unique. It has become well known because it has been mentored by prominent Javanese musicians including I.M. Harjito, Sumarsam, and Wakidi Hardjo Martoyo. The music itself has a unique sound for those who are not familiar with this musical style, and as a consequence, it is very educational.

Based on the manner in which the music was organized, it appeared that the musicians wished to convey a story to their audience. Even though each individual piece was very different from one another, it seemed that each individual song served as a paragraph to describe a longer story. Since I am not very familiar with Japanese culture, it is difficult to be certain of the exact story that they were trying to tell. However, some parts of the songs sounded peaceful while others were louder and more warlike. This was important because it helped me understand that contrast is an important part of making music sound interesting. I was fascinated with the music because it was difficult to expect what would come next and it was interesting to hear a new style of sound.

A major reason that this music sounded very new to me is that many of the instruments that were used in this concert were pieces that I haven’t seen before, so I was unfamiliar with their sounds. In addition, I saw some instruments that I recognized from class that sounded different from the ways that I have heard them used in other styles of music. This was interesting to me because I didn’t recognize that there were many other instruments other than those used in classical music and modern music. However, it makes sense that different cultures would have made different instruments depending on the materials that they had during ancient times. Therefore, even though the Japanese had instruments that were like flutes, their construction was completely different than what we would expect of a modern flute used in concert band. For example, these flutes were many different shapes and sizes and made of wood or bamboo instead of metal.

The first piece that was played was entitled Manggung Sore, which was composed by a famous 20^th century musician. This song stood out to me the most because it was very powerful, which was likely why it was chosen to be a part of the introduction. The piece as a whole had a lot of contrast, and I felt that this was more the case for this introduction piece as well, which set the scene for the rest of the music. The first piece itself was an interesting contrast to the first piece in terms of music quality. The last song was entitled Serang, which according to the program guide, is used to announce the arrival of a groom at a wedding. Therefore, these were very stylistically different and serve well as an introduction and conclusion because the first piece was very strong and the last piece was a lot softer.

The performance was enjoyable overall because it was very peaceful and relaxing. A lot of modern music is very fast paced throughout the entire performance or only has a few themes. This was opposite from what I heard in this concert because the pace and volume of the music changed constantly throughout the performance. It seemed that this was due to the individual musicians’ ability to be able to change the volume of their instruments. Therefore, the band as a whole was able to raise or lower their volume simultaneously. To create other musical effects, only one type of instrument could raise or lower their volume to create contrast with another type of instrument. The music was compelling because of the ability of the musicians to do this and it is likely that the performance would not have been as good if these individuals were not extremely skilled at their individual instruments.

Overall, this concert experience was positive because it introduced me to a new style of music that I would have likely never heard if I hadn’t attended. Therefore, I am now aware of a unique style of music that is extremely different from the music I listen to on a daily basis. Because I attended this concert, I now have a greater understanding of concert music overall and I think I would be able to more appreciate classical styles from all different types of cultures. Since I find this music relaxing, it is likely that I will listen to more of it in the future.