Supanggah Residency

November 2008

In November 2008, Southbank Centre Artist in Residence Rahayu Supanggah returned once again to London to embark upon his third residential project at the Royal Festival Hall.

This began on Saturday 8 November with a full weekend programme of gamelan-related activities involving gamelan enthusiasts from all over the UK and visiting gamelan players from Porto in Portugal. To begin the activities, experienced musician and animateur Duncan Chapman facilitated a free tutor development workshop for gamelan teachers to explore group composition techniques, gamelan sampling and the manipulation of basic electronic sound files.

Following the workshop was a relaxed four-hour-long klenengan  (gamelan playing session) in the Royal Festival Hall foyer using the Southbank Centre portable gamelan. A range of experienced and beginner gamelan players came together to explore a programme of traditional Javanese repertoire devised by Supanggah and gamelan tutor Pete Smith. The klenengan featured the beautiful singing of Esther Wilds, guest pesindhen (solo female vocalist).

On Sunday 9 November, Supanggah prepared three specialist and participatory workshops for more advanced gamelan players. These focussed on the musical forms of palaran and pathetan (exploring different instrumental and vocal parts) and also the practical realisation of gamelan compositions in a particular tuning and mode (slendro nem). Participants were treated to a fantastic insight into the meaning of the sung poetry used with these forms, the different performance contexts for the pieces and finally practical sessions on the gamelan to play the pieces under Supanggah’s expert direction.

Klenengan photographs by Maz.

Supanggah and the Portico Quartet

19 November 2008, Purcell Room

Supanggah’s residency culminated in a collaborative performance with modern Jazz group the Portico Quartet – the first time that Supanggah had worked in the Jazz genre:

Nick Mulvey - Hang and percussion
Duncan Bellamy - Hang and percussion
Jack Wyllie - soprano and alto saxophone
Milo Fitzpatrick - double bass

Nominated for the 2008 Mercury Music Prize, the Portico Quartet play music that mixes the inspiration of Philip Glass and Steve Reich with their own contemporary improvisation and sound – engagingly chiming themes delivered by the steelpan-like Hang, saxophone, drums and bass.

They have always been fascinated by gamelan, so they jumped at the chance of collaborating with Indonesian gamelan master Rahayu Supanggah, commissioned by Southbank Centre and the London Jazz Festival.

The performance opened with the Southbank Gamelan Players playing a number of Supanggah’s compositions and traditional Javanese repertoire directed by Supanggah.

Southbank Gamelan Players: John Barber, Robert Campion, Isabelle Carre, Andy Channing, Sophie Clark, Nikhil Dally, Aris Daryono, Cathy Eastburn, Joe Field, Nikki Kemp, Malcolm Milner, John Pawson, Jonathan Roberts, Pete Smith, Esther Wilds

Supanggah's programme: Gendhing Srimpen Jayaningsih pl7. Pathtetan Ageng - Gending Jayaningsih - Ketawang Jayaningsih - kemuda Ragu - Palaran & Macapat Gambuh - Sampak Gambuh. Tongkleng - Gangsaran 5. Lancaran Kebogiro Dayoh Teka - Pathetan Gamang -Ketawang Rantaya Pelog 6 - Bibaran

After the interval, the Portico Quartet played their set before joining forces with Supanggah for their closing collaboration.

John Whitfield facilitated a free pre-concert talk as part of the ‘Hear me talkin’ to ya’ series of Jazz Festival talks in the Front Room of the Queen Elizabeth Hall. This featured all four members of the Portico Quartet with Supanggah talking about their musical influences and the processes behind their collaboration. Translations were given by Jonathan Roberts.

Rahayu Supanggah is a Southbank Centre Artist in Residence supported by Paul Hamlyn Foundation.

www.sbgp.org.uk