Sundanese Karawitan and Modernity Mohamad Rudiana Postgraduate Program ISI Yogyakarta Jalan Soryodiningratan No. 8 Yogyakarta ABSTRAK Karawitan sebagai seni tradisi hingga saat ini masih digemari masyarakat. Pada konteks ke- beradaannya di dalam masyarakat sekarang, seni tradisi dihadapkan pada semacam paradoks. Di satu pihak, untuk bertahan hidup, ia membutuhkan daya tarik dan pesona, berupa inovasi-inovasi kreatif yang bersumber dari tradisi itu sendiri; di pihak lain, jika seniman melakukan perubahan dan inovasi dari tradisi, maka sama artinya dengan menghapus tradisi itu sendiri, karena tradisi tidak menolelir transformasi. Metode yang digunakan pada penelitian ini bersifat kualitatif dengan landasan berfi kir fenomenologis interpretif yang berorientasi pada kebenaran yang bersifat subjektif dari sumber penelitian. Pengumpulan data dilakukan dengan menggunakan wawancara mendalam (in-depth interview) sebagai teknik yang utama dalam penelitian ini. Hasilnya adalah saat ini ada kecenderungan proses kombinasi baru antara seni tradisi dengan seni modern. Modernisasi bukan untuk dihindari, melainkan harus dimanfaatkan untuk memutakhirkan kesenian tradisional. Upaya ini sebenarnya penyiasatan agar kesenian tradisional tetap bertahan. Banyak kesenian tradisional yang dapat bertahan justru karena mengikuti arus modernisasi dan globalisasi itu. Kata kunci: karawitan, seni tradisi sunda, seni modern, inovasi ABSTRACT As a traditional art form, karawitan is still popular among the Sundanese community. Contextually, there is a paradox within the presence of this traditional art form in today’s society: to survive in the modern world, traditional art needs appeal and charm in terms of creative innovations that come from the tradition itself; on the other hand, changes and improvements of the tradition are in fact erasing the tradition itself, because tradition does not tolerate transformation. The method used in this research is qualitative with phenome- nological interpretive thinking foundations oriented towards the subjective nature of truth from research sources. Collecting data using in-depth interviews is the main method used for data collection. Nowadays there is a tendency to combine traditional arts with modern arts. Modernization is not to be avoided. Instead, it should be used to update traditional art. These eff orts are actually strategies to preserve traditional art. Many traditional arts survive because they follow the stream of modernization and globalization. Keywords: karawitan, traditional art form, modern art, innovation Panggung Vol. 27 No. 3, September 2017 264 INTRODUCTION instrumental. While karawitan sekar gending Cultural problems of Sundanese soci- is a combination of both (Soepandi, 1995). ety, as well as Indonesian people in gene- In addition to karawitan, there are still ral, is indicated by the process of cultural many Sundanese musical art forms such and local tradition alienation or exclusion as beluk, wawacan, ciawian, cigawiran, belen- (marginalization) by their own ethnic com- tuk ngapung, rengkong, etc. Those are a few munity. This marginalization occurs as a of traditional musical forms that are rarely result of the advances of the era, such as or never performed anymore in the arena the use of pa erns of time division; the pre- (Hermawan, 2006: 1). The forms of tradi- sent Sundanese people now usually use the tional music mentioned above are further system of international time division and described in the study entitled Bandungan: Islamic prayer times in their daily life. an Alternative Form of Tembang and Kawih Modernization and globalization have Creativity by Deni Hermawan (2006) as a re- shifted the indigenous local culture to the sult of decreasing level of public demands periphery of culture and to the corners of for particular performing arts due to their society’s collective memory. On the one irrelevance with people’s way of thinking, hand, the rationalization and development inappropriateness with current situation of science and technology have modernized and condition of society. All of these may Sundanese life and facilitated their lives. On lessen people’s knowledge about Sunda- the other hand, the risk is enormous, name- nese karawitan that is also worsened by the ly the destruction of social institutions, re- limited number of sources discussing it. ligious institutions and the fading of Sun- People’s limited knowledge about Sun- danese tradition. This can be seen from the danese karawitan is closely related to limit- fact that many traditional arts have been ed media that give information about Sun- forgo en by their people. danese karawitan. It can be said that there is In Sundanese culture, sounds cannot lack of print and electronic media that spe- be separated from habits or traditions that cifi cally covers Sundanese karawitan, in the are commonly practiced by the people. The form of bulletins, magazines, newspapers, sounds can be presented as kalangenan or or tabloids, up to television programs. games played by both adults and children Since young people as part of society at diff erent times and places, for example, are rarely exposed to traditional arts, they tutunggulan is usually done when the full now take global culture as their own cul- moon rises, ngadu drum is performed during ture. Therefore, traditional art and culture the fasting month. However, in general, it are considered as foreign things. This is is Sundanese musical karawitan that is well- similar to what was revealed by Soedarso known as Sundanese traditional music. Sp (1991: 26): Sundanese karawitan is generally divid- ed into three types, namely karawitan sekar, The most obvious impact of the infl ux of karawitan gending and karawitan sekar gen- foreign cultures, especially the West to Indonesia, is the declining interest of the ding. Karawitan sekar is all kinds of karawi- people, especially the younger generation tan performance that use only human voice towards something ethnic. This is due to (vocal) media. Karawitan gending is a type of the weak understanding of the ins and outs of the arts itself. karawitan that use only sounds of musical instruments. Gending can also be interpret- As we know, culture is constantly ed as a song that is performed by instru- changing. Among a number of traditional ments. In other words, karawitan gending is music that survive and continue to grow, Rudiana: Sundanese Karawitan and Modernity 265 there are so many other traditional arts that sounds that are not always united in musical slowly ebb and eventually perish. This issue mixing, but in fact, they are part of music has prompted many traditional artists to that can not be ignored. engage in creativity with revitalization con- In campursari, there is an ongoing power cept, such as presenting traditional music struggle that accompanies the new genre of within a new package. For example, patare- musical hybrid. In a particular sense, it is man performs beluk as a part of a new com- the ba le site between the dominant group position (Hermawan, 2002: 29). This eff ort and their strategies and tactics to avoid pre- can never bring the arts of beluk back to life vention, evasion or tacit resistance from the because life indeed has changed (for exam- subordinates. The sound hybrid produced ple, the paddy system has used tractor so by various musical instruments not only that farmers no longer perform beluk when makes campursari a musical phenomenon, they plow the paddy). Another example is but also has created a discourse as a result bandungan developed by Dasentra (Daya seni of the global process of what is “Javanese tradisi or Power of Arts Tradition) Bandung arts” or “Javaneseness.” because it was inspired by tembang sunda This paper is part of the dissertation cianjuran that still exists (Hermawan, 2006: about the creation of arts that uses sounds 3). This eff ort does not change the arts of and Sundanese traditional arts as its foun- tembang sunda cianjuran because its people dation. The new thing that writer gets out keep embracing and developing. However, of this phenomenon is that the traditional what is done by Dasentra Ban-dung (patare- music actually still has extraordinary ener- man and bandungan) is still in the corridor gy and power which can be created into a of Sundanese Traditional Arts. monumental work. In the conclusion of his research, Her- mawan (2006: 17) mentions that Dasentra’s eff ort in the form of tembang bandungan is METHOD the result of creativity that jumps far away This research is qualitative with an from its original source and automatically interpretive-phenomenological thinking off ers innovative things (new) in it. foundation that is subjective-truth oriented Another example related to innova- toward the research source. According to tive action developed by artists of tradi- Alfred Schu , the subjective experience is tion is campursari. In terms of music, cam- always in touch or interacts directly with pursari is able to combine traditional music the object being observed (Norman and (gamelan), keroncong/langgam and pop Yvonna, 1995: 337). music with Western musical instruments. This study is part of an artwork cre- Although debatable, campursari has deve- ation equal to a dissertation (S-3 Degree loped in society (especially in Central Java) Program of ISI Yogyakarta) entitled Paku- since the 1980s, and now this music genre sarakan Kuring. The study results presented keeps growing all over Indonesia and is in this paper are part of the preparatory adored by Indonesian people. phase.