Highly recommended for lovers of Javanese gamelan. Pawitayan Kraton Surakarta, leader G.R.A. Koes Murtiyah. Again the court of Surakarta, which views itself as the heart of Javanese culture, has chosen a very old, majestic dance piece for a recording. This Bedhaya, dating from the late 18th century, is a court dance for nine young women related to the sacred Bedhaya Ketawang. We hear the gamelan accompanying the dance, playing first in an archaic, simple mode of kettle drums and voices, later changing to the usual 'soft' mode.
Emotion is thus sublimated in shifting patterns of music, poetry and graceful movements.
Unfortunately the verses are translated from old Javanese into Japanese only, and again one has to imagine the dancers with the mind's eye. These consist only of 'loud' bronze instruments with a very rich deep sound. This makes the structure of the music more transparent than the usual Solonese style. Still, the music expresses a very rich range of nuances in this excellent recording, both in the quality of sound and in the musicianship of the gamelan players. Highly recommended for those who know the genre, and those who want to make its acquaintance.