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A N Y C I T Y
Traditional Asian Theater Music

LESSON 1.
JAPANESE THEATER - rich in culture and tradition.

Ikebana and cherry blossoms, to name a few, represent the beauty of its cultural
heritage.
Very popular tradition: The traditional form of theater which began at the end of
sixteenth century and soon became the most successful theater is considered the
most important Japanese contribution to world theater.

nÔh and kabuki are unique and genuine expressions of the Japanese spirit and culture.

Sakura is one of the popular traditional songs of Japan.

* Cherry Blossoms in English, it is a traditional song that produces distinct
characteristics used in the Asian style of making melodies also known as the pentatonic
scale.

The continuous pattern or ipponchoshi is used in speeches building up to an explosive

climax in the arogato, it requires an extraordinary breath control that only few experts
succeed in achieving.

Another technique adapted from the chanting of joruri is called nori.It implies a very
sensitive capacity of riding the rhythms of the shamisen.

Yakuharai techniques in the same way describe the subtle delivery of poetical text
alternating seven and five syllables.

VOCAL AND INSTRUMENTAL FEATURES

* Dances and movements are accompanied by shamisen music

From gagaku [classic court music imported from China during the 18th century],
kagura [performed in Shinto shrines],

nÔ [chant derives from shõmyo, the sophisticated and rich tradition of Buddhist
chanting], down to the folk songs and fashionable songs of the day.

The most popular shamisen music was called nagauta [long song] which reached a
golden age in the first half of the 19th century as dance music for the henge mono or
quick change pieces.

Naugata music is very flexible, can be performed by an entire orchestra of twenty

musicians.
CHINESE THEATER — considered as the highest form of arts in China.

Peking Opera Theater, is a stylized Chinese form of opera in which speech, singing, mime, and
acrobatics are performed to an instrumental accompaniment.
It became fully developed and recognized by the mid-19th century.

Basically, the Peking opera has two main styles of music, namely: the erhhuang
and the his-p’l.
- His-p’l has lower sound than the erh-huang.
Fan-pan which is commonly used for sorrowful songs, and is only sung by bearded
characters.

The orchestra of a Peking opera is different from the western orchestra.

-It comprises about eight musicians.
-Each performance in a Peking opera begins with the ta-lo and siag-lo, a small and large gong
and cymbals, in some performances they also start with a single skin drum.
-Traditionally, the musicians come and go freely and are never considered part of the stage
picture. In contemporary China, the musicians are often seated in an orchestra pit and kept
offstage.

Music is an integral part of every performance.

Theater musicians learn their parts by rote =since Chinese musical notation is very imprecise
Most music used in the Peking opera has been worked out collaboratively between actors and
musicians.
The actor’s delivery of lines is rigidly controlled by conventions.
Each role has its prescribed vocal timbre and pitch, and syllables are often drawn out with
regards to conversational usage in order to maintain the appropriate rhythm.

Even spoken passages are governed by strict rhythms and tempos.

- Chanted and sung passages are freely inserted into spoken monologues or dialogues
The following are some musical instruments used in a Peking opera performance

*The vocal requirements for all the major roles were greatly reduced for Peking opera. The chou,
in particular, rarely has a singing part in Peking opera, unlike the equivalent role in Kungu style.

*They simplify the songs that accompany each play in coordination to the traditional instruments
used.
-This allowed anyone to sing the arias themselves.

*The highest aim of performers is to put beauty into every motion. The four skills of Peking
opera are not separate, but rather combined in a single performance.

*One skill may take precedence at certain moments during a play, but this does not mean that
other actions should cease. Much attention is paid to tradition in the art form, and gestures,
settings, music, and character types are determined by long-held convention. This includes
conventions of movement, which are used to signal particular actions to the audience.
INDONESIAN THEATER
Shadow Puppet Theater is a well-known Indonesian theater popular in several countries around the
world. * * Wayang Kulit in Central Java is one of the oldest continuous traditions of storytelling in
the world which includes the use of puppet materials and background musical accompaniment.
- Wayang is an Indonesian and Malay word for theater. Sometimes the puppet itself is referred to as
wayang.
- Kulit means skin and refers to the leather construction of the puppets that are carefully cut into very
fine tools and supported with carefully shaped buffalo horn handles and control rods.

THE PERFORMANCE
- The audience is the most important person in a Wayang Kulit performance. The dalang prepares all
the materials used like the cloth and the light for the shadow. The puppet on the right side signifies the
good character, on the left-hand side the bad.

THE DALANG
- The puppeteer is called the dalang. He manipulates the puppets, sings, and taps out signals to the
orchestra. He also speaks the parts of all the characters. The use of the voice interchangeably is the
main ability of a dalang to give more life to a different character.

Wayang Kulit was performed in royal court and widely performed in public on religious occasions so that
knowledge of wayang became widespread among all classes* - in Java.

THE MUSIC: GAMELAN

A full Javanese gamelan ensemble consists of:
1. Saron – xylophone of heavy bronze bars
2. Gender – bronze xylophone with resonance chambers beneath
3. Bonang – set of bronze bowls
4. Gong and Kempul – hanging gongs
5. Kenong and Ketuk – single inverted bronze bowl
6. Gambang – wooden xylophone
7. Rebab – two-stringed fiddle
8. Suling – flute
9. Kendang – horizontal drum beat with the fingers on both ends
10. Tjelempung – a zither of thirteen double string

The preponderance of bronze instruments gives gamelan music a bright, lingering sound, ranging from
slow, majestic melodies of the Javanese gamelan to the clangorous vibrancy of the Balinese gamelan.

Fiddle and flute add a delicate counterpoint to a four-square pattern of percussive melody.
- It accompanies the singing/chanting and it accompanies stage actions including dance.
- The importance of each function varies from area to area and from theater form to theater form.

The dalang sings the mood songs (suluk) at regular intervals during the performance; in a nine-hour
Wayang Kulit, he may sing fifty or sixty.

The same generalized lyrics may be used in play after play. Suluk are never accompanied by the full
gamelan ensemble.

Often a single instrument accompanies the singer, never more than three or four. The major dramatic
function of gamelan music is to accompany stage action. Entrances, exits, and fight scenes are
executed in time to gamelan music.
 04.15.24

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Quarter 4 – Module 1 Festivals and Theatre Arts in Asia

• Southeast Asian Theater:

A. Cai Luong (Vietnam)
- Cai luong, classified as “renovated theater”
- This theater form from was first performed in the early 1900s.
° Two Types of Cai Luong:
1) Cai Luong Tuong Co (ancient form): historic and
legendry stories of Vietnam’s feudal system.
2) Cai Luong Xa Hoi (modern form): romantic relationships in modern society
- Cai Luong performers combine nostalgic singing and spoken dialogue with music playing in
background.

B. Khon (Thailand)
- A masked, stylized dance drama with roots than can be traced down back to the 16th
century.
- This form of traditional theater evolved alongside the national epic story and the Thai
version of Ramayana, which is the Ramakien.
- There is no dialogue in khon, only the chorus tells the story on the side.
- It employs many aspects of the arts: drama, dance, pantomime, and music.
- It is considered a “high art form” that was originally performed to entertain the Thai
royal family.
- Before only men was able to perform because it was so strenuous.
- The costumes are elaborate, including decorated headdresses or crowns and full-head
masks, which is the most distinctive characteristic of this performance.

C. Nang Shadow Puppets

- Performed traditionally in southern Thailand
- It is still very popular at festivals, temple fairs, and celebrations such as marriages.
- The puppets themselves are colorful, but appear as shadows during the show
- Performed using rods to move the puppets
- Usually performed during the dry season (February to August)
- Shadow plays can be based on current events or traditional stories.
- There are many different characters that can be used in shadow plays, but some
popular ones include clowns, funny old men, scatter-brained old women, and yokels. • Mr. Suchart
Sapsin – a man of many talents. He is not only an expert in the craft of
making puppets he is also an award-winning writer and poet. He is a narrator, speaking or
singing all the parts using different voices and he is a superb mimic.
• Two Types of Nang:
- Nang Talung: is played with leather puppets, each representing a separate character, about 50cm
high.
- Nang Yai: is normally made of cowhide rattan, a large, decorated scenes and characters measuring
around two meters high and a meter wide.

Nai Nang: teacher and presenter of the Nang Talung.

- Nang recites tales of the gods and contemporary people through stories of love,
current events, and tradition.

D. Lakhon Bassac (Cambodia):

- It is characterized by the larger-than-life and comic movements that depict specific scenes of early
old Khmer literature, particularly the ones about the clash of good and evil spirits. This animated and
amusing form of Khmer theater features dance, music, and melodrama, with performers appearing in
extravagant costumes.
 Costume: The male stars, usually the prince is wearing a costume sewing with very complicate
patterns.
- The costume and the crown are decorated with beautiful jewelries.
- His weapon is an arch and bows or a stick.
Yeak: he/she always looks ugly. The Yeak is said to represent an evil spirit, a bad guy.
Music: a scene is always preluded with a sound of a drum and a melodic sound of a low- pitch
fiddle and a dulcime.
Performance (Yeak): jumping up and down, turning around, and waving his weapon according
to the sound of a drum.
• Ta Eiysey and Ta Eiyso:
° Ta Eiysey - is a master of the prince.
° Ta Eiyso - is a master of the Yeak.

E. Wayang Kulit ( Indonesia):

- "Wayang" is an Indonesian and Malay
word for theater.
- "Kulit" means skin
- The puppets are made of leather and are carefully cut with fine tools.
- The stories are usually drawn from the Hindu epics:
1. Ramayana
2. Mahabharata
3. Serat Menak- a story about heroism of Amir Hamza

The white screen symbolizes the universe where natives go on with their live.
- The screen’s brighter side is a representation of the material world, and the darkest side
symbolizes the afterlife.

The oil lamp, called the blencong, often takes the shape of the mythical bird Garuda. The lamp
symbolizes the sun rays needed by all living things.

Elements of performance: ( The puppeteer – dhalang(Java) /dalang(Bali)

- A hammer used by the dalang to knock on the puppet box, Cempala metal plates that the dating
hits with his foot, kepyak
- A puppet box, kothak - substance holds the puppet in place

F. Zat Pwe (Myanmar):

- Pwe is a broad Burmese term for performances that encompass classical dance, drama, and
musical opera.
- Zat pwe is the more popular type of this performance.
- This highly stylized form combines dance, drama, and music to form an exceptional theater art.
- accompanied by hswaing waing, which is a gong and percussion ensemble.
- Some performances of zat pwe also lifts stories of Burmese history.
- Traditionally, it lasts the whole night.

G. Komedya (Philippines):
- The Komedya, sometimes called the moro-moro, is a form of theater art in our country.
- This long play, which often lasts for three nights.
- Story of the religious and political conflicts between Christian and Muslim heroes.
- In the komedya, kings, princes, and dukes engage in intense battle, with the Christian always
being triumphant in the end.