Klenèngan and Dance with Lila Bhawa and Lila Bhawa Kecil

Programme

Gendhing Bonang Okrak-okrak.

Titles of pieces are often obscure, with no obvious connection to the piece: this one probably means 'bird-scarer'.

DANCE: Gambyong Pangkur, danced by Lila Bhawa Kecil.

The gambyong dance was originally performed by professional 'dancing girls' (ronggèng/tledhèk), but has been refined and accepted as a classical dance for welcoming guests, e.g. at weddings. The music is ladrang Pangkur, one of the ‘klasik’ pieces and named after a verse metre. It includes a lively style of decoration (kébar).

DANCE: Gambyong paréanom, danced by Ni Madé Pujawati and Andrea Rutkowski.

The name refers to the yellow and green of young plants. The accompaniment is the vigorous ladrang Bremårå, followed by kébar Sumedhangan, then an excursion into parts of the refined gendhing Gambirsawit and a repeat of the kébar. The suite ends with the brief lancaran Sångå.

Suite Gadhung mlathi.

This special suite has an extraordinary origin. A distinguished female gendèr player died but, during the preparations for her funeral, came back to life and explained that she had been transported to the palace of Nyai Loro Kidul, goddess of the southern ocean and mythical consort of the rulers of Surakarta and Yogyakarta. There she had learned a piece with unusual melodic features, which is now played as part of a substantial suite: ladrang Gadhung mlathi – ladrang Ubal-ubal – bubaran Nyutrå – ayak-ayakan with elements unique to the suite – srepegan. Gadhung mlathi is the name of a light green colour favoured by Nyai Loro Kidul.

DANCE: Beksan Menak Koncar, danced by Ni Madé Pujawati.

This is a classical dance in the alus (refined male) style – a style regularly danced by women. It depicts the eponymous Javanese prince in a dilemma: he will die if he carries out his assigned task, or be killed if he refuses. The music is ladrang Asmarandånå, elaborated in various ways. Occasional syncopations in the balungan line represent the prince’s hesitation.

Suite in pathet sångå: ladrang Rujak jeruk – ketawang Sinom Parijåthå – dangdhut Caping gunung.

The three pieces consist of two popular songs separated by a more classical piece that is also performed in an informal style. Caping gunung was originally a langgam about lost love, but here it is performed in an upbeat dangdhut version.

Inggah Kinanthi – ladrang Kembang pépé.

As an inggah, Kinanthi belongs as the second half of a gendhing, but, with one of the most beautiful vocal lines in the repertoire setting a text rich in word-play, it is regularly performed separately. The choral style in the final ladrang is associated with solemn court dances.

DANCE: Beksan Karonsih (’together in love’), danced by Ni Madé Pujawati and Andrea Rutkowski.

This is an example of a couple dance, often seen at weddings. The dancers portray Prince Panji and his wife Dewi Sekartaji, universal symbols of true love and constancy from the Javanese Panji cycle of tales. Sekartaji wanders the palace at night alone, awaiting the return of her husband, long absent for some war or mission. He returns unannounced, and the dance depicts him placating and then consoling his wife before the couple unite in joy. The accompaniment unusually switches pathet, signalled by a jump up by one note in the gangsaran that follows the opening ketawang Sinom Mangungkung. The suite continues with ketawang Kinanthi sandhung and the lively kébar Lambangsari (actually the inggah of a gendhing), and ends with ladrang Sigramangsah.