gamelan
Javanese composer
Definition
A traditional ensemble of pitched percussion instruments — gongs, metallophones, xylophones, and drums — from Java and Bali. Its tuning systems (pélog and sléndro) do not correspond to Western equal temperament, giving gamelan music a distinctive shimmering, non-tempered quality.
Interpretive Guidance
In Godowsky's Gamelan from the Java Suite, the layered ostinato figures in the left hand imitate the sustained resonance of gong cycles. Keep these figures even and slightly blurred with pedal — the sound should shimmer and accumulate rather than articulate each note clearly.