“Bali: Music for the Shadow Play"
Nonesuch Explorer, 1970

Beautiful gamelan music that might typically be used to accompany a Balinese shadow (puppet) play. Since these events typically last all night, only the most important pieces are presented here. The music is performed by a quartet (Pliatan Gamelan Gong Kebyar) using gendèr, brass & bamboo contraptions similar to xylophones. See liner notes for more info.

Try any track. Fo’s picks: 1, 3, 8

1. 17:20 – overture: rhythmic patterns progress through 5-tone scale, becoming increasingly complex and melodic, then simpler again towards the end. Utterly hypnotic.
2. 4:14 – starts slow and halting, becomes fast and flowing like a quick chant
3. 3:10 – quick and complex from the start, a circular pattern emerges
4. 3:15 – dense and busy; shifts between a high-pitched and low-pitched pattern
5. 5:02 – starts relaxed, picks up steam slowly, quite speedy last 2 minutes
6. 3:27 – slow & quiet, used for sad scenes. Very delicate at times
7. 2:41 – steady, aggressive rhythm with melodic accents, layered 2nd half
8. 4:21 – very serious, slow ceremonial music, perks up a bit in the middle

[ Fo ] - 4/28/04