The Balinese gamelan, with its shimmering tones, breathless pace, and compelling musical language, has long captivated musicians, composers, artists, and travelers. Here, Michael Tenzer offers a comprehensive and durable study of this sophisticated musical tradition, focusing on the preeminent twentieth-century genre, gamelan gong kebyar. Combining the tools of the anthropologist, composer, music theorist, and performer, Tenzer moves fluidly between ethnography and technical discussions of musical composition and structure. In an approach as intricate as one might expect in studies of Western classical music, Tenzer's rigorous application of music theory and analysis to a non-Western orchestral genre is wholly original. Illustrated throughout, the book also includes nearly 100 pages of musical transcription (in Western notation) that correlate with 55 separate tracks compiled on two accompanying compact discs. The most ambitious work on gamelan since Colin McPhee's classic Music in Bali, this book will interest musicians of all kinds and anyone interested in the art and culture of Southeast Asia, Indonesia, and Bali.

This book presents an introduction to more than a dozen different types of Balinese gamelan, each with its own established tradition, repertoire and social or religious context. The instruments and basic principles underlying the gamelan are introduced, thus providing listeners with the means to better appreciate the music. Scores of beautiful color photographs, a discography, and a brief guide to studying and hearing the music in Bali, will prove indispensible to visitors and gamelan afficionados around the world.

This book combines ethnography, philosophy, and musical analysis for an in-depth look into the social context and musical praxis of gamelan gong gede, the largest gamelan orchestra of bronze gongs and percussion on the island of Bali. The Hindu-Balinese notion of three human qualities called triguna serves as an interpretive framework for categorizing the musical repertoire, according to both widespread religious knowledge and more esoteric wisdom. (Series: KlangKulturStudien/SoundCultureStudies - Vol. 2)

The accompanying CD contains music excerpts which are listed in the book on pgs. xiii-xvii.

With extensive photographs and an audio CD, this guide to Balinese music showcases the history, culture and art of the gamelan ceremony. Bali has developed and nourished an astonishing variety of musical ensembles--called gamelan--comprising dozens of instruments mainly made of bronze or bamboo, and organized into groups with as many as 30 to 40 players. In Balinese Gamelan Music, Michael Tenzer, a noted Professor of Music at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, presents an introduction to many types of Balinese gamelan ensembles, each with its own established tradition, repertoire and context. The instruments and basic principles underlying the music are introduced, providing listeners with the means to better appreciate the music--and its importance not only in Bali but around the world. The gamelan music of Bali is a centuries-old kaleidoscope of sound and rhythm that is recognized today as one of the world's most sophisticated musical traditions. Despite rapid changes in contemporary village life, hundreds of groups still perform regularly around this tiny island--from isolated mountain hamlets to the bustling precincts of Denpasar, Kuta and Ubud. The primary function of gamelan music in Bali is to accompany religious rituals. Each village typically maintains several different gamelan sets, using each one for a different set of occasions. Music is memorized and rehearsed in village meeting halls, temples, or private homes. When a gamelan group accompanies a Balinese dance performance, the close coordination between the dancers' movements and the music is established through a complex system of interactive cues and responses. Performance standards are extremely high and even with Bali's rapid modernization in recent years, the gamelan tradition remains vital and largely undiminished by outside musical influences.

The accompanying CD contains music excerpts which are listed in the book on pgs. xiii-xvii.