Music

• Wayang Kulit


  One of the most distinctive shadow plays among Asian dramas which has evolved and grown most fully in Java and Bali, Indonesia
• Wayang Kulit puppets


  • Flat puppets that are cut and designed with intricate patterns
  • The shadow can be shown when projected on a screen with an oil lamp or electric light to bring life to the shadow images on the screen
  • The sizes of the puppets should range from six inches to more than three feet which are mounted on sticks from the buffalo horn
  • A complete set of Wayang Kulit puppets is composed of 300 – 400 figures
• Traditional performance of Wayang Kulit

  Starts at 8:30 pm and lasts until dawn or it will last from 9 to 10 hours for the whole performances
• Major characters in Wayang Kulit

  Based on or originated from two epic stories of Hinduism: Mahabharata and Ramayana
• Key roles in Wayang Kulit performance

  • Dalang
  • Niyaga- the musician of gamelan
  • Pesindhen- female solo singer who sings with a gamelan
  • Gunungan- special figures in the form of pictures of mountains and its contents
  • Kelir- screen made of white cotton stretched on a wooden frame
  • Blencong- a coconut oil-fueled lighting device
  • Gedebok- A banana trunk
  • Kota Kayu- Wooden chest
• Gamelan


  The heart of art music of Indonesia because it performs a vital part in establishing the moods and emphasizing the action of the plays
• Gamelan instruments


  • SARON - A musical instrument of Indonesia, which is used in the gamelan. It normally has seven bronze bars placed on top of a resonating frame
  • REBAB - A bowed or plucked instrument, one of the earliest known bowed instruments, named no later than the 8th century, and is the parent of many bowed and stringed instruments
  • BONANG - A collection of small gongs placed horizontally onto strings in a wooden frame, either one or two rows wide
  • SULING - An end-blown flute used in gamelan orchestra throughout Indonesia
• Kabuki


  A Japanese theater comprising of the three Japanese characters where "ka" means "song", "bu" means "dance" and "ki" means "skill"
• Kabuki play


  • More entertaining because of its colorful and amazing make-ups, movements, skills, and other spectacular effects and to its unique and unrevealing characters on stage
  • The performers are all male in the 17th century, because women were banned from performing because they were attached to the idea of prostitution and male spectators were attracted to most female performers
• Kabuki elements


  • Kabuki Make up
  • Kabuki Dance
  • Kimono - mainly used as a costume for Kabuki
• Shamisen


  A plucked stringed instrument with a neck and strings stretched across a resonating body, the neck is fretless and slimmer than that of a guitar or banjo
• Hyoshigi


  A simple Japanese musical instrument, consisting of two pieces of hardwood or bamboo often connected by a thin ornamental rope
• Taiko


  A broad range of Japanese percussion instruments, the term taiko refers to any kind of drum, but outside Japan, it is used specifically to refer to any of the various Japanese drums called wadaiko and to the form of ensemble taiko drumming more specifically called kumi-daiko
• Tsuzumi & Otsuzumi


  Tsuzumi is a hand drum that consists of wooden body shaped like an hourglass, Otsuzumi is a larger version of tsuzumi and it is used in traditional Japanese theater
• Hayashi


  A group of performers who provide musical accompaniment for kabuki theatre
• Nagauta


  The basic lyric musical accompaniment of Japanese Kabuki
• Peking opera


  The most dominant form of Chinese opera, which combines music, vocal performance, mime, dance and acrobatics. It arose in Beijing in the mid-Qing dynasty and became fully developed and recognized by the mid-19th century
• Peking Opera showed the Asian charm and attracted much attention from Western audience
• The art form has always been considered one of the most important ways to explain traditional Chinese culture
• The Peking Opera draws from history, anecdotes and folk legends, reflecting Chinese core values such as loyalty and filial piety
• 4 necessary skills of Beijing opera performance


  • Singing
  • Recitative
  • Acting
  • Acrobatic Fighting
• Yueqin


  A traditional Chinese string instrument, a lute with a round, hollow soundboard, a short-fretted neck, and usually four strings
• Suona


  A traditional double-reeded Chinese musical instrument, the Suona's basic design originated in ancient Iran, then called "Surna". Suona appeared in China around the 3rd century
• Tan-pi-ku


  A kettle drum that is used to create the tempo of the performance
• Siao lo


  A kind of gong; signifies the beginning of the performance
• Peking Opera costumes


  Known in Chinese as "xingtou" (costumes of actors) or "juzhuang" (Peking Opera costumes), the clothing worn by various characters in Peking Opera with exquisite embroidery, exaggerated patterns and bright colors, giving the audience a sense of luxury and beauty