“Balinese discourses on music: musical modernization in the ideas and practices of shadow play performers from Sukawati and the Indonesian college of the arts”
As its title implies, Brita Heimarck’s 1999 thesis focuses on Sukawati and STSI (now, ISI) and covers ground relevant to my research on variation.
However, Heimarck focuses more on the broader social aspects of change and the reasons different generations of players give for such change than on the musical effects of this, or on the purely musical reasons for change. Her primary source is I Wayan Loceng of Sukawati, who is also one of the main teachers of Lisa Gold and myself. This dissertation has since been published, slightly modified, as a book with the title: Balinese discourses on music and
modernisation: village voices and urban views (Heimarck 2003). However, as the sections on gender wayang are largely the same, I have continued here to refer to the earlier thesis. Heimarck’s (2002) article, “Waves of emphasis and the effects of modernization in the Balinese shadow theater” likewise reiterates these same themes, while postulating a theory of “waves” as a background aesthetic in the performance of gender wayang.
Heimarck sums up recent observable changes as, “the use of faster tempi, shorter performances, reductions in the use of the literary langauge, Kawi, and increases in colloquial Balinese, and preferences for humor over philosophical teachings” (1999:8). She notes the tendency for shorter performances and for dropping certain pieces from the active performance repertory. She suggests that modern working hours are the main reason for this change, as well as the faster pace of modem life and familiarity with short television programmes (ibid.:8-9). The increasing use of Balinese rather than Kawi reflects a growing trend towards the vernacular in Bali and the increase in humour helps to relieve some of the stresses of modern life (ibid.:9). Other factors include new forms of training at academies such as STSI (ISI) and SMKI and new performance contexts, often untied to religious ceremonies: musical demonstrations, concerts, music festivals, competitions and tourist
performances (ibid.:11). Modern methods of transport also make it easier to play in different districts (ibid.: 12).
Heimarck describes aspects of institutional teaching in STSI, including the teaching of non-Balinese musics, research and the opening up of new career opportunities. She also discusses the new political roles for the
performing arts that have emerged since independence, in which artistic tours abroad become a form of diplomatic mission, and the effects of Indonesian self- identity within globalisation (ibid.:15). She contrasts a guru alam (traditionally- taught) artist like Loceng with the younger generation in Sukawati, whose experience combines traditional and modern methods of instruction (ibid.: 17).
Heimarck rightly stresses that by concentrating on the voices of individuals from different generations, she can move beyond monolithic concepts such as "traditional” or “modern” (ibid.:19). However, I disagree with her reasons for conducting interviews only in Indonesian or English rather than the harder Balinese language. Heimarck justifies it as making comparison with modern written materials on music in Indonesian more consistent (ibid.:36) but using Indonesian alone, in my view, places an artificially formal, over
modernised context around the content of her interviews and conversations. Heimarck translates Loceng’s narration of the myth of the origin of the shadow puppet play (ibid.:579) of which I have another, similar version that he wrote down. Then, she traces the family history of the Sukawati dalang family in Banjar Babakan, noting its special relationship with the court of Sukawati
(ibid.:62-7). She provides family trees showing the main lines of teaching, transmission and influence witihin this family from the late nineteenth century to the present (ibid.:64—6, table 1.3). She also cites a recent text tracing the history of the court of Sukawati, the Babad Timbul Sukawati (ibid.:67—71) and
highlights the changing role of the court during post-colonial times.
Heimarck next explores teaching and learning methods through her lessons with Loceng. Loceng teaches both Balinese and foreign students privately at his house in Sukawati, as well as in classes at STSI (though he has since retired from this), and the influence of his musical style is further spread through the commerica! cassettes of his group (ibid.:111-12). Heimarck notes, as I and many of his other pupils have found, that Loceng’s teaching method makes great use of proverbs, metaphors and stories as well as purely musical
instruction (ibid.:112). Heimarck describes some particular musical techniques used by Loceng, including selah (broken octaves which delay the beat) and ngoret to create a quality of refinement (ibid.:136-8). The selah technique is most commonly used in the pangkat type of piece, while ngoret is more characteristic of the slow tetandakan pieces (ibid.:138).
Heimarck then focuses on the younger generation of gender players and dalang in Sukawati through summaries of interviews. These include gender player and dalang I Wayan Mardika Bhuana, the son of one of the most famous Sukawati dalang, the late I Ketut Madra (ibid.:150-63).
Heimarck describes the musical training of Loceng’s son, I Ketut Sukayana, who studied gender with his father before studying other types of gamelan at STSI and playing in the seka gong of the banjar (ibid.: 158-60). Heimarck also interviews gender player I Gde Wawan Oktaviyana, who taught himself electric organ to play in a Western-style rock band (ibid.: 162-7). She discusses the influence of Western pop music on youth culture in Sukawati and talks about Ketut Sukayana’s interest in Western classical music, unusual in Bali even for a musician (ibid.: 166). Heimarck asks if he has seen his father compose a piece (menciptakan lagu) or add to one, to which Ketut replies no, but he has seen him add to, correct or improve something (ibid.:177). Heimarck notes the ambiguity of this answer, a characteristic I have also noted when asking whether someone has composed or made a piece.
Whether a player considers him or herself to have “composed”, “changed” or “reworked” a piece seems to shift, perhaps according to their expectations of the questioner’s intentions. Thus, it is interesting to quote in full the list of pieces Loceng mentioned to Heimarck as having substantially altered: “Krepetan", “Abimanyu”, “Banaspati”, “Sekar Sungsang”, “Grebeg”, most of the “Pemungkah”, “Sekar Ginotan”, “Seketi", “Peselah” or “Penyelah”, the pengecet section of “Rebong”, “Grudo” and music to accompany the clowns Tualen, Delem and Sangut, and possibly “Segara Madu” (ibid.:181-2). I suspect that Loceng is only referring to the final, partly improvised section of “Peselah” as one of his creations, as his was the first group to add this section. Loceng also told me that the piece “Segara Madu” was brought from Klungkung.
Two other aspects of the music were embellished by Loceng: firstly the introductions (gineman) to many pieces were made more elaborate and kebyar-
like, and, secondly, sangsih parts in the form of counter-melodies were added to some slow sections that had previously been unison, for instance the first
section of “Rebong". Loceng tells Heimarck that, in this, he was influenced by Western-style singing in harmony that he heard during the Dutch colonial period (ibid.; 183). I raised this point with Loceng and received both confirmation and some further revelations about his source material, which I discuss below in chapter 6 of this study. Loceng sums up his style as a mixture of old and new, since “the old music is still evident in his pieces, but at the same time, people can feel that his music is also current” (ibid.: 183).
Ketut Sukayana, describes to Heimarck how he had to learn slightly different versions of pieces from those his father had taught him when he started to play with another Sukawati group to accompany the dalang
Ganjereng (ibid.: 184). He describes how the differences lay in the “system of counterpoint”, especially in slow pieces that show off the melody, (ibid.:184). Later, when he came to lead this group, Ketut introduced his father’s versions of pieces as he found the other versions old fashioned and not sweet enough (ibid.: 184-5). The newer style has been adopted by other groups as “more appropriate for their times” (ibid.:188): “To play in a kuno [ancient, old] fashion would seem old-fashioned, simplistic, or even boring to them” (ibid.:189).
The younger generation of Sukawati gender players now plays at an even faster tempo than Loceng’s generation, following the lead of I Kadek Budi Setiawan, who plays for the dalang Wawan Oktaviyana (ibid.:192). Loceng’s younger son, I Wayan Suprapta, says such tempi are impressive and fit with the faster pace of modern life (ibid.: 192-3). Loceng criticises them for playing everything loud and fast, without contrastingly sweet music. His own style was previously fast but he slowed it down to give space to the complex, embellished versions he has created (ibid.: 193-4).
Heimarck discusses the goals and motivations of the younger generation of Sukawati dalang and musicians (ibid.:213-26). She finds a sense of pride in the family tradition and that all mention a desire to preserve and maintain the legacy of wayang. Some highlighted a mastery of the technical, especially rhythmic, aspects of the music, as well as a strong desire to study. Older musicians, though, tended to stress the importance of the ritual use of music. Heimarck concludes that “the Balinese are still negotiating the boundaries
between sacred and secular, but there is a basic understanding that both aspects are essential to life and will continue to exist" (ibid.:226).
The second part of Heimarck's dissertation is less concerned specifically with gender wayang than with STSi’s place in the picture of musical
modernisation in Bali. She interviews students and teachers at the college, looking at STSI’s twin roles of preservation and development of Balinese arts. She mentions Ketut Sudiana’s thesis (Sudiana 1995) about the creation of “a new shadow play that combined enlarged wayang golek three-dimensional puppets made out of styrofoam (hence the original title, “Wayang Sterefom”), dancers performing an episode from Balinese history, and projected images on a screen” (Heimarck 1999:326).