Çudamani, the Seven-Tone Orchestra from the Village of Pengosekan, Bali
Çudamani, the Seven-Tone Orchestra from the Village of Pengosekan, Bali
The internationally renowned ensemble Çudamani, led by I Dewa Putu Berata, presents a wide range of pieces, from newly-created, experimental works to formative pieces of the dynamic kebyar style.
Album notes
Çudamani was formed in 1997 by a family of young musicians in the village of Pengosekan, a center of gamelan music, dance, painting and sculpture. The group’s virtuosic musicians, led by Dewa Putu Berata, play on an unusual type of hybrid gamelan orchestra created in the 1980s. With seven tones rather than the usual five, this gamelan semara dana allows the freedom to play in various modes, derived from older court and ritual gamelan. Combining this modal freedom with the powerful resources of kebyar style, Çudamani is able to create and re-create a wide range of music and dance works — from Taruna Jaya, an explosive early twentieth century dance, to Geregel, a seven-tone instrumental work by Dewa Alit that has opened entirely new vistas in contemporary gamelan music.
Çudamani is much more than a gamelan group. It is a center of music and dance that hosts classes, workshops, several ensembles of differing age groups, and teachers of various performance genres from all over the island. Theirs is a world of performances, competitions, recording sessions, and intensive training. Çudamani sponsors many forms of innovative new work, often collaborating with international (non-Balinese) artists.
Recorded on July 27, 2000 in Pengosekan, Bali.
Recording, mastering, production, and liner notes by Wayne Vitale.
Cover art by Dewa Putu Berata
©2002 Vital Records.