Gambang Kromong, the jazz band of Betawi<\/p>\n
-------------------
\nIda Indawati Khouw
\nThe Jakarta Post
\nJakarta
\n-------------------<\/p>\n
At weekends, rumah kawin (wedding halls) lining the roads in
\nthe Chinese peranakan areas of Tangerang (peranakan being the
\noffspring of marriages between ethnic Chinese and those from
\nother ethnic groups), such as Sewan, Kampung Melayu and Rawa
\nKucing, are filled with the music of energetic orchestras.<\/p>\n
The music can be heard from quite a distance, thanks to the
\npowerful sound systems, even though the halls are usually hidden
\nbehind houses or found in an open space covered with coarse
\ngrass, far from the main roads.<\/p>\n
Only a few people will immediately recognize the sound of
\ngambang kromong, a traditional Betawi music ensemble. The
\norchestra consists of the gambang (a xylophone-like instrument),
\nkromong (a set of small gongs), tehyan (a Chinese string
\ninstrument), flute, a percussion set, gongs and kecrek (a metal
\nstring instrument). Western instruments including electric
\nguitar, trumpet, clarinet, saxophone, electric keyboard and
\nHawaiian guitar are also played.<\/p>\n
The singers, mostly female, perform pantun (lyrics written in
\nBetawi dialects) with their shrill voices. They sing lagu sayur,
\nthe modern repertoire of gambang kromong.<\/p>\n
Welcome to the jazz band of Betawi!<\/p>\n
Members of the audience are allowed to dance with cokek
\ndancers, and can also embrace and even kiss them.<\/p>\n
Ethnomusicologist Philip Yampolsky said the texture of gambang
\nkromong was similar to that of Javanese and Sundanese gamelan
\norchestras and also had echoes of the \"small-band jazz\" music
\npopular in America and Europe in the 1920s and 1930s, not to
\nmention the strong influence of Chinese music.<\/p>\n
\"Most lagu sayur were composed before World War Two. Jazz
\nbands in Batavia (old Jakarta) were very popular on the radio and
\nin recordings at that time,\" he said, adding that the older
\nrepertoire, the so-called lagu lama (old songs) in which the
\nlyrics are written in Chinese, was now on the brink of
\nextinction.<\/p>\n
Yampolsky considers gambang kromong to be unique, because it
\nreflects the mixture of the various ethnic groups in Batavia.<\/p>\n
\"It is a reflection of the 400 year-long melting of the
\nChinese, Sundanese and Batavian cultures,\" said Yampolsky, who
\nconducted research on Betawi music between 1990 and 1999. The
\nresults of his research were recorded and released on compact
\ndisc.<\/p>\n
Yampolsky, who is the program officer for media, the arts and
\nculture at the Ford Foundation, said the gambang kromong first
\nemerged in the 18th century, where it began as an ensemble for
\nChinese peranakan (from the Fujian area of China) in Batavia.<\/p>\n
It is difficult to uncover the music's history as the oldest
\nsurviving information is contained in an article written by Phoa
\nKian Sioe in 1949 in Pantja Warna magazine.<\/p>\n
Phoa, who said the ensemble was established in 1743, was
\nunsure of the history himself -- as he put it \"the older
\ngenerations once heard the story from their ancestors\". During
\nthose years, performances of the music were hosted by various
\nChinese kapitant (a leader of an ethnic group in Batavia).<\/p>\n
History records that the ensembles then consisted of a
\ncombination of Chinese and Sundanese instruments including
\ngambang. Therefore they were called orkes gambang (gambang
\norchestra).<\/p>\n
\"The term gambang kromong was introduced in 1880 after the
\nemergence of new repertoires for the ensembles, using Sundanese
\ninstruments like the kromong, a small drum and gong,\" Yampolsky
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Since then lagu sayur have become more and more popular,
\npushing aside lagu lama which are no longer considered a proper
\naccompaniment for dancing. Another factor was the anti-Chinese
\nsentiment during the rule of former president Soeharto.<\/p>\n
Now, there are only two singers still able to perform the old
\nrepertoires. They are Ibu Masnah and Ncim Ating.<\/p>\n
As part of its efforts to preserve the culture, starting last
\nJuly the Ford Foundation began supporting the preservation of
\nlagu lama through a training program led by the two elderly
\nsingers.<\/p>\n
\"Without this program, lagu lama would disappear following the
\ndeaths of the singers,\" Yampolsky said.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/gambang-kromong-the-jazz-band-of-betawi-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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