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Contestation in Gamelan Making Rituals: Tensions Between Old and New Understandings

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Contestation in Gamelan Making Rituals: Tensions Between Old and New Understandings HUMANIORA VOLUME 30 Number 3 October 2018 Page 305–314 Contestation in Gamelan Making Rituals: Tensions between Old and New Understandings Andri Handayani; Kelli Swazey Universitas Gadjah Mada, Indonesia Corresponding Author: [email protected] ABSTRACT Performing ritual before making gamelan as one of stages of producing gamelan orchestra has changed. The decision of gamelan masters to perform ritual is affected by their worldview, socio-religious and economic changes in their surroundings. This research aims to identify contestation in gamelan making rituals especially the tensions that occur between old and new understanding of gamelan masters. The study was conducted from March 2013 to April 2015. Semi-structured interview was applied to 6 out of 10 gamelan masters in Wirun Village, Sukoharjo District, Central Java. The result finds that gamelan masters apply strategies such as purification, negotiation and commercialization to adapt to the changes in Wirun. These strategies occur based on the understanding of old and younger generation of gamelan masters in Wirun. Purification can be defined as gamelan masters attempt to purify their religious principle from other external influence. There are two types of purification conducted by gamelan masters; purification of Javanese belief and purification of Islamic teachings. Negotiation hitherto is a way for gamelan masters to perceive their religious perspective and Javanese traditions flexibly. While, commercialization is taken by gamelan masters who only perceive gamelan as an industrial commodity and who prioritize the market value disregarding religious values in making the gamelan. The strategies serve to allow gamelan masters to sustain their identity as gamelan craftsmen. Keywords: commercialization; gamelan; negotiation; purification; ritual INTRODUCTION In my prior understanding, making gamelan is Java, Indonesia and even international scope. This simply forging metal and crafting it to be some can be proven from the orders coming from Japan, artistic Javanese musical instruments. It is an artistic Malaysia, Singapore, and USA2. The access to village work. However, after reading Ganug Nugroho Adi’s is a two-hour journey by motorcycle from Yogyakarta. ‘Forging gamelan in Central Java’ in the Jakarta Post Furthermore, gamelan masters in the village produce explaining the ritual done by gamelan masters before various kinds of gamelan so that enables to observe making gamelan, the curiosity to explore the life of different making process of gamelan instruments. gamelan masters emerged. The author decided to go Gamelan masters in producing gamelan to Wirun village, a famous gamelan producing village involve religious ritual that means making gamelan in Sukoharjo Regency, Central Java. The reasons to is not merely usual practice but rather special and choose Wirun Village as the field of research are due religious. In this study I do not study the extent of to the number of gamelan masters, the identity of religiosity owned by gamelan masters. It is not dealing village and the reachable access. There are about ten with the ritual showing and strengthening the identity active gamelan masters in the village.1 This village of gamelan masters as Muslim or Kejawen adherents, is well-known as gamelan making center in Central but as the way how gamelan masters dealing with doi.org/10.22146/jh.v30i3.35463 jurnal.ugm.ac.id/jurnal-humaniora Humaniora, Vol. 30, Number 3 October 2018 those two conditions, being Muslim and Javanese. understanding of phenomena from the point of view of Since there are number of works on gamelan participants. (DeWalt & DeWalt, 2011, p. ix) I have no seen from its significance and from point of view of background Theknowledge about the life of Javanese gamelan players, in my opinion the academic works Gamelan masters before. Therefore, this is one flow on gamelan masters and their worldview are still of information – from informants to me. Recording few. I will explore the life of gamelan masters in all the events provides natural and valid data about Wirun, Sukoharjo Regency, Central Java. They have the process of gamelan making. a worldview that I assumed as Javanese worldview Another method, semi-structured interview which can be seen through the process of making was applied to 6 out of 10 gamelan masters in Wirun gamelan, their understanding about their profession, Village, Sukoharjo District, Central Java. They are and how to deal with the changing society. In the field Supoyo, Saroyo, Sutarno, Joko Dharmono, Sugeng I found that gamelan masters are trying to negotiate Setiyono and Mrs. Purwanto. There are 10 gamelan their profession and identity as gamelan masters masters in Wirun, but I only managed to interview 6 amidst the changing society. of them. The others did not want to be interviewed Several studies discussing spiritual matters in and there was no written sources discussing their playing gamelan have already been conducted. One perspectives. Special time to ask questions to the of the most well-known works is a book entitled informants was taken. Semi- structured interview Gamelan Stories: Tantrism, Islam and Aesthetics is helpful to direct the interviewees to answer the in Central Java written by Judith Becker. Becker questions. However, there was no force or strict focuses on the relationship between Javanese guideline during the interview. From their answers, people and gamelan in everyday actions beyond the I described and interpreted their explanation. This realities of human beings that embody meaning and approach is significant to explore the worldview of show connections between humans and the cosmos gamelan masters and eventually is expected to answer (Becker, 1993, p. 1). Another important work about the question of how they deal with modernity; still gamelan is Sumarsam’s Gamelan: Interaksi Budaya maintaining traditional/ local values or negotiating dan Perkembangan Musikal di Jawa in which he also with modernity. implicitly tells about the ‘inner melody’ in Javanese The term of gamelan master used here refers to Gamelan in the foreword of the book. It means that a person who produces gamelan from raw materials gamelan is not only what is seen but is beyond that. (copper and tin) into ready-to-use musical instruments This research aims to identify contestation in named gamelan. The identity of being gamelan master gamelan making rituals especially the tensions that as a person involves three dimensions as Bhiku occur between old and new understanding of gamelan Parekh stated in his book A New Politics of Identity. masters. It is also to describe the ways of gamelan As Bhiku Parekh explained that an individual has masters to adapt to the changes in their society. three inseparable components of identity namely: The research focuses on the worldview of personal identity, social identity and individual Javanese Gamelan masters. The study was conducted identity. (Parekh, 2008, p.9) from March 2013 to April 2015. Worldview here Individual identity or overall based on Parekh’s specifically means how they see and understand opinion is human beings belong and know that they themselves and their world. It is also related to their belong to a distinct species, define themselves and perspective to identify themselves and their profession decide how they should live and conduct themselves as well as their works; merely work of arts or tool to as human beings. (Parekh, 2008, p.9) Individual get money or containing religious significance. This identity is the concept that I apply in this research issue (worldview) is interesting and significant to because gamelan masters try to sustain their identity convey the condition of Javanese Gamelan masters as Javanese, Muslim and craftsmen. I examine that today since they have to face two different challenges; the identity of gamelan masters in Wirun village maintaining local values/ traditions and negotiating influences on how they relate with other people with modernity. including their negotiation in their life, in this case To enter the world of gamelan master, maintaining their existence in gamelan industry. participant observation approach is necessary to Worldview perspective is used to explore the directly view their activities thoroughly. As Spradley understanding of gamelan masters about themselves, mentions that participant observation is to gain greater other beings and the relationship built between them. 306 Andri Handayani; Kelli Swazey - Contestation in Gamelan Making Rituals Worldview according to Robert Redfield is related are Javanese and have Kejawen perspective depicted to the way a man, in particular society, sees himself in their daily activities. Some gamelan masters also in relation to all else. “World view (he says) differs do laku during ritual of making gamelan. They have from culture, ethos, mode of thought, and national to restraint their desire and master themselves. During character…It is, in short, a man’s idea of the universe. the fieldwork I discovered a tension between these It is that organization of ideas which answers to a man Javanese systems of belief and Islam on the relation the questions: Where am I? Among what did I move? of the self to God and the environment. Economic What are my relations to these things? Self is the axis pressures also affected the gamelan makers’ ritual of ‘world view.’ (Redfield, 1952, p. 30) practices. It is the negotiations of these tensions that In my opinion this relationship also occurs will be investigated in this paper. in the worldview of gamelan masters in Wirun. It Citing Victor Turner’s definition about a is important to know about their identification of specific ritual namely religious ritual. Religious the self, the others and how the relationship is built ritual according to Victor Turner is prescribed formal among them. Some gamelan masters recognize that behavior for occasions not given over to technical not only human live in the world but also other beings. routine, having reference to beliefs in mystical (or It can be reflected from the result of interview, that non-empirical) beings or powers regarded as the first their worldview is influenced by some factors such and final causes of all effects.
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