PAWUKON for two toy pianos and toy gamelan

PAWUKON from Alessio Silvestrin on Vimeo.
PAWUKON
for two toy pianos and toy gamelan

music, direction and performance: Alessio Silvestrin
camera and editing: Aldo Lee
film and performance: April 9, 2014, Akouo, Tokyo


The music composition PWUKON for two toy pianos and toy gamelan
by Alessio Silvestrin finds its inspiration from the Balinese traditional calendar Pawukon.

The approximate keyboard transcription of the gamelan music scale Pelog Selisir have been serialized in Western pitches and used in the same order as the Balinese traditional calendar Pawukon.

In the Pawukon calendric system days are counted in units called Wuku, which is a week of 7 days and the music composition uses a time signature of 7/8.

The Pawukon comprises a cycle of 30 weeks covering 210 days.
During the cycle of 210 days 10 different weeks are running concurrently.

1 days week: Ekawara
2 days week: Diwiwara
3 days week: Triwara
4 days week: Caturwara
5 days week: Pankawara
6 days week: Sadwara
7 days week: Saptawara
8 days week: Asatawara
9 days week: Sangawara
10 days week: Dasawara

The music composition is divided in 5 different sections using in a different progressive order the transcription of pitches form the gamelan music scale Pelog Selisir.
Each section superposes a different pattern of pitches in progressive order form the gamelan music scale Pelog Selisir each realated to the 10 different weeks each related to a different pattern of pitches:

Ekawara - Diwiwara
Triwara - Caturwara
Pankawara – Sadwara
Saptawara – Asatawara
Sangawara - Dasawara

By decreasing the metronome pulse the 5 different sections open with an introduction that progressively increases the number of notes.
The number of notes are the same as the number of days of the 10 different weeks.

Different image of an ancient painting, originally from the village Kamasan in the Bali province of Klungkung, are added at the beginning of each section.

Finally all sections of this composition are superposed and played simultaneously.
This corresponds to the 10 different weeks of the Balinese traditional calendar Pawukon.