Book Review
Oct. 20th, 2010 10:40 pmMusic in Bali
by Lisa Gold
This is another really good book in the Global Music Series (yes, I am reading every one of these that I can get my hands on). While heavily focusing on gamelan, Gold takes an expansive view of Balinese music. She gives an overview of the cultural values that gamelan music reflects as well as the social and cultural functions of gamelan music. And, of course, there is a very detailed exploration of gamelan music and how it works, with many listening exercises. Gold also gave an overview of the history and development of gamelan ensembles, styles, a repertoire. I especially liked the way Gold incorporated selections that broke down and isolated elements of the music, because Balinese gamelan has, at times, a very dense texture and it can be hard to parse out individual parts. Music in Bali was a really informative and fascinating look at a musical culture I find really interesting.
by Lisa Gold
This is another really good book in the Global Music Series (yes, I am reading every one of these that I can get my hands on). While heavily focusing on gamelan, Gold takes an expansive view of Balinese music. She gives an overview of the cultural values that gamelan music reflects as well as the social and cultural functions of gamelan music. And, of course, there is a very detailed exploration of gamelan music and how it works, with many listening exercises. Gold also gave an overview of the history and development of gamelan ensembles, styles, a repertoire. I especially liked the way Gold incorporated selections that broke down and isolated elements of the music, because Balinese gamelan has, at times, a very dense texture and it can be hard to parse out individual parts. Music in Bali was a really informative and fascinating look at a musical culture I find really interesting.