Kidung Wargasari: Diiringi Gong Degdog, Kaliakah - Negara (B.453)

More interesting music from the Kaliakah village in West Bali, home of the previously posted Angklung Reong. This tape combines solo Kidung Wargasari vocal poetics with gamelan gong accompaniment - a very nice reverent vibe captured.

Kidung Wargasari: Diiringi Gong Degdog, Kaliakah - Negara (B.453)

Kidung Wargasari, Karangasem (B. 934)

Austere recording of the Balinese romantic, quasi-historical kidung wargasari poem. Often heard at temple festivals reverberating from within the structure's inner sanctum, these sustained incantations are performed by groups (like on this tape) or, to different effect, solo. Gamelan accompaniment is sometimes a feature. I first heard this particular cassette when it was being blasted from an old loudspeaker for the benefit of the whole village - it sounded very cool echoing throughout hills. With a little work I tracked a copy down for myself, but have yet to crank it for the neighborhood. Nice cutout artwork on the cover.

Kidung Wargasari, Karangasem (B. 934)