A generic term for any double-headed laced drum, cylindrical or conical, of the islands of Java, Bali and, to a lesser extent, Lombok. All ordinary gamelan include one or more kendang played by the orchestral leader, who gives cues to the other musicians regarding formal structure, speed, number of repetitions, beginnings and endings, etc. This is done through an elaborate standardized system of fixed rhythmical patterns composed of the various sounds each drum may produce.
In Central Java the kendhang has a double-conical, or ‘bellied’ body, to which the heads are laced with leather. It is played by hand. In the Central Javanese gamelan there are three sizes. The smallest, the kendhang ketipung, is about 40 cm long. It is played also in rural ensembles such as the reyog ensemble in Ponorogo, East Java, where its name is abbreviated to tipung. The kendhang batangan (or kendhang ciblon) is about 65 cm long and is usually made of jackfruit wood. It now has a large repertory and is used in the wayang (puppet) theatre and in dance music, where it is played in a relatively elaborate style. The kendhang gendhing (or kendhang gedhé or kendhang ageng) is the largest drum in the Central Javanese gamelan. It is about 70 cm long and is played either alone or (by the same player) with the ketipung.
In Sundanese areas of West Java the heads of the kendang are laced with cord of buffalo hide and tautened by sliding rings. In ensembles a pair of kendang are often used. The larger is the kendang ageung (‘big drum’), about 65 cm long, with heads measuring about 30 cm and 26 cm in diameter. It rests slanting downwards on a low wooden trestle. The player beats the larger head with his right hand, sometimes with a drumstick, and his left hand plays the smaller head. The heel of the right foot is used continuously in Sundanese kendang playing to modify the pitch of the larger drum head. This kendang is played in combination with two smaller drums, kulanter. The kulanter is about 36 to 38 cm long, with heads measuring about 18 and 16 cm in diameter. It is played in an upright position to the left of the performer. The kendang penca are one or two pairs of drums used for the Sundanese penca (a dance based on penca silat, the art of self-defence). They accompany penca performances together with a tarompet (oboe) and a gong.
The kendang of Balinese orchestras is made of jackfruit wood and its heads of water-buffalo skin or cowhide. Its outside is cylindrical, tapering slightly at one end, and inside it is shaped like an hourglass (see Drum, figs.1d and 3a). The average length (in the large gamelan) is 60 to 65 cm. Kendang are tuned and played in pairs, consisting of a lower-pitched kendang wadon (‘female drum’) and a higher-pitched kendang lanang (‘male drum’); which drum leads depends on the context. They are played with hands, sometimes combined with a stick, giving a variety of open and muted sounds which are combined into conventional interlocking patterns determined by the musical form.
C. McPhee: Music in Bali (New Haven, CT, 1966/R)
H. Susilo: Drumming in the Context of Javanese Gamelan (thesis, UCLA, 1967)
M. Tenzer: Balinese Music (Singapore, 1991)
S. Cook: Guide to Sundanese Music (Bandung, 1992)
MARGARET J. KARTOMI, ERNST HEINS, RUBY ORNSTEIN/R