South East Asia, Research Paper Example

In every culture music plays its own role. Music may be used simply for entertainment or it may be used to announce special events or life stages. Music is a very key element in any culture and its various uses are as unique as the culture itself. Music is essential to life no matter where that life is being lived. Music is very important to any culture and can be looked at as a universal language, one does not have to know the native tongue to understand what the music is trying to convey.  Music can be entertaining, ceremonial, therapeutic, and so much more. It just depends on the place it is being used.

In Timorese a community in Eastern Indonesia uses the Sasando in making community wide announcements and ceremonies. The ACCU (2007) “Sasando music is used within the Timorese community for all kinds of social events, such as celebrating the birth of a baby, a wedding or death” (ACCU 2007). In this Indonesian community this string instrument is used to celebrate life’s beginning, middle, and end. The Sasando is played by the plucking of the strings and the cupped like shell of it is used to amplify the sound making the music sing throughout the air. It is rather large and is played on the lap of the musician. This instrument is important to the Timorese community because it is a way for them to celebrate and communicate what is going on in their community; this is just one community in Indonesia that uses their musical instruments to reflect their community and culture.

Also part of the Indonesian culture is a Muslim community. The Muslim community uses a type of stringed instrument in their ceremonial music as well. The Rebab is a musical instrument typically used by theMuslim community in Indonesia; its strings are bowed and not plucked. It is made in a pretty unique way though; it uses wood and some other material that are not so common when talking about musical instruments, animal parts. Its body is quite unique according to Seasite retrieved on November 23, 2012 “The body is covered with a thin layer of skin taken from the intestine or bladder of a buffalo (2012).” This instrument only has twostrings and is almost likefiddle. It has sort ofa heart shape toit and like a fiddle it isplayedby usingabow across the strings. The Rebab also hasasound similar to thatof a fiddle, but unlike the fiddlethereare no frets and the strings should never touch the neck of the instrument.

Another common instrument to Indonesia is the Ocean Drum; this drum gets its name from the type of sound it makes. It makes soothing ocean sounds. This drum and it very unique sound can be used in calming people and can be used to help people relax, Klower (1997) “The ocean drum is a percussion instrument that can produce soothing sounds which sound just like the ocean” (p. 45).  This instrument is unique in the way that it is played and the mechanisms inside to make the unique sound, according to Ott (2011) “The metal beads inside roll over the bottom head like waterrolling over the shore” (p. 103). This allows for the sound resemble the waves crashing on the ocean shore which many find to be very soothing and calming.

In Fiji, the use of a drum is much different than that of the Indonesian Ocean Drum. The Lali drum of Fiji has a very unique propose today,

The beating of the Fijian drum or Lali is commonly used for calling the faithful to church each Sunday morning or for calling guests at resorts to the bar at happy hour or to the restaurant during meal times. (2012)

This instrument used to be used for declaring battle, births, marriages, and deaths, but now it is used to welcome tourist to Fiji and worshipers to church (fijilive.com 2012). To get the loud sound that would want of war or tell the joys of a birth the Lali would be played with the Derua (bamboo stamping tube). These two percussion instruments together would give the loud hollow sound needed for the music to ring through the land, announcing whatever it was that needed to be announced; war, birth, marriage, death, and today a welcoming.

A drum in Bali, the Kendang Bali, can be large or small and is shaped like an hour glass. Sometimes it is played with hands or sometimesdepending on the size of the drum head it is struck with a mallet. It can sometimes be paired with a smaller drum or a larger drum to give it a more in-depth sound. In Bali their drums are used as the rhythmic section to music that gives it the beat and sets the rhythm for the rest of the instruments playing. Unlike in Fiji and Indonesia where they use their drums in rituals and alerts, Bali uses theirs for entertainment.

Woodwind instruments are very similar in many lands, but even though they are similar they can be played in a total different way giving them completely different sounds. In Bali, a Suling Bali is a type of flute, even though Java has a Suling Java, which has the same basic make-up the way they are played give them the sound unique to the culture. Balibeyond.com (2012)

An end blown bamboo flute which can be played in both the slendro and the pelog scales using variations of fingering. Suling in Bali are played with a circular breathing technique allowing the flute to sound continuously without stopping the sound for breath (2012).

The way that this flute is played in Bali allows for the listener to hear a continuoussound even though the instrumentalist is stopping for a breath. The whole section will time out their individual breaths with each other so that the sound is never stopped, even though they are stopping for air.

In Java though this instrument is played a little differently; according to Balibeyond.com (2012) “An end blown bamboo flute. Javanese flutes are tuned to correspond with various with the various patet and several different flutes may be part of the same gamelan” (2012). Even though this flute has the same basic make-up of the Suling Bali, the Suling Java is played in combination to other flutes and is used to blend in with its surrounding instruments not to stand out. It is used to give the music more structure and more depth.

Musical instruments from specific areas can tell a lot about the community.  It can tell us if they are a small close knit community or a community that loves entertainment. Music in Bali and Java tend to reflect their love of dance. The music there is upbeat and full of loud pulsating rhythms that set the tone of the dance. Their dances are dances of celebration, celebrating birth, marriage, and death. And each celebration has its own set of music and instruments that are used in that ceremony.

In Fiji today it is common to hear their traditional instrument being used to summons worshipers to the church, to call tourists to the bar at the local hotel, or to welcome the tourists to the island as they arrive. Traditionally though these instruments, their music was used as warnings about wars and impending destruction. They were used to announce the birth of a baby, the marriage of two people, and the ending of a life. Even though the uses may have changed significantly, the instruments of Fiji are still being used as a way of announcing things on the island, but now it is to announce the start of church or a welcoming to the Fijian culture.

The Muslims in Indonesia use their instruments for ceremonial purposes. Even though the Rebab is made of some uncommon material such as buffalo intestine, it produces a sound similar to a fiddle. It is used in ceremonies of the Muslim faith, such as weddings. This instrument is important their culture and their religion.

Other instruments of the Indonesian culture are used for announcements too; announcing births, marriages, deaths, and wars. As one can see that no matter the culture some of the same basic uses of music are universal. The Ocean Drum is used to sooth people, because its sounds mimic the crashing waves of the ocean on the shore, which too many people is soothing and relaxing. This instrument may be used to help an infant to sleep or to help the sick, but it is way Indonesians use music for their lifestyle.

Music is an essential part to any land or culture. Music can help define who that community is and can help set that community apart from their neighbors. Musical instruments are usually handmade specifically by the people who will be playing them. These instruments are as unique as the culture and the people using them. Music is a way of defining who we are and showing cultures personality through their music and through their instrument styles.

Music can have many different uses specific to the land. It can be used as relaxation purposes, entertainment, announcements, and so much more. Music is a universal language that everyone can understand. There is so much soul and passion in the music of any land and can tell a story so deeply, but since it something that you do not have to know a foreign language to be able to communicate, music becomes essential to a culture. Music can be understood by anyone who takes the time to listen to it. If it is sad, mellow song announcing the death of a community member one can pick that up. If it is a joyous song announcing a wedding or a baby being born, one can understand that too. Music can be understood by anyone, even if they are not familiar with the language of the native land. Music is a key part of any culture and can say so much about it.

Works Cited

ACCU.Asia-Pacific Database on Intangible Cultural Herriatge (ICH).sia/Pacific Cultural Centre for UNESCO (ACCU) 2007.Web, 23 Nov. 2012. http://www.accu.or.jp/ich/en/arts/A_IDN9.html

Bali & Beyond.The Gamelan Instruments.Web, 24 Nov. 2012.http://balibeyond.com/gamelaninstruments.html

Fijilive.Sounds of the Lali.1999-2012.Web, 21 Nov. 2012. http://www.fijilive.com/fijimagic/view.php?mlx=2&st=15

Klöwer, Töm (1997). The joy of drumming: drums & percussion instruments from around the world. Binkey Kok Publications. p. 45. Print.

Ott, Pamela (2011). Music for Special Kids: Musical Activities, Songs, Instruments and Resources. Jessica Kingsley Publishers. p. 103. Print.

Seasite.Rebab.Web, 23 Nov. 2012.  http://www.seasite.niu.edu/indonesian/budaya_bangsa/gamelan/javanese_gamelan/counter-melody/rebab.htm