Music of Indonesia, Vol. 3: The Outskirts of Jakarta

by VARIOUS ARTISTS

Overview

Gambang kromong, named for the gambang xylophone, is a regional Jakarta sound that goes back as far as the 1700s. The ensemble sound is long since out of style with the urban cultural elite, but it's still favored by fishermen, jitney drivers, laborers, peddlers, and factory hands in towns surrounding the enormous capital. As revealed here, the music is a bizarre amalgamation of Indonesian, European, American, and Chinese aesthetics. The old repertoire songs that begin the selections here feature the Chinese shawm, a wailing double-reed horn. The gambang, shawm, violins, flute, and kettle gongs all play in a pentatonic scale that has no counterpart in Western music and takes some getting used to. These pieces feature a female vocalist, long meandering melodies, and frequent shifts in the rhythm. The new repertoire songs in the second half reflect the post-World War II era with its urge to make the music more danceable, and also the unexpected influence of New Orleans jazz. The rhythms are livelier and the instrumentation extends to include horns and guitars. A lengthy stambul, a form derived from an old comedy tradition, features swinging trumpet work, Hawaiian guitar, and the jazzy croon of a male singer mixed in with the violin and gambang -- in all, a surreal, standout track. The rest of the program offers a delightfully discordant hodgepodge of elements, right through to the concluding number in which European brass band instruments and a violin play interlocking melodies over aggressive Sundanese percussion. ~ Banning Eyre

Product Details

Release Date:	07/13/1992
Label:	Smithsonian Folkways Recordings
UPC:	0093074005729
Rank:	133811

Tracks

1. Pobin Kong Ji Lok
2. Pobin Pe Pan Tau/Gula Ganting/Lopan Ce Cu Teng  -  Masnah
3. Pobin Pe Pan Tau/Mas Nona/Lopan Tukang Sado  -  Masnah
4. Pobin Poa Si Li tan/Poa Si Li Tan/Pobin Poa Si Li Tan  -  Masnah
5. Pobin Pe Pan Tau/Burung Nori/Lopan Seng Kyok  - Oen Oen Hok  -  Masnah
6. Balo-Balo
7. Stambul Bila
8. Onde-onde
9. Stambul Lama
10. Cinta Manis  -  Sarna

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Gambang Kromong Slendang Betawi   Primary Artist
Gambang Kromong Irama Bersatu   Primary Artist
Grup Tanjidor Kembang Ros   Primary Artist
Sarna   Primary Artist,Clarinet,Director
Masnah   Primary Artist,Vocals
Oen Oen Hok   Primary Artist,Director
Wi Sun   Vocals
Suhaery Mufti   Hawaiian Guitar
Zanian   Trumpet
Kemah   Kecrek
Ibun   Gambang,Tehyan
Suryana   Trombone
Aanen   Kecrek
Cinang   Trumpet
Kwi Ap   Gendang,Vocals,Tehyan
Acim   Kecrek

Technical Credits

Joko Kurnain   Assistant Engineer,Photography,Research
Matt Walters   Production Coordination
David Glasser   Mastering
Philip Yampolsky   Annotation,Research,Engineer,Editing