Java: Court Gamelan
The greatest collection of instruments--mainly metallophones and bronze gongs of different shapes and sizes--and the epitome of the gamelan playing style are to be found in four princely courts, two each in the neighboring cities of Jogyakarta and Surakarta. This recording, typifying the musical style of one of these courts, the Paku Alaman in Jogyakarta, is an eminently worthy representative of one of the major classical traditions of Eastern art music. Western enthusiasts have often compared the static yet constantly moving state of gamelan music to a river running in its course, or to "moonlight poured over the field".Recorded in Bali by Robert E. Brown. Originally released in 1971.