Who
is Gamelan Mitra Kusuma?
Founded in 1997, Gamelan Mitra
Kusuma is an ensemble composed of members from many different backgrounds,
who all have a common interest in learning about and performing
Balinese music and dance, as well as encouraging the enjoyment,
experience, and appreciation of the culture and performing arts
traditions of Bali, Indonesia. At residence at World
Arts Focus in Mount Rainier, Maryland, the group draws its members
from all over Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, DC. The name Mitra
Kusuma means "Flowering Friendship," which describes the
warm and creative relationship cultivated by this group of musicians
and dancers.

(Photo
by Cory Weaver)
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I
Nyoman Suadin, Founder and Artistic Director
Nyoman is a teacher, composer,
and dancer from Tabanan, Bali. He first experienced gamelan
music at an early age by participating in a children’s
gamelan group in his village of Kerambitan and later received
formal training at KOKAR, the Conservatory of the Performing
Arts, in Denpasar, Bali.
Nyoman has actively promoted
Balinese arts and culture by traveling and performing throughout
the United States since 1988. Mr. Suadin currently also teaches
at Eastman School of Music, Cornell University, Swarthmore
College, and the University of Maryland.
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Latifah Alsegaf
Hometown: Jakarta, Indonesia
Occupation: Office Administrator
Gamelan Experience: 12 years
My background is in mainly in
dance. I studied several forms of dance -- Irish, modern, jazz --
and only later in my teens, at the encouragement of my mother, began
studying Indonesian dance styles (from Bali, Java, Sumatra, Sulawesi).
I was especially drawn to Balinese dance because it is so dynamic
and it is based in spiritual devotion. One of my favorite memories
in Bali was participating in a welcome dance for a temple ceremony
with generations of young and old women dancing together.
I began studying gamelan to
understand the movements and structure of the dance. I have come
to appreciate gamelan as an integral part of dance and also the
communal aspect of being part of a musical group. Also, the experience
of listening to live gamelan is so much better than only hearing
recordings of it. For many years, I only viewed myself as a dancer.
But now I see myself as both dancer and musician because Balinese
dance and music are so intertwined.
John MacDonald
Hometown: Silver Spring, MD
Occupation: Graphics technician; meddlesome landlord
Gamelan Experience: 17-21 years, depending on how you count it
I found out about gamelan in 1987 from
several friends of mine who played in the community gamelan that
was active at the University of Delaware. I attended one of their
concerts and, while I didn't really care for the music at the time,
I was interested in how the instruments were constructed, since
this gamelan was not from Indonesia, but was constructed by the
director, Dr. Michael Zinn (Jonny Quest fans, please note: this
is not Jonny's arch nemesis, the evil Dr. Zin. Michael spells his
name with two n's.)
Dr. Zinn made his gamelan out of aluminum
sheet metal, copper pipe, terra cotta flowerpots, plywood, PVC and
coffee cans. On at least two occasions, Dr. Zinn sent us to the
garden store with a mallet and electronic tuner to find flowerpots
to match the pitch of ones that had broken. However, it was the
gongs that really interested me. They were round pieces of aluminum
of varying sizes, tuned by hammering a boss in the center, and had
a really pure and beautiful sound. Who would think aluminum could
sound so good?
After the concert, my friends invited
me to join the group. As I said, the music didn't really appeal
to me, but two other friends who went to the same concert decided
to join, and so I joined too. I guess I started playing gamelan
out of peer pressure. (I also wanted a chance to play those aluminum
gongs!)
I played with this group for a couple
of years, and my attitude toward gamelan changed from indifference
to total fascination. It was completely new, with different tuning,
rhythm, and aesthetics than anything I'd ever heard or played. When
I moved to Washington, DC, I heard that you could join the Embassy
of Indonesia's gamelan groups, so I started attending rehearsals
there, and that's where I met Nyoman Suadin.
I first went to what I thought was a
rehearsal, but it turned out to be a performance. Not wishing to
be rude hosts, Nyoman and his supervisor at the time, Mr. I.G.A.
Ngurah Supartha, invited me to join them. They simply sat me down
at what turned out to be a gangsa (I didn't even know the names
of the instruments then), and handed me a mallet. Mr. Supartha pointed
to another player and said, "Just follow her," and added,
"Don't worry about what you play. It's just the action that's
important."
My only recollection of that concert,
besides sheer terror, is that as soon as I just barely started to
figure something out, the whole song would change. Anyway, I guess
I must've passed the audition, because that was the first of hundreds
of performances with Nyoman. He's taught me most of what I know
about Balinese gamelan, and has encouraged and challenged me to
learn new instruments and techniques.
Gamelan Mitra Kusuma has given me the
opportunity to make friends with people that I don't think I would
otherwise had the opportunity to meet. Hundreds of people, with
all kinds of backgrounds and perspectives on life, have joined or
been associated with the group throughout the years, and I've been
so lucky to have worked and played with them.
Maria Paoletti
Hometown: University Park, Maryland,
USA
Occupation: Student/Various
Gamelan Experience: 8 years
I grew up in Prince George's
County, Maryland, and I was first introduced to Balinese gamelan
when I took Nyoman's class at the University of Maryland in the
fall of 2001. After having spent most of my life playing and singing
Western music, I wanted to try something totally new. At the time,
the university offered three non-Western ensemble courses. The perennial
favorite seemed to be West African Drumming—it was already
full, with a long waitlist. Japanese Koto looked fascinating, but
the rehearsals conflicted with my schedule. So I signed up for Balinese
Gamelan, which at that point was only in its second semester of
existence. I barely even knew where Indonesia was—little did
I know what I was getting into. That December, Nyoman needed a couple
of people to play jegogan with Gamelan Mitra Kusuma. I started coming
to rehearsals and I never looked back!
Even after five or so years,
it's difficult for me to accurately describe what it is I like so
much about Balinese music, and gamelan in general. It's really the
act of playing that's the most enjoyable to me—I don't listen
to recordings at home very much. One thing I think is most appealing
about learning Balinese music is that there's always a challenge,
no matter what your ability level may be when you begin. I started
out playing jegogan and jublag, and if I had really wanted to, I
could have stuck with those and still have been satisfied. Some
instruments are more difficult to master than others, but they all
play important roles.
My favorite instrument to play now is reyong (which
I also started playing by accident), although I still like all of
them. I am so grateful to have had the privilege to learn from everyone
in the group, as well as to have had to the opportunity to meet
other gamelan musicians in Chicago, Philadelphia, Northern California,
Richmond and Washington, D.C. It brings me immense joy to share
our music with all kinds of audiences.
When I'm not playing gamelan,
I live in Baltimore, where I've lived since 2003. Someday I hope
to travel to Bali.
Roger Fox
Hometown: Baltimore, Maryland,
USA
Occupation: CPA, Federal Government-International Trade
Gamelan Experience: 6 years
I first learned about
Balinese music while a freshman at the University of Maryland, but I
never imagined I'd actually be participating in it. I stumbled upon the
Balinese Gamelan in the course listings, but just assumed it was for
"experienced" players who knew what they were doing; not for someone
like myself, who previously had no clue about Indonesian music. This
all changed, though, at the end of my sophomore year, when I took a
more detailed class about music of the world, and one of our
assignments was to come to one of the Balinese Gamelan rehearsals on
campus.
Not only did I come to one rehearsal,
but I kept coming until I graduated in 2006. During my last couple
of semesters, I also started playing in Mitra Kusuma, and continue playing to this day.
Gabe Affandy
Hometown: Bandung, West Java,
Indonesia
Occupation: College student in Mechanical Engineering
Gamelan Experience: 4 years
It's a bit comical, I think,
that I travelled half way around the world to learn my native Indonesian
culture. My gamelan experience started in the Fall 2005 semester.
My roommate at the time, I noticed, was leaving for class at 7 PM.
Who has class that late? After inquiring I was shocked to hear that
he was taking Balinese Gamelan (MUSC129G). It was already too late
to register for the class, but I was registered for it the very
next semester and have continued my learning through Gamelan Mitra
Kusuma ever since. I phoned my parents in Indonesia about this and
they are very proud that I have embraced my culture. "But why
not Sundanese Gamelan, Gabe?" my Sundanese father asked me.
Junko Nakamura
Occupation: Visual Artist
Gamelan Experience: 16 years
I have a strong interest in
the arts and enjoy learning about foreign cultures. Not too long
before first hearing that there was Balinese gamelan at the Indonesian
embassy, I became involved in a film project with some modern dancers
in the D.C. area. I met someone who was already playing gamelan
with the embassy group and was invited to see a rehearsal. I attended
a rehearsal in the hopes of gathering more information for the film
project.
I was initially drawn to the
visual aspects of Balinese arts: the music being played -- all the
movements of the musicians' hands and the different mallets, the
intricately carved instruments, the dance movements, and the colorful
costumes. I was later encouraged to try playing the instruments.
In the beginning, all of the songs sounded the same to me -- the
music was loud and it was difficult to distinguish the different
instruments; but now after many years of study, I have a better
sense of the structure and layers of the music.
Most of all, I appreciate how
lots of different kinds of people can come together in one place
for gamelan music and dance and create something that is beautiful
and unique. Also, my experiences with the gamelan group have opened
the door to learning so much about Balinese culture. Although I’ve
never traveled to Bali, I feel very close to the people there.
May May Chiang
Hometown: Kelapa Sawit, Johor,
Malaysia
Occupation: Pianist, Graduate student, Music teacher
Gamelan Experience: 3 years
Born and raised in Malaysia,
I grew up in a multicultural environment and was exposed to diverse
musical cultures. After moving to the United States, I studied classical
music at the Conservatory of Music at SUNY Purchase and earned a
bachelor’s degree in piano performance. In addition to my
piano studies, I also had a strong desire to study my native musical
culture. After enrolling in the University of Maryland as a graduate
student in ethnomusicology, I met Nyoman and became immediately
fascinated with Balinese Gamelan music. I have felt a strong connection
with gamelan music because it reminds me of the sounds of the rainforest
in Malaysia. I am currently researching Malaysian music, and hope
to research and specialize in Indonesian music, as well.
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