Tari Piriang Diatas Piriang

Audio 3.3: Audio Example 3 in Chapter 3 of book: Margaret Kartomi, ‘Musical Journeys in Sumatra’, Champaign-Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 2012. The Minangkabau region of West Sumatra is well-known for its harvest time plate dances (“Tari Piriang” in Minangkabau, “Tari Piring” in Indonesian), of which there are several varieties. The most common of these has dancers in kneeling position rotating both hands with a plate resting on each palm (secured when necessary by the thumb and the fifth finger). Another popular version has the plates on the ground and arranged in a circle. The dancers walk on each plate performing dance movements. This excerpt, “Tari Piriang Diatas Piriang” (literally ‘Plate Dance on a Plate’), recorded in December 1985, is an example of the music that accompanies that particular type of dance. The ensemble, led by Bp Amal Sahrudin, comprises large bronze gong-chimes (usually called “talempong” but known as “calenang” in the local dialect of the recording location), a tambourine, a double headed drum (“gandang”) and an oboe (“sarunai”) fashioned from a paddy rice stalk (“batang padi”) with a flared tube wound from lengths of coconut leaf. The “talempong” provides interlocking pitch and rhythm patterns. The “batang padi” player uses circular breathing to produce a continuous stream of melody. The other instruments provide jaunty rhythmic support as befitting the dance. Duration: 3 min. 22 sec. Copyright 1985. Margaret J. Kartomi.