JP\/18\/REOG<\/p>\n
Reog artform reawakens Sundanese traditions<\/p>\n
Yuli Tri Suwarni
\nThe Jakarta Post\/Bandung, West Java<\/p>\n
Four housewives appeared on stage in elegant traditional long-
\nsleeved kebaya blouses and batik kain skirt-wraps with bun
\nhairdos. Sundanese drums strapped to their waists, they wiggled
\nand swayed comically under the full moon as they sang a mock-
\nheroic Sundanese song, Teuhoncewang.<\/p>\n
The heavy drums were no trouble for the supple women at the
\nDago Cultural Park in Bandung on Saturday. The rhythm of the
\nopening music was a prelude to their jokes known as the reog. But
\nbefore the comedy, the audience -- a mixture of foreigners and
\nlocals -- had to join a prayer called the ngarajah.
\nOne member of the group, uttered Bismillahi Rahmannirrohim (in
\nthe name of God the Merciful) to begin the prayer.<\/p>\n
She then appealed to the spectators, mostly Sundanese
\nspeakers, to remember that the world was simply a stage and that
\nthe life hereafter was more important. After this traditional
\nreminder, the comedy sluice was let loose. As they listened to
\nthe women's long, eloquent chat, the hundreds of people crowding
\nthe stage laughed until they could barely stand.<\/p>\n
The Indonesian, Western and local pop songs presented in the
\nintervals added another flavor to the public entertainment.<\/p>\n
The reog form of comedy has recently been rediscovered after
\nbeing in \"suspended animation\" since the 1970s. Cemplon, Bu RT
\n(head of the neighborhood administration), Gembul and Buntet are
\nmembers of Gembol, a reog group from Babakan Rahayu, Kopo,
\nBandung -- one of around 300 troupes now thriving in West Java.<\/p>\n
In reog history, Gembol is seen as more of a manifestation of
\nthe traditional art. The group of housewives, who happen to be
\nsisters -- born Nina, Popon, Ihat and Yuyu -- have already won
\nthe Bandung and West Java reog contests in 2002 and 2004
\nrespectively. In the Dago Park show, they performed for more than
\ntwo hours, not only to entertain, but also to declare to the
\nSundanese society that the old comic art continued to exist.<\/p>\n
Philosophy<\/p>\n
The derivation of the name reog is unclear. It's has a name in
\ncommon with East Java's reog ponorogo, a legend-based tiger-mask
\ndance. Others believe that the name is shortened from the
\nreorganisasi ogel (reorganized singing-comedian show), while
\nstill others say that it originates in reak, another West Java
\nart and another idea is that it has developed from the words
\nugal-igel (roughly translated as the \"giggly jiggle\").<\/p>\n
Whatever the origins, West Java Reog Art Association head
\nEndang Taryana says that reog in the region of Sunda is
\ninseparable from the spread of Islam, and began in the 16th
\ncentury when the religion first took hold there. At that time,
\nmost of the Sundanese embraced animist beliefs and frequently
\nworshiped kawung (sugar palm) trees, which were considered
\nsacred.<\/p>\n
\"The mission of Islam to straighten out such misconceptions
\nstarted with the felling of kawung trees, which were turned into
\ndogdog or drums now used by four reog players. Later they served
\nas instruments to disseminate Islam in West Java,\" Endang told
\nThe Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
The drums carried by four comedians are called talingtit, tong
\ntong, brang-brang and badublag. The four act as the dalang or
\ndirector, the deputy -- who controls jokes like a referee -- and
\ntwo assistants -- who tell most of the jokes. Drums indicate the
\nranks in the reog group. The director carries the lightest, the
\n20-cm talingtit, with three others carrying the tong tong (25
\ncm), brang-brang (35 cm) and badublag (45 cm) respectively.<\/p>\n
Popular until the 1960s, all-male reog groups often
\ncollaborated with other traditional Sundanese musicians, with
\ngongs and flutes often added to the ensemble. In the 1950s, many
\nreog troupes rose to fame in West Java, notably Tunggal Wargi
\nunder Amin Mihardja and Reog Ajendam led by Dase.<\/p>\n
Gembol has further updated its musical section by adding two
\nguitars and a violin to their drums to fill the need of diatonic
\nnotes, so that all seven modern tones can be used and the
\nshortage of the pentatonic notes in Sundanese instruments is
\ncovered. A means of religious propagation, according to Endang,
\nreog artists still retain Al-Quran verses and Islamic songs,
\nalong with the ngarajah prayer and moral messages.<\/p>\n
The blend of traditional and modern elements was apparent when
\nGembol presented the song from private TV broadcaster Indosiar's
\nAkademi Fantasi talent show, followed by West Java's typical
\njaipongan dance, in what was a peculiarly novel and very amusing
\nshow.<\/p>\n
Four decades of slumber<\/p>\n
The persecution of communists from the mid-1960s meant reog
\nfell out of favor. Endang said the art suffered after some
\nplayers in 1965 joined the People's Art Institute (Lekra),
\nregarded as the Indonesian Communist Party's art body. After that
\n\"many artists refused to perform the reog for fear of being
\nseized (by authorities) as communists,\" Endang said.<\/p>\n
The stigma was so strong that even when the national TVRI
\nstation in 1967 tried to remove the negative image by regularly
\nairing reog shows, boosting the popularity of a new group, Mang
\nDiman Cs, and including the art-form's first female member, the
\nrevival of reog was overwhelmed by the emergence of new comic
\ngroups in the 1970s called calung, which used bamboo musical
\ninstruments.<\/p>\n
It was not until more than 20 years later, that Endang was
\nprompted to restart a reog competition in 2002. Unexpectedly, 32
\ntroupes joined the contest, mostly this time with female members.<\/p>\n
The event aroused public interest and further increased the
\nnumber of reog players. So far, some 300 groups are currently
\noperating in West Java. Traditionalist groups without modern
\nmusical instruments can still be found in the Kuningan region.
\n\"Now reog has been reunited with its enthusiasts. In a month,
\nGembol stages around eight shows for ceremonies in several West
\nJava cities,\" Endang pointed out.<\/p>\n
To refresh people's memories of other old Sundanese arts,
\naccording to Endang, such performances are usually presented
\nbefore reog begins: Cikeruhan, combination of jaipongan and
\npencak silat -- traditional martial arts; kohkol atum (whole-
\nbamboo music) and buncis (combination of bamboo music and drums).<\/p>\n
And thanks to hilarious groups like Gembol, a traditional art
\nform is popular again.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/jp18reog-1447899208",
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