Hybrid Instrumentation Strategy in Balinese Gamelan Performances: The Challenge of Retaining Sonic Identity

Abstract

Hybrid instrumentation is relatively uncommon in Balinese gamelan performance. Conventionally, gamelan is performed using a complete acoustic ensemble of approximately 30 instruments; however, contemporary performances often involve 12 instruments or fewer due to limitations in performer availability. Reductions in ensemble size can affect ensemble balance, textural density, and sonic coherence. The incorporation of digital technologies, resulting in hybrid acoustic-digital configurations, has emerged as a practical response to these constraints. Despite its relevance, scholarly discussion of hybrid instrumentation in Balinese gamelan is limited, particularly in relation to developments in performing arts practice and music technology. This study examines how digital and acoustic instrumentation may be combined in Balinese gamelan performance while maintaining recognisable sonic features associated with established practice and cultural identity. Rather than proposing a fixed or prescriptive solution, it develops a practice-informed framework for hybrid performance. This framework considers instrumental roles, performer interaction, software mediation, sound equipment, and sound-engineering decisions in relation to the acoustic characteristics of performance spaces. Live performance is treated as the primary unit of analysis within a qualitative research design. Data generated through studio experimentation, simulation, and performance activity were complemented by interviews and literature. The study identifies three interrelated challenges in applying hybrid instrumentation: integrating digital technologies within established performance practices; maintaining Balinese gamelan sonic and cultural identity; and performers’ capacity to realise compositions consistent with embodied playing techniques, ensemble interaction, and idiomatic gamelan practice. These findings offer considerations intended to inform future hybrid gamelan experimentation without prescribing a singular model.