Sanggar: A Contemporary Platform for the Evolving Tradition of Balinese Gender Wayang

Abstract

This paper discusses the modernization of Balinese gender wayang, a form of traditional music ensemble traditionally performed during rituals and as accompaniment to shadow puppetry. In the past, the music was most often taught and learned individually in private settings. Once considered to be the most difficult gamelan in Bali, competent performers were relatively few. However, since the 2010s, a new platform, sanggar gender wayang—privately-owned locations and organisations for teaching the music—have emerged, successfully producing many competent young players. The development and flourishing of sanggar gender wayang corresponded to the increasing number of children who became interested in studying the form, as a result of the great popularity of gender wayang competitions in South Bali, which began in 2005. Since then, sanggar have powerfully influenced the gender wayang ecosystem as a whole, providing a new form of social network to support children learning the music, with an economic impact on the musicians and musical industries, and developing new pedagogies and performance styles. Today’s sanggar teachers basically maintain their traditional way of teaching, as in the private lessons of the past. They still play together with their students and prefer a holistic approach whenever possible. On the other hand, they have also developed new pedagogies and techniques, such as systematising teaching methods, especially in teaching the basics to beginners, and categorising the repertoire. They also created a new performance style especially for competitions to efficiently display the competence and skills of the musicians, as well as large ensembles consisting of many performers, never seen before. Thus, sanggar embodies the Balinese concept of being modern (modern) in their own way, simultaneously preserving and modernising the tradition.