Gamelan for 18 Musicians?
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Texture
Music for 18 Musicians is clearly homophonic. Evident through the melodic cell being repeated no less than 95 times, in no less than four parts simultaneously. Additions to the melody, that is the addition of Violin, Cello, Bass Clarinet (not pictured) and Vocals, are all keeping with the ostinato, fading in and out of perception with long crescendos and decrescendos, all the while hammering in an unstoppable rush of eighth notes.
Lelambatan Tambuh Ding is also firmly homophonic. Even though the rhythms of the large drums are changing, the melodic line is always present. This is best seen at 1:42-2:02. Long elaborations on he upper register of the melody is evident occasionally, for instance at 3:30-3:38. The melody returns after these episodes, similar to how the Cello, Violin, Bass Clarinet and Vocal lines occur, and then fall away leaving the melody cell to its full forte once more.
Notation
The notation of both pieces in question are most unusual. As seen here, Steve Reich explicitly explains why and how the orchestra should be situated. Music for 18 Musicians is preceded with several pages of notes from Steve Reich on interpretation and of balance. Not only does this score include this, but also includes the following:
These repeats, with differing numbers above each (depending on which portion is in question), are for the Bass Clarinet to enter and leave as they please. Steve Reich explains in his notes before Music for 18 Musicians that this is for audible cues on how long each portion and section should be. This improvisation of length is essential, and forces the musicians to continue listening, and not simply watching a conductor that is not performing.
In Gamelan music, especially Balinese Gamelan as explored here through Lelambatan Tambuh Ding, the lead drummer is the performing conductor of sorts, similar to the Bass Clarinetist who decides how many times to repeat. The Gamelan lead drummer, through striking the drum very loudly, calls for new rhythms and tempos. This is evident in several locations within the work, but most notably before the melody cell is restated. This is evident at 0:45-1:01, 1:17-1:20, 1:51-1:58, and 2:24-2:28. Therefore, the performer in both ensembles must always be listening for the lead drummer, or lead Clarinetist for that matter.
Lelambatan Tambuh Ding follows the traditional notation system of Balinese Gamelan music, one of numbers and letters that inform the player of a general idea of their part for them to infer. This notation can be seen below. The accompanying parts of Gamelan were not written out traditionally, however can be realized today, similar to how figured bass can be realized into western notation. Most Balinese notation cannot be transferred into western notation, and usually involves extra information on interpretation of the music, similar to Music for 18 Musicians.
