Quiz: Identifying Wayang Repertoire

Wayang > Quiz: Wayang Repertoire

For this online quiz, you are to describe what is going on in the musical accompaniment in two excerpts from the video Wahyu Senopati assigned for the general introduction to wayang. See Wayang: Musical Accompaniment for work to complete in preparation.

For each excerpt, use the time code to register when pieces and/or changes happen, and describe what you hear in the musical accompaniment. Make sure to identify the general category of the piece or pieces played, using the three categories defined by Brinner in the section "Wayang Repertoire" in chapter 7 (2008:124-134)—the category names are used as sub-section headings. Beyond that, be as specific as you can, identifying if you can the kind of piece within a category or even the specific piece. Identify also the changes that happen within pieces. Support your identifications by noting instrumentation, musical characteristics, and also what is happening dramatically, using Javanese and English language terms. Do this especially if you are less than fully confident about your identifications, as it can earn partial points if the identification is incorrect.

Note that there is one instance where a technique associated with one category is used with a piece in a different category.

Your answers should look something like this:

0:32 Gendhing (Music for Setting a Scene): Ladrang "Moncer," starting with an introduction by the gender, and then the full gamelan playing.

1:04 Slows down and change irama; the dhalang brings out different wayang, one by one, and puts them in place

3:45 Speeds up and gets louder

3:57 Abruptly gets quieter and softer, with many instruments dropping out; then continues, accompanying narration

Feel free to listen again to the tracks corresponding to Brinner's chapter, and to use them as a point of reference.