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Distribution Agreement In presenting this thesis as a partial fulfillment of the requirements for a degree from Emory University, I hereby grant to Emory University and its agents the non-exclusive license to archive, make accessible, and display my thesis in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter now, including display on the world Wide Web. I understand that I may select some access restrictions as part of the online submission of this thesis. I retain all ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis. I also retain the right to use in future works (such as articles or books) all or part of this thesis. Ryan A. Sutherland April 12th, 2016 Gamelan is in Our Blood. From Imitation to Internalization: How Appropriation and Assimilation of the “Other” Have Defined Impressionism and Minimalism by Ryan A. Sutherland Dr. Meredith Schweig, PhD Adviser Music Department Dr. Meredith Schweig, PhD Adviser Dr. Lynn Wood Bertrand, PhD Committee Member Dr. Gray Crouse, PhD Committee Member 2016 Gamelan is in Our Blood. From Imitation to Internalization: How Appropriation and Assimilation of the “Other” Have Defined Impressionism and Minimalism By Ryan A. Sutherland Dr. Meredith Schweig, PhD Adviser An abstract of a thesis submitted to the Faculty of Emory College of Arts and Sciences of Emory University in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Bachelor of Arts with Honors Music Department 2016 Abstract Gamelan is in Our Blood. From Imitation to Internalization: How Appropriation and Assimilation of the “Other” Have Defined Impressionism and Minimalism By Ryan A. Sutherland This thesis argues that the gamelan has played a central role in creating a Western musical culture that seeks hybridity with non-Western musics as a means of creating novel soundscapes. I aim to augment the existing corpus of research concerning the influence of the Balinese and Javanese gamelan on contemporary Western art music and on the development of musical modernism, highlighting how hybrid aesthetics have come to not only influence but ultimately define many modern soundscapes. Composers whose works were influenced by the gamelan, such as Debussy, Bartók, Partch, Britten, and others, heralded the advent of modernism and signaled the end of the Common Practice era, emerging stylistically from beneath the shadow of Romanticism. And the influence of the gamelan on Western music is still evident today: its impact is palpable in the minimalist writing of composer Philip Glass, the intricate percussion compositions by set-theorist Iannis Xenakis, and in a variety of new-age ambient, punk, and electronica albums. Thus, this thesis provides a broad-based analysis of the widespread impact the gamelan has had and continues to have on composers, specifically highlighting the movements of Impressionism and Minimalism by analyzing pieces by Claude Debussy and Steve Reich, among others. Global interest in the genre known as “world music” has further popularized the gamelan sound, yet the rich local history and syncretic religious practices associated with this musical lineage remain largely unknown outside academic circles. And even within academic circles the relevance of the gamelan is often questioned. Thus, the significance of this project is multifaceted: it will serve to inform about the impact that Balinese and Javanese gamelan traditions have had on the stylistic development of contemporary Western music, on the establishment of the field of applied ethnomusicology, and on the creation and popularization of the world music genre and its offshoots among global audiences, and will establish an archive of gamelan karawitan (traditional repertoire). Furthermore, this thesis will draw on a wide array of interdisciplinary research, citing anthropologists, ethnographers, historians, ethnomusicologists and musicians, and will record cross-cultural perspectives, discussing themes of appropriation, historical practice, and notions of musical change and development. Gamelan is in Our Blood. From Imitation to Internalization: How Appropriation and Assimilation of the “Other” Have Defined Impressionism and Minimalism By Ryan A. Sutherland Dr. Meredith Schweig, PhD Adviser A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Emory College of Arts and Sciences of Emory University in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Bachelor of Arts with Honors Music Department 2016 Acknowledgements. This thesis represents a labor of love. My interest in gamelan began in 2013 after a lecture in Music 204W “Music Cultures of the World” with Dr. Elizabeth Clendinning. After learning about this musiculture and touring the gamelan room as a student in this class, I decided to join the ensemble. And this decision has been the single most rewarding one I’ve made in my entire life. I consider Professor Clendinning to be the “Mother of the Gamelan” at Emory University and am honored to consider her a close personal friend and mentor — she revitalized the group in 2013 (the year I joined the ensemble), and was instrumental in reopening the ensemble to the community, coordinating its official naming celebration, and for bringing Pak Madé to this campus. For her, I am deeply grateful. Without her encouragement, I doubt the idea for an honors thesis in ethnomusicology would have even crossed my mind. I must also thank my adviser, Dr. Meredith Schweig, for her countless hours of support and her thoughtful revisions. Her guidance has helped me clarify the balungan of this project, its central melody, giving it life. She graciously invited me to lecture in her classes, MUS 200 “Music, Culture and Societies” and MUS 204W “Music Cultures of the world,” opportunities which helped me greatly in refining my topic. I could not have completed this project without her support. I thank my committee, Dr. Lynn Bertrand in the Department of Music and Dr. Gray Crouse in the Department of Biology, and also offer my sincerest gratitude to Joyce Clinkscales, Courtney Chartier and John Bence for helping me establish the gamelan archive at Emory University. Furthermore, I am grateful to Dr. S.C. Wang and Dr. J.C. Wang of Northern Illinois University for their generosity and inspiration. Both have helped me to define my thesis topic, hosted me at NIU, and led the “Experiencing the Arts in Bali” study abroad to Baturiti, Bali, Indonesia. I will never forget their kindness and encouragement. I wish to thank the other participants on this study abroad for their friendship as well as Dr. Jeremy Grimshaw and Tate Grimshaw whom I met at Pak Madé’s compound in Baturiti, Bali, Indonesia. I offer my sincerest appreciation to Pak Midiyanto. and to Pak I Madé Lasmawan and his direct family, Bu Ketut Marni, Aji, Ade, and Putu, Tara Hatfield, as well as Pak Madé’s family in Baturiti, Bali and the Baturiti men’s gamelan group who graciously allowed me to perform with them on selonding, angklung and kebyar at the Ngeratep Ratu Sakti odalan temple ceremony at Pura Pucak Luhur Padang Dawa, a ceremonial blessing of the Nawa Sanga, and sit in on several of their practices. Pak Madé and Bu Ketut gave me countless hours of invaluable instruction in Balinese dance and Javanese and Balinese Gamelan. To them, I say “terima kasih” from the bottom of my heart. To all of my friends at Emory who have come to my performances, offered their ears to listen to my ideas, and their hugs when I was at wits’ end — thank you. I specifically wish to thank Rob Dunn, Bennett Kane, Wyatt Kane, Nick Perry, Gracelyn Miller, Madeline Drace, Michael Van Ginkel, and Rebecca Leff for their reassurances through this process. But even before my encounter with the gamelan, this topic has been beating in my chest, waiting for the right moment to come to life. At the encouragement of my piano teacher, Sally Robinson, I first played Debussy’s Arabesque No. 1 when I was 13 years old. And my love for his music has never left me. The first time I heard Reich’s Music for 18 Musicians was just as poignant and memorable. Above all, I thank my mother for instilling in me a love of music at an early age and my father for never missing one of my many music performances. I also thank my grandmother for supplying her wisdom and praise. At this point, I presume they know just as much about the gamelan and appropriation as I do considering how many times they selflessly lent their ears (at ungodly hours) to listen to me discuss my project. Finally, I must thank the members of the Emory Gamelan ensemble, specifically Claire Marie- Hefner and Neil Fried, as well as the gamelan itself. Thank you Paksi Kencono — and Vishnu, Brahma, and Siva — for giving me good taksu through the years. Om Swastiastu, R.S. Table of Contents. Introduction .........................................................................................................................1 Relevant Terminology and Discussions ..............................................................................3 Methodology .....................................................................................................................39 The Javanese and Balinese Gamelan ................................................................................63 Satie, Debussy, and Stravinsky: Impressionism and Neoclassicism ................................99 Reich, Glass, and Górecki: Aesthetic and Holy Minimalism .........................................160 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................212 Bibliography