Performance Ensembles
Discover the vibrant music of Java and Bali with Nusantara Arts! Our ensembles are committed to delivering exceptional music experiences while paying homage to the origins of this captivating art form.
Our musical community boasts a diverse membership, including both seasoned professionals and individuals who have never played music before discovering the world of gamelan. If you have a passion for music and dream of being part of an ensemble, there is a welcoming place for you to learn and eventually join our community.
Since 2017, we have had the honor of sharing our music with thousands of people, performing at our own arts center in Buffalo and venues such as Kleinhans Music Hall, Asbury Hall at Babeville, ArtPark, Grassroots Gardens, the Buffalo Museum of Science, Buffalo State University, the Rosamond Gifford Zoo (Syracuse, NY); and at festivals like the Great Blue Heron, Allentown Festival of the Arts, and Music is Art.
Javanese Ensembles
Karawitan - Large Ensemble
Nusantara Arts’ world-class karawitan ensemble captivates audiences through enchanting musical journeys. Karawitan is an umbrella term that contains many different types of songs and music using a beautiful double set of pelog- and slendro-tuned bronze instruments. We embrace a diverse repertoire that encompasses instrumental and vocally-enriched pieces, and a mix of both traditional classics and newly commissioned works by Indonesian composers.
Wayang Kulit - Shadow Puppetry
Javanese wayang kulit is a wildly popular show that enraptures audiences through masterful puppetry and storytelling, accompanied by dynamic Javanese gamelan music. Stories of wayang are adventures drawn from the ancient Mahabharata and Ramayana epics. The tales emphasize questions on the nature of good and evil, moral and ethical dilemmas, power structures, and philosophy amid an overarching intrafamily struggle. The dhalang, or puppet master, skillfully narrates and animates the entire story, infusing it with humor and wit.
Gadhon - Small Ensemble
A gadhon ensemble features a smaller set of soft-style elaborative instruments, emphasizing vocal compositions, and those that showcase musicians’ individual talents. The gadhon ensemble is a wonderful musical experience, allowing musicians and audiences to relax and appreciate the depths and complexity of Javanese music’s potential. Although softer than klenengan style, the gadhon ensemble can reach heights of intensity and excitement as well.
Sekaten
Sekaten is one of the most rare types of music from Central Java, performed only for one week each year. The instruments are extra large and extra loud, featuring a giant bonang called a panembung and mallets made from buffalo horns. There is no set of gamelan sekan anywhere outside of Indonesia. It is a long-term goal of our organization to bring one of these sets to the United States.
Balinese Ensembles
Semar Pegulingan
The island of Bali features many types of ensembles with their own distinct repetoires. Our large Balinese ensemble is a beautiful 7-tone semar peguliangan-style set. Semar pegulingan is a more rare style of Balinese gamelan with its roots in the old royal courts. Our set is versatile and can play a variety of compositions including rarely heard traditional music, “pelegongan” and Lotring compositions from the 1920s, as well as modern and experimental compositions. Semar pegulingan is known for its sweet and light character.
Angklung
Gamelan Angklung is Nusantara Arts’ most recently acquired set of instruments. It’s a style of village gamelan featuring a 4 note slendro scale, often played for Balinese ceremonies and rituals. The instruments are relatively small in size and we purchased them to use in our youth after school and in-school programming. Our instruments’ keys are antiques from 1960s, with new beautifully carved wood cases made in the 1990s.
Gender Wayang
Traditionally used for Balinese wayang kulit shadow puppetry, gender wayang ensembles are small 4-instrument groups that play complex interlocking patterns on a 5-note slendro scale, often at high speeds with each player using two mallets. An antique set from Pengosekan village was donated to Nusantara Arts in 2023.
Beleganjur - Marching Balinese Gamelan
Most gamelan don’t move very often. They are large, heavy, delicate and beautiful objects. Beleganjur is totally the opposite: exciting, loud, and accessible music meant to be seen and enjoyed in public, and played while on the move. This lightweight and pared down instrument is used for both ritualistic and secular activities.
Balinese Dance
Dance in Bali is ubiquitous, practiced by many people from a young age and appears in many different contexts. It is a beautiful art form that ranges from smooth and graceful to sharp and intense movements. Balinese dance is incredibly expressive and often part of communal experiences. Nusantara Arts started a class for learning and performing Balinese dance in 2023 and is still new!