Making Sense and Senses of Locale through Perceptions of Music and Dance in Malang, East Java

Abstract

identify aspects of gamelan music and dance that they associate with Malang and east Java. Th is certain glow, this pride, has inspired me to think more deeply about how and why make sense and senses of place through their perceptions of music and dance. Th e 60 or so musicians and dancers with whom I worked—the performers of this essay—consistently situate the performing arts in terms of locale on several levels. 3 Regionally, identify characteristics of music and dance as east Javanese by distinguishing them from those of central Java. Although a variety of styles exist in central Java and most in Malang recognize this, they oft en talk about central Javanese performing arts generically, usually implying the arts associated with and/or derived from the courts of Surakarta. Th ey refer to the arts associated with the cities of Surabaya, Mojokerto, Jombang, Malang, and their surrounding areas categorically as east Javanese. Making distinctions intra-regionally, they compare styles associated with Malang (malangan) to styles associated with Surabaya (surabayan). More specifi c still are diff erences that per- formers recognize between eastern and southern areas within the regency of Malang. I learned eastern malangan styles because I resided in the village of Tulus Besar and studied primarily in the subdistricts of Tumpang and Poncokusuma with musicians and dancers who upheld local ways of performing (see Figure 2). To gain perspectives from in other parts of Malang, I also consulted individuals in the city, some of whom were associated with southern styles. Two similar dances, Beskalan Putri and Ngremo Putri, captivated my atten- tion. Both are female style presentational dances (putri means female). Both are animated by a gamelan and danced by men or women. One or more dancers may perform, but unless they are children, generally the dancers are either all women or all men. A similar or identical costume may be used for both dances (Figure 3). Beskalan Putri and Ngremo Putri oft en have the same function—an