Slendro Culture, Balungan Concept, and Inner Melody of Jawatimuran Karawitan

Abstract

This study aims to reveal the development and distribution of the slendro tuning and analyze the concept of balungan gending and the inner melody of gending in Jawatimuran karawitan. It became essential to do as an effort to build a scientific milestone in Jawatimuran karawitan. This study uses the participant method, which is an effort to involve the researcher in the study he is studying thoroughly. In-depth observations and active interviews were carried out so that the data obtained from the participant method could continue to be contextualized with reality. The researcher tries to place the resource person as a speaking subject, not a passive object. As a result, apart from Malang, almost all Jawatimuran karawitan cultures use slendro gamelan with a unique side and distinctive character. The concept of balungan gending and the inner melody result in the gendings in Jawatimuran karawitan having complex musicality dynamics, in contrast to other musical styles, Surakarta and Yogyakarta, for example.