Brevard Music Center First Monday Concert Series - Nov 7

November 7, 1:30 PM, First United Methodist Church of Brevard, 325 Broad Street, Brevard NC. To share music with the community throughout the year, the Brevard Music Center presents free concerts to the public on the first Mondays of each month, October through May (except January). The Music Center's partners in this activity are sponsor, First Citizens Bank, and host, the First United Methodist Church of Brevard.

November's event: The Low Tech Gamelan Ensemble of Western Carolina University
Program:  Repertory will include customary Javanese and Malaysian melodies, in addition to contemporary compositions and arrangements of popular Western tunes.

Gamelan Kyai Tatit Ratri - A gamelan is an orchestra of tuned metal percussion instruments characteristic of Java, Bali, Malaysia and other island cultures off the coast of Southeast Asia. Each gamelan has its own name, its own tuning system, and its own distinctive "personality." Our gamelan's name means "Venerable Night Lightning," reflecting its original purpose: it was built in 1984 for use at KUSC, the campus radio station of the University of Santa Cruz in California. The gongs and keys were made in Yogyakarta (Central Java) but the stands and resonators were made by its California owner. It is not as decorative as traditional gamelans, since radio is an aural rather than a visual medium. In residence at WCU since March 1999, Gamelan Kyai Tatit Ratri is one of about 150 gamelans in active performance in the United States. There are fewer than a dozen in the Southeast (in Georgia, Florida, North Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia).

Gamelan Kyai Tatit Ratri reflects the Central Javanese court tradition. It is tuned to the traditional slendro (equidistant 5-tone) scale—roughly corresponding to the Western pitches "do re mi sol la." The repertory ranges from short repetitive compositions to very long and complex works that may take hours to perform. Our repertory includes traditional Javanese and Malaysian tunes, along with contemporary compositions.

The Ensemble will also be playing on a set of tuned bamboo rattles known as angklung, popular throughout Indonesia, but particularly so in Western Java (Sunda). The tuning is related to the Javanese pelog (seven-tone) scale, but has been modernized to correspond more closely to the Western European diatonic scale. In addition to traditional tunes, angklung ensembles often perform arrangements of Asian and Western popular tunes.

Get a link for Brevard Music Center's First Monday Concert Series and other
Brevard NC events, Lodging and information HERE