The gamelan

Indonesian gamelan

I recently discovered the gamelan. It is the name given to an Indonesian musical ensemble composed of gongs, xylopohones and drums. I love the strange sound of this music.

Album: Original Degung
Track: Sorban Palid

Pantha du Prince & The Bell Laboratory (2013)

If you are a reader of this blog, chances are you noticed I have an interest for percussive instruments like the hang drum, the gamelan or the marimba. So of course I was intrigued when I heard about this new album. Pantha du Prince is a german house/techno music producer. He has made a speciality in incorporating acoustic elements into his electronic music. The result is a music sounding much more organic than the usual electronic music. Here he teams with The Bell Laboratory, a norwegian collective of carillons and bell players.

The Hang drum (by PANart)

I was looking at ambient music videos on youtube when I stumbled on some hang drum videos. I was instantly charmed by the unusual sound of this instrument. So I did a little research, wanting to know more.

The Hang drum is an object made of metal, in the shape of a flying saucer and hollow inside. It was inspired by many eastern instruments, gongs, gamelan, gatham drums and bells. The sound of this is just out of this world.

I was wondering if it's possible to buy it somewhere and to learn it from someone. Well, turns out it is only made by the inventors of the instrument, Felix Rohner and Sabina Shärer. They own a little company called PANArt, located in Berne, Switzerland. And it seems you have to go there by yourself to buy it (at a high price). They only build a couple each year, and from what I read they receive tons of demands and can't answer positively to all requests.

If you want to know more about this instrument have a look at the hangblog. There is a library section with a lot of information about it. And just listen to the video below, it sounds... amazing. I have to find a good album featuring this instrument.

Laraaji – Ambient 3: Day of Radiance (1980)

I have already reviewed Ambient 1 and Ambient 2 on this blog. So now, here's the third album of the Ambient Series.

When I first heard it, it was probably my least favorite of the Ambient Series, because it is so different from the three others. But it grew on me with the years and I'm starting to enjoy it more each time I listen to it.

Laraaji (Edward Larry Gordon) is a musician from Philadelphia. He studied the violin, piano and trombone in his early years. However, he became famous when Brian Eno heard him play the dulcimer in Washington Square Park, and decided to introduce him to the world, producing this album.

The album really has an eastern mysticism feel (sometimes reminescent of the sound of gamelan music). The songs mix dulcimer and zither, with little or no electronic effect. The music is more intense in the beginning of the album (The Dance #1, #2 and #3) and start to slow down as the album progresses. You really feel that the album is getting slower as it plays, slowly disintegrating. My favorite tracks are Meditation #1 and Meditation #2 at the end of the album. Those two tracks sound more like the other albums of the Ambient Series.

After releasing Ambient 3: Day of Radiance, Laraaji has worked in meditation and yoga workshops and released other zither albums.