In this series of one-hour online classes, Balinese master musician and GSJ Artist-In-Residence I Dewa Putu Berata will teach the basics of Balinese kidung ceremonial song. Students will learn traditional songs in the Old Javanese language and get comfortable singing in unfamiliar tuning systems and scales. Students will also learn more about the ceremonial context and meaning of this vocal tradition. Katie Harrell, an experienced GSJ musician who has researched vocal music in Bali, will assist in class. Prior musical training is not required, but students should be able to hum a tune and keep a steady beat. No experience with Balinese music is required!
All ages welcome. Students under the age of 18 must submit a parental release form, and those under the age of 11 must have parental supervision.
Sliding scale class fee
Six sessions
Sundays (November 8 - December 13)
5PM - 6PM
Cover image courtesy of Emiko Saraswati Susilo.
About the instructor:
Bapak I Dewa Putu Berata is an internationally acclaimed Balinese musician and composer, based out of the San Francisco Bay Area and Pengosekan, Bali. A graduate of STSI Denpasar (Bali’s National Academy of the Arts), he has been an artistic collaborator with dance troupes, theater companies, and music ensembles in multiple countries.
Berata is the founder & director of Çudamani, one of Bali’s most innovative & acclaimed gamelan ensembles that has toured extensively including appearances at The Cultural Olympiade (Greece), EXPO (Japan), Tong Tong Festival (Holland), Lincoln Center & Zellerbach Hall (USA). Cudamani has become one of the most vibrant centers of artistic activity in Bali, endeavoring to study rare classic forms of Balinese arts. Berata’s life work has been dedicated not only to the arts, but to creating community by providing opportunities for active arts engagement to children, youth, women and elders.
About the assistant instructor:
Katie Harrell has been a performing member of GSJ since 2013 and is Co-Coordinator of our angklung ensemble. She got her BM in Music Theory and Composition from Stetson University, where she first became interested in the music of gamelan-inspired Western composers. In 2011, Katie moved to Oakland to attend Mills College, where she worked closely with Daniel Schmidt in the study of composing for the college’s resident American gamelan, as well as assisting in the construction of new instruments for the ensemble. In 2015, Katie was awarded a Fulbright scholarship for a year-long study of vocal music in Bali.
