Problems of the Panerusan Mantle Hood
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Problems of the Panerusan Mantle Hood uring the past few years I have had the field work. I am now speaking, of course, of the D privilege of participating in a number of musicology of European art traditions. congresses, conferences and symposia—sometimes In 1954, Manfred Bukofzer made this related directly, sometimes quite indirectly to the statement: field of Ethnomusicology. For the record, I would Only relatively few scholars have seen the need so far like to state that the conferees assembled here for entering the difficult and seemingly remote field of represent, in my opinion, one of the most anthropological musicology, although the Second World distinctive conclaves of active participants in the War and recent political events have suddenly brought field of Ethnomusicology in my experience. I into focus its immense practical importance. believe that I speak for all of us when I say that the Then he went on to say: common affliction of most congresses is a great Non-western music presents a number of difficult quantity of short papers, little problems, differing radically from or no time for discussion, a those normally encountered in heterogeneous assemblage of musicology. The basic musical subjects loosely grouped concepts in oriental music have under a broad title with little almost nothing in common with those of the West, and as a result, meaning and many, many Westerners cannot directly fragmentary, hurried and understand the music of the East highly frustrating short and vice versa. conversations with colleagues The anthropological branch of seen once or twice a year musicology is attempting to collect under similar frantic the various musics of the world and circumstances. I think that I derive from them new concepts for proper evaluation. Comparison of speak for all of us, again, the western and non-western when I say that this concepts will ultimately give conference, sponsored by the musicology a truly worldwide Center for Asian Arts here at perspective—a perspective which is the University of the goal of our study. Washington, by the manner And I am continuing this in which it has been designed statement: and by the nature of its We are as yet very far from this selectivity holds the promise ideal. The gathering of non-western of panacea for those of us music has only just begun, and we who have been suffering from have as yet but a sampling of the an acute case of “conferitis.” musics of the world. They can be recorded properly only by means of phonograph, The declared focus on field problems seems to recording tape, and sound film because they cannot be me to be the vital concern of all of us present. By written down in our limited notation. The situation is way of introduction to my problem in working aggravated by the paradoxical fact that the phonograph with the Panerusan, I would like to call attention to and radio are destroying the native musical cultures at a pace more rapid than the same means can record it. the ambivalent nature of our discipline as it affects We still have to learn the important lesson that the field methods. The primary disciplines, musicology nature of the non-western music calls for specific and anthropology, considered for a moment research methods of its own. Due allowance must be without relation to ethnomusicology, would seem made for the difference between western and non- to have little in common from the standpoint of western types of music. A thematic analysis appropriate Hood, Panerusan for Beethoven quartets is not even valid for the music of theories of derived disciplines, must determine Okeghem, let alone for a comparative analysis of primitive appropriate methods of research. If from force of melodies. It would be simple indeed to show that a Scottish folk song and a Chinese melody make use of the habit I begin to sound like a schoolteacher, same scale, if not even the same melodic contour, but as consider it, with my apology, as an invitation for we know, this would be an irrelevant observation based others to do likewise in the course of the on our notation. The real differences can be heard only discussions. in actual performance. It is not the abstract scale that is essential in this case, but the tone, color, and style of ----------------- performance—precisely those features which resist My problems with the Panerusan began one notation. It is one of the most urgent tasks of the study of non-western music to develop a method that permits frosty morning in 1954 in Holland when Jaap clear reference to and comparison of the various forms Kunst handed me a 21-page manuscript just of tone, color, attack, performance, and the like. So long received from the Conservatory of Gamelan as we lack the elementary tools we cannot hope to cope Studies at Solo in central Java. I did not realize at with the larger problems that a more profound study of the time that this slim packet was to become the non-western music is continually unfolding before us. start of a research project which would eventually For those of us who have had a primary involve almost two years of field work in Java, training in musicology and who have gone on to hundreds of hours of transcription and analysis, the study of music outside the rather limited the Western Data Processing Center and Brain sphere of the European art traditions, Bukofzer’s Research Institute of UCLA, a team of graduate admonition is hardly new. Coming from one of research assistants, IBM programmers and, in all the most prominent musicologists identified with probability, a number of other implications which European art traditions, however, it is a forceful lie ahead in the next few years. pronouncement of the fact that the To the best of my knowledge, this 21-page ethnomusicologist must find his own way. I need manuscript was the first attempt by the Javanese not cite the innumerable instances in which themselves to render some kind of orchestral score. scholars involved in the study of non-western Although a single manuscript, and especially an music have given evidence that they are unaware initial attempt at reproducing the sounds of the or insufficiently aware of Bukofzer’s gamelan orchestra, might hold more historical pronouncement. In short, I am saying that during than musical significance, I was fascinated by this the discussions in the next three days, those first visual representation of the so-called Panerusan. conferees who have had their training in The concept of the Panerusan is closely although musicology have the opportunity and, I must add, not exclusively related to group improvisation. the responsibility of critical and constructive Those of us who have some familiarity with the analysis of the various field and by implication, jazz idiom, I think, are reasonably familiar with laboratory methods which will be discussed. the manner in which a single man, backed by a I also wish to suggest as strongly as possible group of musicians, improvises. But when we that, just as the field of musicology traditionally consider that 60% of the forty of more musicians applied to European art music is grossly in a large gamelan orchestra are coordinating in a inadequate in its methods for the field of kind of group improvisation, we meet a more ethnomusicology, so the methods of anthropology complicated problem—one I find rather ought to be examined in the course of this fascinating. conference by those of us with a primary training By our standards this orchestral score was in this field quite as critically. Representatives of incomplete. For example, there was no part of the both of these disciplines as applied to chelempung, a zither plucked with the thumb nails; ethnomusicology are indebted to some extent to or the suling, end-blown flute; or the gender panerus, the field of linguistics. I think it is significant, the smallest of the family of instruments with thin however, that none of us is prepared to apply bronze keys resonated by bamboo. The whole linguistic methodology in a one-to-one ratio. In bonang family was missing (sets of bronze kettles other words, the materials of our study, not the played by two wooden beaters). The score did, 2 Hood, Panerusan however, contain parts of the female soloists, a than beat 2. This was purely speculative in the male chorus, the gender barung (a large gender), the beginning. rebab (a kind of bowed lute), the gambang (or The hypothesis was tested at various levels of xylophone), the principal melody played by the rhythmic activity. This particular orchestral piece saron family (think bronze slabs over a trough (or gending) being studied has the title “Pangkur.” resonator), and the gender panembung, the biggest of Pangkur is a poetic form. It is one of the best known the gender family. Also included were the structural traditional pieces among gamelan in Java, and I divisions sounded by various size gongs, the know commercial recordings, made during the principal drum strokes and the text of the song. I 1930’s, in which this piece has been performed in was surprised to find that the part for the two- five and six possible modes of two tuning systems, stringed bowed lute, the rebab, was quite detailed, slendro and pelog. The longest melodic phrase of this indicating not only pitches to be played but form—the ladrang form—is terminated by a stroke bowing and fingering. on the big gong. This gongan, or longest phrase, is Aware by now of the principal features of in turn subdivided by four strokes on the kenong, a modal practice, I decided to do a thorough stylistic kind of horizontal gong.