"Ratna Ayu" vs. "Gamelan Bali Nyepi"

Although "Ratna Ayu" and "Gamelan Bali Nyepi" are both Balinese musical performances, they are far more different than they are similar.

While "Ratna Ayu" is a stage performance, "Gamelan Bali Nyepi" is a community (social) performance. "Ratna Ayu" is an indoors stage performance in which the ensemble is the center of attention. The only noise is the noise created by the performers themselves. There's an audience that is sitting very quietly watching and listening very carefully in order to appreciate the Balinesian music and dancing. This performance by the California Institute of the Arts' Balinese gamelan ensemble is most likely part of concert. This implies that the audience (most of which is probably non-Bali) had to pay an entrance fee. "Ratna Ayu" is a performance for an audience. On the other hand, "Gamelan Bali Nyepi" is a performance for the Bali community; it is part of their cultural socialization. In this performance there is nothing that separates the performers from the the audience; there's no stage. The Bali people that are playing the music are doing it for fun. They are performing for no one but themselves. Rather than following a strict code of conduct like the performers in "Ratna Ayu", the performers in "Gamelan Bali Neypi" talk amongst themselves as they play and enjoy their music. As far as the audience goes, some people stand around watching, but others simply take a glance as they pass by the beach and continue walking.

Appart from the context, there are some other small differences between the two performances. The most noticeable is that while female dancers are a major part of "Ratna Ayu," there are no dancers involved in "Gamelan Bali Neypi." Also the music from "Ratna Ayu" starts off very slow, then speeds up, and fianlly slows down again. On the other hand, the music from "Gamelan Bali Neypi" is upbeat throughout the entire piece. Finally, while "Ratna Ayu" combines music and singing, "Gamelan Bali Neypi" consists of music only.

It's amazing how Balinese performances can so different!