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Reviving Javanese musical instrument ‘bundengan’ from extinction
Bundengan is currently considered "extinct" as duck herders in Boyolali, Temanggung, Banjarnegara and Gresik no longer use kowangan, the bamboo item it was made of.
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"Bersinergi Lewat Tubuh Tari" was performed during What is Bundengan festival on Oct. 26 in Ngabean hamlet. (JP/Bambang Muryanto)
T
he name bundengan may not ring a bell for most Indonesians. However in the past, bundengan was a popular musical instrument among duck herders who would play it to kill time while herding the animals.
The unique Javanese musical instrument is made from a bamboo cloak-like item called kowangan.
Kowangan was a popular item among duck herders who used it to cover themselves from sun and rain while herding ducks from farms to rice fields.
These duck herders would usually sit under a kowangan while waiting for the ducks to find food in the fields.
During their free time, the herders would turn kowangan into an instrument by inserting five strings between three bamboo blades.
The curve-shaped kowangan works as a resonator, producing sounds through string vibration. Uniquely, this modest instrument produces gamelan-like sounds. Despite its limitations, each component of bundengan is able to produce the sounds of gong, kenong, kempul and bonang.
Alas, bundengan is currently considered "extinct" as duck herders in Boyolali, Temanggung, Banjarnegara and Gresik no longer use kowangan.
