''Gamelan degung'' is a form of Sundanese

musical ensemble A musical ensemble, also known as a music group or musical group, is a group of people who perform instrumental and/or vocal music, with the ensemble typically known by a distinct name. Some music ensembles consist solely of instrumentalists ...

that uses a subset of modified

gamelan Gamelan () ( jv, ꦒꦩꦼꦭꦤ꧀, su, ᮌᮙᮨᮜᮔ᮪, ban, ᬕᬫᭂᬮᬦ᭄) is the traditional ensemble music of the Javanese, Sundanese, and Balinese peoples of Indonesia, made up predominantly of percussive instruments. T ...

instruments with a particular mode of ''

degung ''Gamelan degung'' is a form of Sundanese musical ensemble that uses a subset of modified gamelan instruments with a particular mode of '' degung'' scale. The instruments are manufactured under local conditions in towns in West Java such as Bo ...

'' scale. The instruments are manufactured under local conditions in towns in

West Java West Java ( id, Jawa Barat, su, ᮏᮝ ᮊᮥᮜᮧᮔ᮪, romanized ''Jawa Kulon'') is a province of Indonesia on the western part of the island of Java, with its provincial capital in Bandung. West Java is bordered by the province of Banten ...

such as

Bogor Bogor ( su, , nl, Buitenzorg) is a city in the West Java province, Indonesia. Located around south of the national capital of Jakarta, Bogor is the 6th largest city in the Jakarta metropolitan area and the 14th overall nationwide.Bandung Bandung ( su, ᮘᮔ᮪ᮓᮥᮀ, Bandung, ; ) is the capital city of the Indonesian province of West Java. It has a population of 2,452,943 within its city limits according to the official estimates as at mid 2021, making it the fourth most ...

. ''Degung'' music is often played at public gatherings in West Java, such as at local elections, as well as many other events. There is international interest in ''degung'' as well among communities in other countries interested in Indonesia and gamelan music.Dewi Anggraeni
"Melbourne: Gamelan, elephants and 'Jackpot'"
, ''The Jakarta Post'', 22 February 2004. Gamelan degung also playable in '' madenda'' scale, which included in the set as a complementary tone, usually marked as -3/''ni'' tone in the set. Playing gamelan degung in this scale requires the substitution of the 3/''na'' metal bars into -3/''ni'' tone on all instruments.

Instruments

The instrumentation of ''gamelan degung'' is quite flexible. It may include: * ''

Bonang The bonang is an Indonesian musical instrument used in the Javanese gamelan. It is a collection of small gongs (sometimes called "kettles" or "pots") placed horizontally onto strings in a wooden frame (''rancak''), either one or two rows wid ...

/kolènang'': two rows of seven small bulbous gongs. It differs from its Javanese counterpart in that the rows are each placed on either side of the player. * ''

saron SARON stands for Swiss Average Rate Overnight and represents the overnight interest rate of the secured funding market for the Swiss Franc (CHF). (Swiss Average Rate Overnight) is an overnight interest rates average referencing the Swiss Franc ...

/peking'': a high-pitched bronze metallophone with fourteen keys. Usually there are two sarons in a single set. * '' panerus'': another bronze metallophone, similar to the ''peking'' but pitched an octave lower. * '' Jengglong'': six bulbous gongs suspended from the same frame. Could be layed like bonang, or hanged. * ''

goong ageung The gong ageng (or gong gedhe in Ngoko Javanese, means large gong) is an Indonesian musical instrument used in the Javanese gamelan. It is the largest of the bronze gongs in the Javanese and Balinese gamelan orchestra and the only large gong ...

'': a large gong. * '' Pancer: a smaller gong, secondary gong. * A set of '' kendang'', consisting of one large (''kendang indung'') and two small double-sided drums (''kulantér''). * ''

Suling The suling or seruling ( Sundanese: ) is a musical instrument of the Sundanese people in western Java, Indonesia. It is used in the Degung ensemble. Bamboo ring flute can also be found in Southeast Asian, especially in Brunei, Indonesia, Mal ...

degung'': a four-holed bamboo flute. * ''

kawih'': a six-holed bamboo flute, interchangebly used with suling degung * ''

Gambang A gambang, properly called a gambang kayu ('wooden gambang') is a xylophone-like instrument used among people of Indonesia in gamelan and kulintang, with wooden bars as opposed to the metallic ones of the more typical metallophones in a gamelan ...

'': a wooden xylophone. * ''

Kacapi The kacapi ( su, ᮊᮎᮕᮤ) is a traditional zither of Sundanese people in Indonesia. This musical instrument is similiar to Chinese , Japanese '' koto'', the Mongolian , the Korean , the Vietnamese and the Kazakh jetigen. The kacapi pla ...

'': a zither. In classical ''degung'', the ''bonang'' serves as a conductor for the whole ensemble. Except in certain modern compositions, it is rarely absent.

Gallery

File:Closeup of a gong from gamelan degung.jpg, Closeup of a ''bonang'' from ''gamelan degung'' Image:Gamelandegung.jpg, Sundanese ''gamelan degung'' Image:Diajar gamelan degung.jpg, Sundanese students playing ''gamelan degung'' on the street File: Gamelan indra swara.jpg, ''Gamelan degung'' performed by

Indra Swara Indra Swara (Gamelan Indra Swara) is a group promoting Indonesian art and culture in Mexico. It was created in December 2002 and it is mostly made up of young Mexicans, enthusiasts of Asian arts and particularly those of Indonesia. Some of its me ...

in Mexico File:Gamelan indra swara mexico.jpg, ''Gamelan degung'' instruments File:Gamelan degung barudak grupo Indra Swara Mexico.jpg, ''

References

{{Gamelan Gamelan ensembles and genres Sundanese music

Instruments

Gallery

See also

References