from the bouvet penguin

We have a new section up at our Bouvet Foundation media project sister web site, ‘the bas/bou files’: 
Gamelan Orchestra from the Yogyakarta Kraton.  
You will find both a narrative, a web photo gallery and a downloadable pdf ebook there. Enjoy, and please share this info with others…

Javanese traditional music performed by the palace gamelan music ensamble directed by (pengeprak) Mateus Anwar Widodo, in the Srimanganti Pendopo (performance pavilion) of the Yogyakarta Kraton (Sultan’s Palace).

The melodious gamelan music is being played by the Niyagas (gamelan players) dressed in traditional Javanese costume. The Pesinden (female and male) are singing with distinct, beautiful voices. The Pengeprak, the man who beats a wooden slit drum called the Keprak, directs the performance, and usually also is the dance master. With the sound of keprak, he gives order to the gamelan players, to the singers and to the dancers.



We have a new section up at our Bouvet Foundation media project sister web site, ‘the bas/bou files’: 
Classical Javanese court dance from Yogyakarta.
You will find both a narrative, a web photo gallery and a downloadable pdf ebook there. Enjoy, and please share this info with others…

Javanese palace dance (tari kraton) performed by Maria Vincentia Ika Mulatsih SS, accompanied by the palace gamelan music ensamble, in the Srimanganti Pendopo (performance pavilion) of the Yogyakarta Kraton (Sultan’s Palace).

Kraton dance performances are accompanied by traditional ‘gamelan’ music, and follows strict rules as to dance movements, body and hand gestures that requires discipline to learn. The serene elegance, slow pace and constrains of its movements give Javanese court dance a meditative quality. These dances are heavily influenced by Javanese Hindu-Buddhist legacy, which is often reflected in the costumes, jewelry and story.

Planning a documentary style film about Kupang and would appreciate tips on what to include. Think 5-minute segments on different subjects. Recommendations about what to film – incl who (you?) may present that, would be great. Thanks… Bas

Photo © Basil Rolandsen (http://bouvetmedia.com)

Teacher Linda Susanti instructs 4th grade pupils at the Pulo Bungong school how to wash their hands.

TODAY is a GLOBAL HAND WASHING DAY. Initiated in 2008 by the Global Public-Private Partnership for Hand washing with Soap, Global Hand washing Day is endorsed by a wide array of governments, international institutions, civil society organizations, NGOs, private companies and individuals around the globe. Here is my little contribution…

The picture is taken 23 January 2009, in Batee, Pidie, Aceh (NAD), Indonesia. It is from a Norwegian Red Cross water & sanitation project, initiated after the 2004 tsunami.

Photo © Basil Rolandsen (http://bouvetmedia.com)

Yusnidar is fascinated, if a bit nervous, when her teacher Ainal Mardiah cuts her nails. It is a part of a project teaching school children personal hygiene, but in her as with her friends Husna and Rosmariati, I see a glimpse of the eternal feminine fascination with mails, hair, shoes and so on. The mother passing on the rites to her daughters…

The picture is taken 23 January 2009, at the Kuala Batee school in Pidie, Aceh (NAD), Indonesia. The training was a part of a Norwegian Red Cross water & sanitation project, initiated after the 2004 tsunami.