Music, dance,
theater, and visual arts are ubiquitous
in Bali, where artistic
production is far
out of proportion to the
size and population of
the island. One of some
17,000 islands in the Indonesian archipelago, Bali is a
place of dualism—suka and
duka (the good and the bad), black and white, up
and down—all contributing
to a greater cosmic balance. Though Indonesia is the
largest Muslim-majority
country in the world, most Balinese practice Agama
Hindu Dharma, a syncretic
blend of Hinduism, Buddhism, and animism that
requires performing and
visual arts for the successful completion of the thousands
of ceremonies undertaken
each year. The unique history and culture of
Bali are best understood
through the arts, which connect past to present, self to
community, and religion
to reality.
Students and faculty
will live in the
Tangkas family compound in Bangah, a small
village in central Bali.
The daily class schedule will include lectures and discussion
of readings on Balinese
history, culture, arts, and environment. It will also
include practical
instruction in traditional music, dance, painting, and woodcarving,
in conjunction with
Sanggar Manik Galih, the music and dance studio
housed in the compound. Students
will experience Balinese arts and culture
through participation in
daily life, attendance at a wide range of performances,
and
lecture-demonstrations by a variety of artists and craftsmen. The studio has
been outfitted with a
gamelan angklung, gamelan gong kebyar, gamelan gender
wayang, gamelan
balaganjar, and gamelan joged bumbung for course use.
Lectures and
discussions will address issues of colonialism, tourism, the environment,
globalization, and
modernization as they relate to Balinese culture,
Balinese arts, and the
island itself. All coursework provides a framework for better
understanding the
island’s reliance on the arts and their close relationship with Balinese
culture and religion.
Elizabeth Macy is a
Skidmore visiting assistant professor who teaches courses in ethnomusicology.
She holds a B.A. in music
from Colorado College, an M.A. in music from UCRiverside,
and a Ph.D. in
ethnomusicology from UCLA. Her primary research addresses the
function of music tourism
in postdisaster economies, with a particular focus on music
tourism in the recovery
and rebuilding of post-Katrina New Orleans and of Bali after the
2002 and 2005 terrorist
bombings. She previously taught courses in Bali through Colorado
College, conducted
extensive research around the island, and is a founding member of the
Sanggar
Manik Galih music and dance studio in central Bali.