Professor Andrew Weintraub leads the University Gamelan in a concert at Heinz Hall as Resident Conductor Daniel Meyer and the PSO look on.
On December 9–12 Pitt's Gamelan Ensemble, directed by Professor Andrew Weintraub and Pitt graduate student Indra Ridwan, joined the Pittsburgh Symphony at Heinz Hall where busloads of fourth graders had the opportunity to explore the cultures and traditions of Asia through music. Gamelan Ensemble performances were interspersed with the PSO's presentations of Dialogue of the Wind and Sea from Debussy's La Mer, The Chinese Dance and Dance of the Mirlitons from Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker, Polovtzian Dances from Borodin's Prince Igor, and music by two contemporary Chinese composers, Chen Gang (Morning in Miao Ling) and Zhou Tian (First Sight). Throughout the program Professor Weintraub and PSO Resident Conductor Daniel Meyer explained various elements of Asian music and how the different composers incorporated them into the orchestral medium.
Bellefield Hall Auditorium, 8 p.m.
General admission $10, student and senior admission $5, Pitt students free with ID. Tickets available at the door.
Press Release:
Pitt’s Gamelan Ensemble, directed by Andrew Weintraub and Indra Ridwan, will accompany some of Indonesia’s finest performing artists in a program of contemporary gamelan and popular music of Indonesia.
Wahyu Roche (b. 1966) is a virtuoso percussionist who performs and teaches regularly in Europe, Australia, and Japan. His group opened for Mick Jagger when his band performed in Jakarta in 1989. Wahyu recently released his debut album as a featured vocalist. Ening Rumbini (b. 1969) is considered one of today’s leading professional dancers in a modern popular form of dance based on village dances and martial arts movements.
The program will feature a variety of musical styles, including gamelan (bronze percussion orchestra), calung (tuned bamboo percussion instruments), rampak kendang (drum ensemble), as well as modern and traditional dance.
University of Pittsburgh Gamelan
Andrew Weintraub, Director
Indra Ridwan, Instructor
Please join the Gamelan Ensemble for an hour of music played by this semester’s students.
4–5 p.m., Bellefield Hall Room 309 A
This year's Gamelan Ensemble concert presented a broad range of traditional and popular Indonesian music.
The first excerpt, Sampak, is an example of traditional Gamelan music.
sampak.mp
The second excerpt features the Dangdut Cowboys performing Jablai Jam with singers Rita Tila and Ening Rumbini. Dangdut is a form of popular Indonesian music.
This year's Gamelan Ensemble concert covered a wide range of Indonesian music, from traditional gamelan to Indonesian pop. The above photo shows singer and instrumentalist Rita Tila performing on the kacapi (zither). In the background Samantha Swami plays the peking.
Composer Nano S. (playing the suling) and Rita Tila perform a duet with the Gamelan Ensemble accompanying. Members of the ensemble pictured above are Andrew Weintraub, kendang (Professor of ethnomusicology and director of the Gamelan Ensemble); Ben Pachter, jengglong; Richard Winkler, gong; Kim Frost, peking; Ben Rainey, bonang; and Yuko Eguchi, panerus.
General admission $10, student/senior admission $5,
Pitt students free with I.D.
Tickets available at the door.
Bellefield Hall Auditorium
Pitt’s Gamelan Ensemble will celebrate several significant milestones during their upcoming performance. The concert will mark the tenth anniversary of the founding of the ensemble by Professor of ethnomusicology Andrew Weintraub. Voice of America will broadcast segments of the program on Indonesian T.V., highlighting Pitt’s creative engagement with Indonesian music and culture. The program will explore a variety of musical styles, from the powerful sound of the gamelan to the contemplative strains of zither and flute. Featured guest artists include contemproary composer Nano Suratno, dancer Ening Rumbini, singer Rita Tila, and Pitt’s very own Indonesian rock band the Dangdut Cowboys.
Please join us for an hour of music played by this semester’s students, under the direction of Andrew Weintraub.
Bellefield Hall Room, 309A, free
Andrew Weintraub led the University Gamelan with soloist Euis Komariah (center), a legend of Sundanese music.
Euis Komariah and Music major Matthew Shepherd perform side by side.