Gamelan gong kebyar is a style or genre of Balinese gamelan music of Indonesia. Kebyar means “to flare up or burst open”and refers to the explosive changes in tempo and dynamics characteristic of the style.

Gong kebyar music is based on a five-tone scale called pelog selisir (tones 1, 2, 3, 5, and 6 of the 7-tone pelog scale), and is characterised by brilliant sounds, syncopations, sudden and gradual changes in sound colour, dynamics, tempo and articulation, and complex, complementary interlocking melodic and rhythmic patterns called kotekan. Gamelan gong kebyar can have up to 30 players.

Indonesia is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of  Borneo and New Guinea. 

Gamelan gong kebyar was first documented to exist in North Bali in the early 1900s. The first public performance was in December 1915 at a gamelan gong competition in Jagaraga, North Bali.

Following their invasion of the island, Dutch occupiers responded to international criticism by building cultural institutions. They sponsored these competitions until Japanese forces ended their rule in World War II.

There is a greater number of orchestras and musicians in Bali than anywhere else in the world – about 1,500 orchestras to just three million people.

Modern musicians such as Bjork have been inspired by the Gamalan Orchestras!

Instruments:

ceng ceng, kendang, kelenang, jublag, klentong, rebab