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Condong

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For the town, see Condong, New South Wales.
Condong
300px
A condong dancer
OriginIndonesia
Condong
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Condong is a Balinese dance which is often performed as a preface to legong and accompanied by the semar pangulingan style of gamelan. The term also refers to a stock character, a quintessential representation of the maidservant, found in the condong dance, as well as the legong, gambuh, and arja dances.

History

A condong figure in wayang kulit (before 1900)

The condong dance originated in the by palaces of Bali in the mid-19th century. Its creator is not known,[1] but folk history suggests that a prince of Sukawati, deathly ill, saw a vision of two beautiful girls dancing gracefully while accompanied by gamelan music; upon regaining his health, this prince recreated the dance he had seen.[2] It originally told the story of two bidadari (nymphs) named Supraba and Wilotama. By the 1930s the story had been modified, telling of a king or queen and their subject.[1]

In current performances, the condong dancer plays the role of the subject. The choreographer Ni Ketut Arini describes the condong dancer as portraying a palace servant who both serves the king and is in awe of his power, and of the beauty of the king's daughter.[2]

Many of the movements are simplified versions of the various legong dances;[2] indeed, condong is considered a basic Balinese dance, and is thus learned by many children.[1]

There have been efforts to preserve the condong dance in Bali. These have included competitions in which children perform the dance for points.[1] Movements from condong have been adapted to more recent creations, including panyembrama (I Wayan Berata; 1971), which also includes legong movements.[3]

Performance

Condong dancer (left) awaiting two legong dancers

Condong is generally used as a preface to the legong dance, and thus performed before it (although it may be dropped).[4] It may also be performed before gambuh or arja dances; the condong character is typical of all of them.[5] The condong character is also consistent throughout different stories, a quintessential representation of the maidservant who has introduced various princess characters, both Balinese and non-Balinese, including Rangkesari, Ophelia, and Miranda.[6]

In dances prefacing legong performances, the condong dancer enters the stage first, and performs her routine. The dancer is generally a young girl, and her movements take what ethnomusicologist Michael Tenzer terms a "sharp and intense" character. When the legong performance proper begins, the condong dancer may dance with the legong dancers,[4] presenting each dancer with a fan before withdrawing. The average length of a condong performance is about 15 minutes.[7] In the legong lasem form, the condong dancer returns with the wings of a raven to foretell the demise of the titular King Lasem.[8]

As with legong dances, condong is accompanied by the semar pangulingan style of gamelan.[2] This musical accompaniment takes the form of a series of short 16-beat melodies,[9] in the gegaboran metre.[10] In the condong dance performed as a preface to legong kraton, the music concludes with a shift to batel metre.[11]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Bali Post 2007.
  2. ^ a b c d Kusumawati 2012.
  3. ^ Tanjung 2012.
  4. ^ a b Tenzer 2000, p. 160.
  5. ^ Indriasari 2013.
  6. ^ Rubin & Sedana 2007, p. 95.
  7. ^ Tenzer 2000, p. 357.
  8. ^ Tenzer 2000, p. 191.
  9. ^ Tenzer 2000, pp. 160, 357.
  10. ^ Tenzer 2000, p. 292.
  11. ^ Tenzer 2000, p. 293.

Works cited

  • Indriasari, Lusiana (5 January 2013). "Ni Ketut Arini, Menari adalah Pengabdian" [For Ni Ketut Arini, Dance is Devotion]. Kompas (in Indonesian). Archived from the original on 9 November 2014. Retrieved 8 November 2014. {{cite news}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Kusumawati, Utami Diah (23 December 2012). "Tari Legong Condong, yang Klasik dan Antik" [The Legong Condong Dance, Classic and Antique]. Jurnal Nasional (in Indonesian). Archived from the original on 9 November 2014. Retrieved 8 November 2014. {{cite news}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Rubin, Leon; Sedana, I Nyoman (2007). Performance in Bali. Theatres of the world. New York: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-33131-9. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • "Tari Condong Dipastikan Lestari di Bali" [The Condong Dance will be Maintained in Bali]. Bali Post (in Indonesian). 12 March 2007. Archived from the original on 9 November 2014. Retrieved 8 November 2014.
  • Tanjung, Intan (7 October 2012). "Stories within dances". The Jakarta Post. Archived from the original on 9 November 2014. Retrieved 8 November 2014. {{cite news}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Tenzer, Michael (2000). Gamelan Gong Kebyar: The Art of Twentieth-century Balinese Music. Chicago studies in ethnomusicology. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. ISBN 978-0-226-79281-1. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Media related to Condong at Wikimedia Commons
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