On July 14, 2023, a concert of Indonesian music performed by the local gamelan ensemble “Jaman Suara” was held in the Zrinjevac pavilion.
The concert called “Spaces In-Between” searches for and questions the interspaces of two colorful traditions, all as a result of research into Croatian traditional music and different traditions related to gamelan. Such interspaces are opened by in-depth knowledge of traditions and mutual opposition or merging of their elements. At the same time, gamelan is not only a source of ‘new’ and ‘different’ sound, but traditional playing techniques and forms are interwoven with singing techniques and chants from various parts of Croatia: Slavonia, Istria, Međimurje, Dalmatia, Pokuplje, etc. The goal of the project is to create a fusion in which traditions are presented equally and thus offer an alternative to the usual appropriative practices of the local ethnic group.
The Jaman Suara gamelan ensemble was founded in 2019 at a gamelan course held at the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia in Zagreb, and in the same year the ensemble recorded its first public performances. The ensemble bears the symbolic name Jaman Suara (Age of Sound), which describes the relationship of the ensemble members with the gamelan they play: the emphasis is on finding the sound that determines the specific identity of the ensemble. The ensemble cherishes the performance of traditional gamelan music, relying on the repertoire and playing style from Yogyakarta, the sultan’s city in Central Java, and new compositions of the ensemble are created as a result of the joint work of all members.
