Gondang

Gondang is a traditional percussion of Bataknese, North Sumatra, Indonesia. It is made from leather together with special wood and rope. This percussion was used to be use to call ancestor's spirits. If Gondang is hit, one of the elder will be possessed and he/she will talk strangely, thus the spirit give answer to the questions needed.



Nowadays, since Christian has been already the basic religion of Batak people, most of cultural motivations were changed. One of them is the motivation to use Gondang. If previously Gondang is used to call ancestor's spirits, now Gondang simply used to cheer up the ethnic wedding, parties, or else's.

Me, my self, I didn't really like Batak music. It's just so weird for me. Until I listen to this one.

Through this music I could found the essential rhythm of Batak People. Listen carefully, and I bet you will move your foot up and down. Listen again, and I bet you want to dance within this music, or at least you will shake your body. I believe Tor-tor (Traditional dance of Batak) is born from this music. They are very suitable: Gondang and Tor-tor. The choreography is simple, but quite enough to relax your mind and feeling.

Listen to Saluang (traditional flute) tone, it's just so mellow, soft, kind, a little bit sad; I'm sure this also express personality of Batak People. Listen also to the Banjo (traditional small guitar) and Wood Gondang, it's so agile; from this I know Batak People like party.

The music it self is not to complicated. The chord progression is simple, and the maneuver is less, but still it makes us not bored to listen to it. The emotion is less and steady. It also describe men in Batak, they all like that, prefer small emotion feeling rather than full emotion.

Something I don't like is every time I hear Gondang play live. They play so noisy. The quality of tones were not the main point, the bigger volume the better. I don't like it. I prefer like this, good tone quality, agile and harmonized altogether.