New gamelan center playing its tune in Amsterdam<\/p>\n
Kunang Helmi-Picard
\nContributor
\nAmsterdam, Netherlands<\/p>\n
Eleven-year-old gamelan afficiando Morrison solemnly tapped out
\nthe steady beat on the kempli, a large kettledrum on which all
\nthe musicians in Balinese gamelan depend to keep time, especially
\nwhen the rhythms get tricky.<\/p>\n
"As he is not affluent, I decided to sponsor him in our
\nBalinese gamelan group because he is a natural talent and
\nactually needs hardly any training as he has a perfect ear" said
\nDr. Hedi Hinzler, member of BUKA (Balinese Society) and an
\nacknowledged world expert on the island.<\/p>\n
Morrison, who is of Indonesian descent, is given to bursting
\nout in silent laughter, besides expertly helping his mother
\nrepair loose keys on the gender wayang, the Balinese gamelan
\nwhose music is often played at shadow puppet performances and
\nimportant ceremonies.<\/p>\n
On the afternoon of the inaugration of Het Gamelanhuis, a new
\ncenter devoted to the musical form, he would be smartly dressed
\nin a white jacket and yellow udeng (headdress), but today he
\ndonned jeans, like most of the older gamelan players who were
\nrehearsing frenetically after having cleaned and decorated the
\npremises with red and yellow banners and colorful huge kites.<\/p>\n
The gamelan center is intent on finding young replacements to
\ncarry on the music.<\/p>\n
The idea of finding a permanent residence for the multiple
\ngamelan orchestras, and, more important, also a rehearsal venue
\nfor the players, dates back to 1996. The late Greet Voskuhl was
\ninstrumental in getting an official committee established to
\nnegotiate with officials dealing with cultural affairs.<\/p>\n
They were lucky to have Hannah Belliot as their contact in the
\nmuncipality of Amsterdam, as the robust Belliot's forefathers
\ncame from Surname and she herself appreciates ethnic music.<\/p>\n
After being ousted from an attic in Amsterdam where various
\ngroups were able to practice, space in a former warehouse called
\nWilhelmina became available. Funding, however, was still
\ninadequate.<\/p>\n
Luckily, energetic concert impresario Erica Baud was a member
\nof the committee and helped search for extra sponsors, while
\nmembers of the seven gamelan groups who now call Het Gamelanhuis
\ntheir home dug deep into their own pockets and those of friends
\nto come up with the funding to renovate the two large rooms
\navailable. Special features include sound-proof walls and
\nbeautiful bamboo floors, as well as a kitchen and other
\nfacilities.<\/p>\n
Members of the groups also spent much spare time in helping to
\nrenovate the premises because craftmanship is expensive in
\nEurope. Photos of the work in progress decorated the walls of the
\nrehearsal room for guests to appreciate at the opening last Jan.
\n18.<\/p>\n
Visitors who managed to find the building in the harbor area
\nof Amsterdam -- fortunately situated opposite a well-known cafe
\ncalled Panama -- were rewarded with delicious Indonesian snacks,
\nand the possibility of joining workshops to play in the Balinese
\nand Javanese gamelan groups before the official inaugration
\nceremony. Young and old queued up to participate.<\/p>\n
Belliot declared the building officially open in the presence
\nof the new Indonesian envoy to the Netherlands, Mohammad Jusuf,
\nwhile Marc Paelinck, a member of the Het Gamelanhuis committee,
\nexplained how it had all came about.<\/p>\n
Then the Balinese gamelan group accompanied three Balinese
\ndancers to welcome the guests, after which various other
\nperformances -- from Javanese dance, keroncong music and Javanese
\ngamelan pieces "conducted" by Elsje Plantema with accompanying
\nsingers -- filled the rest of the afternoon.<\/p>\n
Noted composer Sinta Wullur declared: "It was well worth the
\nwait, but I do feel sad that Greet did not live to see this day.
\nHer portrait is hanging on the wall in the concert room, so I am
\nsure she is playing gamelan with us up there."<\/p>\n
Het Gamelanhuis, Pakhuis Wilhelmina, Veerskade 578, 1019
\nAmsterdam.<\/p>",
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