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Gamelan Gong Kebyar: The Art of Twentieth-Century Balinese Music (Chicago Studies in Ethnomusicology)

Gamelan Gong Kebyar: The Art of Twentieth-Century Balinese Music (Chicago Studies in Ethnomusicology)
By Michael Tenzer

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Product Description

The Balinese gamelan, with its shimmering tones, breathless pace, and compelling musical language, has long captivated musicians, composers, artists, and travelers. Here, Michael Tenzer offers a comprehensive and durable study of this sophisticated musical tradition, focusing on the preeminent twentieth-century genre, gamelan gong kebyar.

Combining the tools of the anthropologist, composer, music theorist, and performer, Tenzer moves fluidly between ethnography and technical discussions of musical composition and structure. In an approach as intricate as one might expect in studies of Western classical music, Tenzer's rigorous application of music theory and analysis to a non-Western orchestral genre is wholly original. Illustrated throughout, the book also includes nearly 100 pages of musical transcription (in Western notation) that correlate with 55 separate tracks compiled on two accompanying compact discs.

The most ambitious work on gamelan since Colin McPhee's classic Music in Bali, this book will interest musicians of all kinds and anyone interested in the art and culture of Southeast Asia, Indonesia, and Bali.

Product Details

  • Amazon Sales Rank: #778327 in Books
  • Published on: 2000-08-01
  • Original language: English
  • Number of items: 1
  • Binding: Paperback
  • 520 pages

Customer Reviews

Byar!5
Michael Tenzer has written a dense and thrilling work on a stunning, vital musical tradition. The text is written for persons with solid background in musical compositon and ethnomusicology, but within those arcane fields this book is a real find. Carefully written and insightful, this book is a godsend for those looking for possible ways out of late 20th century compositional ennui. Highly recommended.

The Kebyar Authority5
This is an amazing book - rich in detailed information about the art of Gamelan Gong Kebyar. The 2 discs included with the book and the transcriptions of the various gamelan compositions help make kebyar very approachable for a gamelan neophite. Tenzer did an unbelievable job putting this together, and is in my mind the most interesting book on the subject to be found. A must have!