Reflections of the Universe

Religious ceremonies in Bali inevitably involve music and dancing as an offering designed to Please the deities attending the ceremony. Needless to say, besides its sacral purpose, each performance is avidly enjoyed by the villagers. With the advent of tourism the performing arts have taken on a new role, and there has been somewhat of a revival as a result. Performing troupes and individual artists now have much more opportunity to be active, and axe able to earn a living, albeit moderately remunerative, by performing at hotels and restaurants. Some villages have started up their own performing groups on a cooperative basis, and money is available for new instruments and dancing costumes.

There is little glamour associated with the stage in Bali. Long hours of study axe necessary for musicians and artistes to master the complex traditional music and theatre, transportation is very often an open truck, and performances go on till the early hours of the morning. However, all Balinese seem. to have an inbuilt appreciation of the arts, and the tradition seems to be thriving despite the arrival of commercialism. Once the prerogative of the Gods and royalty, now, through tourism, television and the interest and patronage of the government everyone has a chance to enjoy a wider repertoire of classic and modern performing arts than ever before.

Temple entertainment

Only performances of a sacral nature axe al- lowed in the inner sanctums of the temple. The most common is the Mendet dance, a simple welcome dance performed spontaneously by a group of women of all ages. Anyone may take part in this dance to greet the visiting spirits during temple festivals. Ordinary temple costumes are worn, and the dancers bear a simple offering in their right hand, moving in stylized. patterns to the music of the gong.

Another sacral dance performed on rare occasions is the Rejang, wherein a group of women move gracefully around the inner courtyard of the temple in slow procession. Adorned with elaborate gold headresses decorated with arcs of trembling flowers, the swaying line of women move in delicate, unrehearsed harmony. This dance can be seen at temple festivals in the Aga villages of Tenganan, Bungaya and Asak. Sanghyang trance dances may also be held in the inner temple. This dance form has the special purpose of enlisting the help of the Gods in protecting the village from pestilence and danger. Sanghyang means "possessed of spirit". A chorus of men sing a hypnotic chant that  summons the spirits, till each dancer falls into a swoon of trance. There are a variety of Sanghyang dances, named according to the type of spirit they humour: Sanghyang Dedari, performed. by young virgin girls, is a dance of angels, and in the Sanghyang Jaran a man takes on the movements of a horse, snorting and dancing over hot coals. A decade ago, the sanghyang dance was very rare, but now it is performed in a somewhat abridged form. for the general public. Regular evening performances are held in Bona, near Blahbatuh, just half an hour's drive from Denpasar, and most travel. agents include this in their tour schedules.

The mass warrior dance, Baris Gede, is often performed at temple ceremonies. Groups of men attired in military style headresses and bearing spears, krisses and shields, form lines (baris) and enact a fearsome wax dance in unison. The tempo builds up into a mock battle, and sometimes eventuates in trance. This dance is generally unrehearsed, performed by men of the village as a guard of honour for the visiting deities. Pura Batur, in the Bangli Regency, has four or five subtly different versions of the dance. The most amusing version is the- Baris Tuan of Belanjong, Sanur, with its dancers attired in a replica of dutch colonial costumes. They dance and strut around the temple yard in arrogant postures before falling into a wild melee of trance.

The sacred temple masks of Barong and Rangda are powerful protectors of the temple and village. The Barong is a gentle, clumsy creature with a leonine face, a great clacking jaw and a flowing white mane, that stretches nearly two metres long when animated by two male players, one in the bead and one in the bind parts. The costume is richly ornamented with gilt mirrors and gold-painted leather, and reflects the light as the creature moves in its comical animal-like shambling gait. Rangda is both opposite and complementary : an evil witch with straggly white hair, fangs, long drooping breasts, a lolling tongue and dreadful fingernails. She brandishes a magic white cloth and instills fear in the hearts of all who watch, with her piercing high-pitched screams.

Once purely sacral, performances by the Barong and Rangda have now become popular far;. The village of Batubulan, just a few kilometers northeast of Denpasar, stages regular shows starring these two fantastic creatures in a condensed drama form based on a tale from the Mahabbarats, epic, mixed with elements of classical Legong and Topeng dances. Less frequent performances in a similar vein are to be found in Kuta and Singapadu. The story always climaxes in a battle between the two which drives the men attending into a craze of kris-stabbing.

A number of semi-sacral dances are performed in the middle courtyard of the temple, also as entertainment for visiting spirits during temple odalans. The Gambuh is one such performance, an ancient narrative performed. in the classical dance movements from which it is said most traditional dances have evolved. Dating back at least 400 years, the story of Gambuh is derived from a romantic epic poem known as Malat. The adventures of Prince Panji and his prospective bride, Candra form the base of the story, which is recited in ancient Kawi language, translated into Balinese by the attendant-comedians for the benefit of the audience. The dance is accompanied by music from long bamboo flutes that give low, melodious tones, and the violin-like Rebab. The complete Gambuh story can last for up to six hours, so it is. generally performed in episodes. There is an active Gambuh group in the village of Batuan that performs at local festivals and ceremonies.

Topeng mask dances are fairly common accompaniment to ceremony and ritual, but only two types of this dance are ever performed in the middle temple courtyard, Wayang Wong and Topeng Pajegan. The former, based upon the ancient Hindu epic of Ramayana, is a masked enactment of excerpts from the story of Rama's victory over the evil demon king, with the assistance of his loyal army of monkeys. Topeng Pajegan involves only a single dancer, who impersonates a series of characters by assuming different masks. He transforms him- self from clown to prince, princess, old man, king and minister in rapid succession, his grand finale being the Topeng Sida Karya, a sacred mask imbued with powers; to ensure that the Karya , or work (referring to the ceremony at which the performance is given), will be successfully completed.

For the appreciation of all

During temple ceremonies a stage is often set up in the outer courtyard of the temple or within the nearby banjar for the entertainment of the villagers and general public. Efforts are made to obtain the most popular artists and performances to ensure the occasion will be fully enjoyed.

Arja, aptly named the "opera of Bali", is common fare at temple festivals. In this form of dance drama the players sing and dance, at the same time, and the major parts are all played by women, who sing in high-pitched voices with a nasal intonation. This solemn incantation is lightened by the clowning of the servants and courtiers who keep the audience informed with a hilarious narrative of low Balinese. 

Another popular grand performance is the Ramayana Ballet, a modern interpretation of its stately Javanese relative, jazzed up with a stirring gamelan accompaniment known as Gong Kebyar. Hanoman, the white monkey- king, plays a major role in a battle which provides both drama and amusement. Popular with tourists and locals alike, the Ramayana is often performed as evening entertainment on the outdoor stages, found in many of the island's larger hotels.

Legong Keraton is one of Bali's most beautiful classical dances. Its sophistication expresses the Balinese ideal of refined feminine beauty. Performed by two or three young girls wearing costumes shimmering with gold and crowned with exquisite head-dresses adorned with frangipani blossoms, the dance is a masterpiece of intricate technique and dramatic power. Every movement hints of a depth of emotion and feeling as the tiny dancers glide about the stage, their fans twirling and fluttering as they dance. Each dancer assumes several roles, making it almost impossible for the untrained observer to follow the thread of the story portrayed, a factor of little importance due to the sublime beauty of the overall performance. Much work has gone into the preservation, revival and development of certain Legong Keraton dances over the past decade, on both a village level and within the various dance academies, making a wide range of Legong dances now available to the public.

Masks play an important part in Balinese, dance and drama. Perhaps the most popular mask performance is the Topeng Panca which starts off as a simple mask dance to introduce the major characters, then develops into a fully fledged drama involving up to five or more dancers. There is a famous Topeng Panca group in the village of Canang Sari, near the Sangeh Monkey forest. Less common are the Jauk masks, strange white faces that hover ghost-like under tall branching gold head- dresses with colourful pom-poms and tassels. Representing the forces of good, they are sometimes called Sandaran or Telek, and gene- rally appear in a group of up to six dancers to act out a story prior to the clash of the Barong and Rangda in village performances. There are two similar styles of Jauk that can be performed by a solo male dancer, one of a refined and rather effeminate character, the other a puzzled, fierce demon, and these are sometimes included in concerts presenting a sampling of different kinds of Balinese dance. 

Solo Baris is a refined version of the old Baris Gede which evolved at the beginning of this century, and has since become accepted as the fundamental dance in the training of young male dance students. The dance reveals the emotions of a young warrior as be readies himself for the battlefield in tense excitement, plunging and feinting to avoid attack. The virtuoso performance for sole male dancers, Kebyar Duduk, a dance which developed in the 1920's as an innovative decoration to gamelan performance. Rival orchestras from Jagaraga and Bungkulan in North Bali created the original Kebyar, a choreographic development from Legong, which was then taken by the talented dancer Mario, who in 1925 performed the first kebyar duduk. Enamoured by the kebyar (lightning music), which is super-charged, dynamic and highly embellished, Mario created a dance that centred around the trompong kettledrum, portraying a young man on the threshold of adulthood, beset by a range of conflicting emotions. The dancer moves in close co-ordination to the music, his whirling sticks, flourishing gestures and sudden pauses in perfect harmony with the 35 odd other instruments.

Another of Mario's creations was the Oleg Tamulilingan, a courtship dance for two that depicts two bumble-bees playing in the garden. This was choreographed for a tour of Europe and America in 1953, in an effort to expand the repertoire presentable to western audiences, as it was felt that language and cultural barriers rendered many of Bali's dramatic dance genres unsuitable. The duet was a great succes both with foreign audiences and in Bali, and has since obtained an established place in Bali's treasure trove of dance forms.

A number of pantomimic dances appeared during, early days of Indonesian independance, created out of political, nationalistic enthusiasm. Set to the fiery Gong Kebyar music, with movements that copy nature rather than following Bali's traditional dance postures, the Tari Tani, "farmer's dance" involves seven dancers who enact the sequence of planting, cultivating and harvesting rice. In a similar genre are the Tari Nelayan which describes the activities of fisherman, Tari Gembala Sapi, the "plough-mens' dance" and Tari Tenun with its delicate rendering of. women weaving.

Professional Joged dance troupes were once kept by royalty for the entertainment of guests of state. This flirtation dance starts with a solo in Legong style, which rapidly degenerates into an open invitation to the men in the audience. The dancer chooses a partner with a wave of her fan, and feigning reluctance he is pushed forward by his friends, and a sash is tied around his waist. It is up to the man to create a flirtatious improvisation with the skilled Joged dancer. This improvisational dancing, known as ngibing, uses the classical movements of Modern

Balinese dance, but places a much greater emphasis on the art of sensual body language. There are sexy, undulating wriggles, coy gestures with the fan, inviting smile and suggestive winks. When the man becomes over-enamoured or aggressive, the dancer skillfully dodges, side-steps and brushes away offending bands with a flick of her fan. Cheers and cat-calls from the audience stir the male "suitor" into more and more daring attacks. The Joged may stop the duet at any moment with a swift movement of her fan.

Stories of pre-colonial days indicate that in former times liberties often continued after the performances, and often young boys dressed in women's costume known as gandrung played the female role. After national independence in 1945 Joged became less popular, somewhat due to a moralistic concern for public propriety. However, in recent years, Joged dancing has regained popularity, both as entertainment, for local, people and as a tourist show. The latter is a somewhat stylised version wherein a number of female dancers appear together and decorously invite members of the audience, both men and women, to dance with them. This results in a comical sight, as visitors completely unversed in Balinese dance try to mimic the delicate band movements of their partners, moving with stiff bodies. However, the experience seems to be popular, and this opportunity to try the movements of a dance form which to western eyes is entirely glamorous is usually greeted with enthusiasm.

The Kecak is one of the most popular shows amongst visitors to Bali. Performances start at dusk, with the lighting of flickering torches in a giant candelabra and the placing of offerings on the stage. Sudden shouts pierce the tranquility of the evening, and out of the darkness run a troupe of chanting men wearing black and white check sarongs, chests gleaming in the torchlight. They quickly arrange themselves in a aeries of concentric circles around the candelabra, where they sway and chant, one moment in unison, the next moment in syncopated counterpoint. A small group of dancers in full traditioinal costume perform an excerpt from the Ramayana. in the midst of the waving seas of arms and bodies, dancing to the orchestrated voices. The "chak-chak-chak" of the chorus is adapted from the Sanghyang chant, and the entire performance has an ethereal quality enhanced by the flickering of the-torchlight. The first Kecak was created by dancers in Bedulu, Gianyar, who were commissioned by the well-known expatriate painter, Walter Spies. The first simple version was an immediate success, and now Bali boasts at least a dozen professional Kecak groups that perform regularly at the larger hotels and in special open stages built for the purpose in their banjar

One of Bali's oldest performing arts is the Wayang Kulit shadow puppet play. Origina- ting in Java, the Wayang Kulit came to Bali around 9th Century A.D. along with the Hindu influences of the Javanese kingdoms, and was actually a powerful tool in introducing the beliefs and philosophy which were adopted by the Balinese, through the media, of the ancient Mahabharata and Ramayana epics. The puppeteer sits with his gender musicians behind a thin white screen with a flickering oil lanters just above and in front of him. At the start of the performance he bangs three times on a wooden box containing his puppets to wake them up, then he bands each character one by one to his assistant who sticks their wooden supports in the soft banana trunk at the base of his screen.

The entire ensemble is a miniature stage representing the cosmos. The screen is the universe, the banana trunk the earth, the lamp the sun, the puppets represent the whole spectrum of humanity, and the dalang is the supernatural being who conducts the flickering dance of life. The dalang is impersonator, story teller and philosopher all in one. He is leader of the Gender Wayang music ensemble, a master of ancient literature and the old Kawi language, an orator with a repertoire of ancient tales, a priest with spiritual powers that enable him. to ward of evil spirits, purify and bless the community, and a teacher of moral truth. He must be able to sit for up to six hours at a time Untiringly assuming the voices of innumerable characters, tirelessly creating an epic drama from ancient tales of love and war, tempered with humour. The protagonists flash across the screen, finely delineated shadows that can be identified by their shape, voice and dress. Throughout the entire performance, he taps a wooden horn held in his toes on the wooden puppet box, providing a rhythm and tempo that leads the musicians and emphasizes the movements on the screen. The audience, seated in semicircular fashion on the ground in front of the screen, watch spellbound, responding with shrieks of laughter and catcalls to the humour of the clown characters, who interpret the story in low Balinese.

Modern Trends

Once purely performed for sacred purposes as a temple offering, Balinese dance and theatre has undergone many changes in the last century. Just as craftsmen have begun to make copies of sacred objects to pill a demand for souvenirs, so has the dance evolved new form that are condensed and simplified for tourist consumption on do not require the cremonial ritual or special days on the religious calender to be performed. The new genre fulfils a need for comprehensible, exciting performances of not longer than a hour

And has developed a niche of its own in Bali’s immense artistic repertoire. Although the Balinese public will always prefer to see classic versions, they appreciate the economic role played by the new theatre of the hotel and tourist resort international zone. At the same time, Balinese religious, cultural and political leaders have striven to ensure that sacred dances retain their pure unabridged form and will not be performed in public places for commercial gain. Back in the temple, the genuine wali performance is alive, a constant reinstating of devotion to god, and entirely accessible to those who wish to spend time to explore Bali’s culture to a greater depth.  

Bali Arts Festival

The Foundation for development and preservation of Bali Arts, Yayasan Bina Budaya, in its concern for the preservation of Bali’s precious cultural heritage, has created an annual Bali Arts Festival Which has just completed its tenth season. Set at the Werdi Budaya Arts Centre in Jalan Nusa Indah, Denpasar, during the months of June and July, the six week long festival is absolute feast of Bali’s performing arts. A grand opening ceremony involves a parade from the central puputan square, nothing less than spectacular. Dancers in full costume, youths in ceremonial wedding attire from every region, entire orchestras in full musical swing march all the way from the centre of town to the Art Centre in grand style.

Nightly performances are scheduled, by the top artists and troupes of musicians and dancers on the island. Each year the programme is carefully planned to include a representative cross-section of Bali’s secular performing arts, ancient to modern, as well as guest performances from other parts of Indonesia.

Thousands of avid enthusiasts, both local and foreign, flock to the Art Centre nightly. For many of the performers this is the culmination of months of rehearsals, and they give their utmost for the occasion. The Arts Festival not only acts as a catalyst for the performing arts, it also offers a rare opportunity for audiences to enjoy a wide range of performances from all over the island in a compressed space and time bringing about an increase in cultural awareness amongst the youth of Bali

During the day there are also programmes and competitions for traditional skills and crafts such as mask-making, flower-arrangement, the preparation of traditional foods, costume both ancient and modern, lontar manuscript reading… to name just a few. A large craft exhibition opens for the duration of the festival in the spacious halls at the Centre, and there are generally photography and painting exhibitions, complementing the Art Centre’s permanent exhibition of paintings and handicrafts. Programmes are available several months in advance from the Badung Tourism Office and Travel Agents, and visitors interested in witnessing a large range of Bali’s performing arts. in a short period of time would be well advised to plan their visits around this event.     

Musical Heritage

Compared by scholars to “moonlight” and “flowing water”, the sounds of Bali’s flamboyant gamelan music form a vivid emotive background for all kinds of ritual, dance and theatre. Its fiery tempo, resounding notes and subtle interludes, comparable to no other musical form, correspond in perfect harmony to the mood of each moment and occasion.

The Balinese word for orchestra is gamelan. "Gamel" is an old Javanese word for hammer, and most instruments in Bali are percussive. Nearly every village Banjar in Bali has its orchestra, most common being the Gamelan Gong, which consist of a group of twenty to fifty men playing instruments similar to xylophones-resounding gongs suspended on frames, small cymbals and kettle-shaped metallophones, with amazing precision in interwoven patterns of melody and rhythm. The origins of gamelan music are not really clear. Prehistoric percussion instruments of bronze, brass and iron have been found dating back as far as the third century B.C.

The orchestration of gamelan music is highly stratified, with the instruments all individually tuned at different registers. The basic framework of the music is defined by the deep resounding gongs, the theme is borne by middle register metallophones, and the other instruments contribute delicate ornamentation. Tempo is set by the lead drummers on their kendang, leading the entire group in a highly embellished performance that miraculously keeps all musicians tightly bound within the interlocking rhythms.

Gamelan music is invariably part of every theatrical, social and religious function in Bali, adding a vibrating dimension of sound that quickens the pulse and seems to reverberate with the very essence of the island’s rhythm of life.

Nearly every village Banjar has its Sekehe, a music association in which every practicing musician is obliged to participate. Some gather to practice prior to the temple festival, others meet regularly every night of the week to rehearse new compositions or accompany dancing practices. There is no musical notation to follow  - compositions are memorized by endless repetition, and without apparent conscious effort. Even the young children demonstrate a formidable proficiency with the most complex polyphonic compositions, having heard them so often. Once they have mastered the instrument concerned their hands seem to work instinctively with a remarkable sense of rhythm.