Javanese Court Gamelan

Various Artists (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 17, 1991)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Nonesuch
• ASIN: B000005IWA
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #156,640 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #7 in Music > World Music > Far East & Asia > Indonesia > Bali
  • #8 in Music > World Music > Far East & Asia > Indonesia > General

Track Listings

1. Ketawang Puspawarna [Kind of Flowers]

2. Gending Tejanata /Ladrang Sembawa ... [Sound Academy Club]

3. Gending Mandulpati /Ladrang Agun-Agun [Strong Leader]

4. Bubaran Hudan Mas

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the finest recordings of world music, July 25, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Javanese Court Gamelan (Audio CD)

As an ethnomusicologist, longtime performer of this music, and producer of "Shadow Music of Java" CD, I have long admired Robert Brown's recording and its companion release, "Court Music of Java II": superb performances of the court musicians, authentic acoustic ambience of the court pendopo (outdoor pavilion), and--most rare--a good recording of this genre, a fiendishly difficult music to record.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautifully refined Gamelan Music, November 9, 1999

By 

Julian Guffogg (St Leonards, East Sussex England) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Javanese Court Gamelan (Audio CD)

This excellently spiritual CD is played on Gamelans Pengawis Sari (slendro)/Tlaga Muncar(Pelog) of Puro Pakualaman in Jogyakarta Gending Mandulpati, slendro nem, is one of the best examples of refined Gamelan around. The instrumentation is so sparse its wonderful. It segues into Ladrang Agun agun with a subtle drum pattern and gong. The climax at the end is an outpouring of the building tension. It posesses the finest qualities this genre of music has to offer. The pesindhen's voice is especially good. To me, the bird twittering present only enhances it more - they are clearly enjoying the performance! The Puspawarna is a good example too, very melodious, but I'm not so keen on Tejanata, but thats my personal choice. Who cares if its a 1971 recording - this music is timeless.

7 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Interesting bells, January 21, 2000

By 

Vanessa M Mellom (Delmar, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Javanese Court Gamelan (Audio CD)

The music is excellent but the sound quality is poor. You have to turn it up really loud to hear it. The last two tracks, of the four, are the best. The bells are beautifully resonous and full sounding, despite the background fuzz.