This volume returns to the Indonesian portion of Borneo, Kalimantan, scene of the string music sampled on volume 13. There are no strings here, but rather a grab bag of 24 short selections from gong and struck bamboo ensembles, as well as vocal music from seven different ethnic groups, all from within the large population known as Dayak. The Dayak are the mostly non-Muslim peoples who live in the island's mountainous interior. A lush, polyphonic, recreational vocal piece from East Kalimantan sets the tone. It's a song for ...
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This volume returns to the Indonesian portion of Borneo, Kalimantan, scene of the string music sampled on volume 13. There are no strings here, but rather a grab bag of 24 short selections from gong and struck bamboo ensembles, as well as vocal music from seven different ethnic groups, all from within the large population known as Dayak. The Dayak are the mostly non-Muslim peoples who live in the island's mountainous interior. A lush, polyphonic, recreational vocal piece from East Kalimantan sets the tone. It's a song for Christian holidays and presents a soothing combination of local melody and Western harmony. Three "melodic" gong ensemble pieces from the Upper Jelai River follow. They are tuneful, unusually rhythmic, and in one case, downright funky. Then, from the same region, come four examples of utterly unique struck-bamboo ensemble music. The sound known as senggayung is performed using fresh, green bamboo stalks that are discarded after the performance. All of the musicians play in rhythmic unison -- impressive, considering how irregular the rhythms are -- but using differently pitched sounds. The result is a fat, rich sound that could only be produced by many tubes banging together at the same time. The music accompanies an agricultural ritual that comes every three or four years when many types of fruit become ripe at the same time. Each piece is like a puzzle, a sequence of odd rhythmic phrases. These are the first recordings made of this one-of-a-kind sound. Three short tracks from West Kalimantan demonstrate gong rows that would normally be played as part of a large ensemble at a curing ritual. Then comes a longer circle song, sung on the night before a harvest festival as part of a shamanistic ritual. An old woman's voice leads a large chorus through dark polyphony. Next come three gong ensemble pieces played in ritual settings in East Kalimantan. These deep tones sound almost wooden, and again, the rhythms are unusual, sometimes cycling and aggressive, sometimes irregular and polyrhythmic. A short, fast gong piece from the joyous conclusion to a burial features jittery, agitated rhythm with a busy gong melody riding over cyclic drumming. Dancers to this music try to throw one another off the beat with odd, rhythmic stamping. The final seven selections all come from an Ot Danum curing ritual that lasts two days and three nights. The recording crew actually participated in this event, a matter of having their souls detached from their bodies and ultimately returned, purified. The simple drumming and muttering vocals heard in these audio snapshots seem lackluster next to the story told in the notes. ~ Banning Eyre, Rovi
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Add this copy of Music From Indonesia 17 / Various to cart. $30.01, new condition, Sold by eQuip Online rated 3.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Aliquippa, PA, UNITED STATES, published 1998 by Smithsonian Folkways Recordings.
