Kotekan

An example of kotekan empat (H=high, L=low) depicting the sangsih part (top), the polos part (middle), and their composite (bottom)[1]

Kotekan is a style of playing fast interlocking parts in most varieties of Balinese Gamelan music, including Gamelan gong kebyar, Gamelan angklung, Gamelan jegog and others.

Kotekan are "sophisticated interlocking parts,"[2] "characteristic of gong kebyar and several other Balinese gamelan styles, that combine to create the illusion of a single melodic line that often sounds faster than any single human could possibly play."[3] According to Colin McPhee: "Composed of two rhythmically opposing parts which...interlock to create a perpetual flow of sound, the kotekan adds sheen and intensity to the music, ...calls for the utmost rhythmic precision...[and] lies in the top register of the gamelan."[4]

One of the most striking features of Balinese gamelan music...is kotekan, the rapid interlocking figuration that permeates nearly all kebyar compositions. It creates a unique sonic impression: a group of gangsa (bronze metallophones) struck with hard wooden mallets produce an intricately patterned lay of sound above the more sustained tones of the lower instruments; the reyong, a row of small tuned gongs played by four musicians, creates a different (but equally complex) figuration of a softer attack and sound color; and leading them all are a pair of drummers who play yet another kind of interlocking patterns.

— Wayne Vitale[5]

In kotekan there are two independent parts called polos and sangsih, each of which fills in the gaps of the other to form a complete rhythmic texture. In Gamelan gong kebyar, Kotekan is usually played on the higher-pitched gangsa and reyong as embellishment to the main melody (pokok) played on the calung and ugal.

The busy upper registers of the gamelan are the domain of the gangsas and reyong. These instruments spin out kotekan, the crackling ornamental fireworks of Balinese music. Kotekan is usually expressed in English as 'interlocking parts', because although it sounds as one melody it is actually composed of two interdependent musical lines that are incomplete when played alone and dependent exclusively on each other for obtaining the desired result. That can range from stately murmuring some of the older, simpler styles of kotekan, to extroverted, jazzy acrobatics in modern music. The tight interaction of the two parts produces a supple texture that is pointillistic in detail and fluid as a whole. ... Much of the excitement of Balinese music arises from these irresistible rhythms.

— Michael Tenzer[6]
Note: In the transliteration of Balinese used here, the letter "c" represents a sound similar to English "ch".
  1. ^ Spiller, Henry (2004). The Traditional Sounds of Indonesia, Volume 1: Gamelan, p.123. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 9781851095063.
  2. ^ Spiller (2004), p.12.
  3. ^ Spiller, Henry (2010). Focus: Gamelan Music of Indonesia, p.99. Routledge. ISBN 9781135901905.
  4. ^ McPhee, Colin (1966). Music in Bali, p.162. New Haven, CT: Yale. [ISBN unspecified].
  5. ^ Vitale, Wayne (Fall 1990). "Kotekan: the technique of interlocking parts in Balinese music", Balungan, Vol. IV, No. 2, p.2 and p.14, note 7. "Interlocking parts, sometimes also known by the term candetan, are found in many other forms of Balinese music besides the gamelan gong kebyar," note 1, p.12. American Gamelan Institute.
  6. ^ Tenzer, Michael (1998). Balinese Music, p.46. Tuttle. ISBN 9781462916382.