Sunday November 29, 2009
Gamelan gala
By ANDREW SIA
Photos by SIA HONG KIAU / The Star
An upcoming birthday bash promises a delicious mix of non-stop music.
ONE innovative, contemporary Malaysian gamelan group, famous for forging unique collaborations with Indian, Chinese and modern instruments, is celebrating its 12th anniversary. It is none other than Rhythm in Bronze.
The group’s upcoming show, titled Hari Jadi (Birthday), is said to feature the merging of theatre and music. But how?
‘The theatrics in this show is our playing of the music,’ says the show’s director, Seow Lai Fong (right). Behind her is Sharmini Ratnasingam. “The theatrics in this show is in our playing of the music,” offers Seow Lai Fong, one of the show’s two music directors, in a recent pre-rehearsal interview in Petaling Jaya.
Edwin Sumun, the show’s artistic director, explains:
“This is not a concert, it is a non-stop show. The music doesn’t stop, even as the players are moving to the next instrument, they are still playing music (silently) in their heads and (meanwhile) someone, somewhere will hit a gong or ring a bell.”
The music itself promises to be a delicious mix. There is a violin and an electric guitar. And the drums! A Malay rebana, an African djembe, an Indian mirindagam and the big Chinese lion dance drum.
“We are celebrating 12 years of doing gamelan with 12 pieces from our (musical) history. We have rearranged, modernised and funked up some pieces,” says Seow.
“On top of all that, we have a new percussion instrument ... tap dancing,” reveals Sumun.
Artistic director Edwin Sumun says the upcoming show is not just a concert, it’s a non-stop show. The roots of Rhythm in Bronze go back to 1995, when artistic director, composer and enthno-musicologist Sunetra Fernando and a group of friends formed the Gamelan Club. Rhythm in Bronze was the title of a Gamelan Club concert in 1997 and from that the new group was born.
“When we started, we were learning the basic foundations of how to play gamelan,” recalls Sharmini Ratnasingam, the groups’s manager. “Sunetra is a fantastic composer and people realised that gamelan can do more and be played with other instruments.”
Rhythm in Bronze had a unique combination of three different gamelan styles: Malay, Balinese and Javanese.
For instance, anyone who has heard Balinese gamelan knows that it is fast and furious compared to Malay (Terengganu) gamelan which is more stately, relaxed and melodious.
What about Javanese gamelan?
“They have two music scales,” explains Seow. “The pelok scale with seven notes, and the silendro scale with five notes. We are playing on a Malay gamelan set which is based on a five note scale.”
Herein lies the similarity, yet subtle differences, of Nusantara (Malay and Indonesian) culture. The last time gamelan hit the headlines was when some rabble-rousers accused Malaysia of “stealing” cultural heritage, such as gamelan, from Indonesia.
Seow’s response to that is: “Malay gamelan started from the marriage of a Javanese prince to a Malay princess several hundred years ago. The first gamelan set was a gift from Java.”
“Most gamelan sets nowadays are made in Jogjakarta or Solo (in Central Java) because all the sifus (masters) are there. But we requested a unique pitching of B flat major for our set so that we can collaborate with modern tuned instruments like electric keyboards and guitars. So what we have now is a unique Malaysian sound.”
Sumun says, “The sifus were a bit reluctant at first to comply with our unique requests. But in the end, they managed to creat a gamelan set like no other (in the world).”
“Everyone wants to stake claims. But everybody is playing gamelan, so why don’t (the Indonesians) accuse the Caucasians of stealing gamelan also?’’ comments Sumun. “It’s music. Why stake claims? Let’s share what we have instead of putting a label on it.”
“Music evolves. You cannot say you own any particular style. Others may start copying us too,” says Sharmini. “Gamelan is getting popular. We’ve noticed music lecturers from various tertiary institutes sending students to do reports on us. People seem to be using us as one gauge for a new Malaysian gamelan.”
Indeed, one that incorporates elements of Chinese, Indian and Western music, though Sumun does not like to break it down that way: “We have everything, we don’t want to label exactly what elements we have. Our music is like a melting pot, a primordial soup.”
“We are very 1Malaysia,” chips in Seow.
Rhythm in Bronze has been consistently winning multiple Boh Cameronian Arts Awards for their shows, such as Wujud Antara (a 2004 show in collaboration with the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra), Laras Gong (2004) and Alih Punggong (2007). Last year, they also took part in the World Gamelan Festival in Terengganu.
This writer asks Sharmini if the group – since they are a perfect musical symbol of 1Malaysia – have been getting lots of government funding?
“Some government officials have said that we are fantastic, 1Malaysia and all that, but when it comes to actual support, we have got none so far. In the meantime, we have survived on private sponsors, such as HSBC in the Arts,” she says.
“We would love to do things with the Government. But perhaps they have certain criteria.”
Although she will not say it, perhaps part of the issue is that Rhythm in Bronze does not fit the mould of a “normal’’ gamelan group, which is predominantly male and Malay.
“We are multi-racial and predominantly female,” says Sharmini. “We have four Malays out of 13 players in our current show.’’
Isn’t it great that non-Malays are so passionate about a Malay instrument?
“Other reporters have asked us such questions too,” she clarifies. “But it’s not that we chose the gamelan just because it’s Malay, it’s because we love the instrument.”
‘Hari Jadi’ by Rhythm in Bronze (rhythminbronze.net) will be performed from Dec 3 to 5 (8.30pm) and Dec 6 (3pm) at the PJ Live Arts, Jaya One, No. 72A, Jalan University, Petaling Jaya. Tickets are priced at RM35/RM50. For more information, call 03-2241 9999 or go to ticketcharge.com.my.
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