Gamelan music from Indonesia

A gamelan is a whole orchestra of mostly bronze gongs and metal instruments, from the islands of Java and Bali in Indonesia. The players share the instruments as one team.

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The instruments

A gamelan is an ensemble of mainly metallophones (tuned metal bars), gongs and drums:
InstrumentJob
Gong agengThe largest, lowest gong. It marks the end of the longest cycle
Kempul and kenongSmaller gongs that mark points within the cycle
SaronMetallophones that play the core melody
BonangRows of small kettle gongs that decorate the melody
KendhangDrums. The drummer controls the tempo and signals changes

How the music works

The balungan is the core melody, the 'skeleton' of the piece.
Other instruments play versions of it at the same time, with higher instruments usually playing faster and decorating it. Different versions of the same melody at once is called a heterophonic texture.
The music is cyclic: it repeats in cycles, and gongs mark the structure (this is called a colotomic structure).
In Balinese gamelan, players often play fast interlocking parts that fit together.

Scales and learning

Gamelan uses its own tuning systems: slendro (5 notes) and pelog (7 notes). Each gamelan is tuned as a set, so instruments are not swapped between sets.
The music is traditionally learnt by ear, and there is no conductor: players follow the drummer.
The French composer Claude Debussy heard a Javanese gamelan at the Paris Exposition of 1889, and it influenced his music.
Worked example

Explain why gamelan music is described as having a heterophonic texture.

  1. The core melody (balungan) is played by some instruments.
  2. At the same time, other instruments play decorated or faster versions of that same melody.
  3. Several versions of one melody played together is a heterophonic texture.

Answer: Because different instruments play different versions of the same core melody at the same time.

Key idea

Gamelan comes from Java and Bali in Indonesia. Instruments: gongs (gong ageng), metallophones (saron), bonang and kendhang drums. The balungan is the core melody; texture is heterophonic; structure is cyclic and marked by gongs. Scales: slendro (5 notes) and pelog (7).

Key words
Texture
How many layers of sound there are and how they fit together.
Heterophonic
A texture in which different versions of the same melody are played at the same time.
Structure
How a piece of music is organised into sections.
Ensemble
A group of performers, from a duet to an orchestra.

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Quick check

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Extra practice

2 more questions

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  1. Which two islands are best known for gamelan?

    1. Cuba and Jamaica
    2. Java and Bali
    3. Sri Lanka and Madagascar
    4. Sicily and Sardinia
    Show the answer

    Answer: Java and Bali

    Gamelan comes from Indonesia.

  2. What is the largest gong in a gamelan called?

    1. Saron
    2. Bonang
    3. Kendhang
    4. Gong ageng
    Show the answer

    Answer: Gong ageng

    The gong ageng is the biggest.

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Sources and references

Last updated 2 October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us and we will fix it.

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