Balinese gamelan music uses unique microtonal scales
Balinese gamelan ensembles tune their metallophones to unique microtonal scales, creating a shimmering, spiritual sound distinct from Western music and central to Balinese culture.
Unlike Western music, Balinese gamelan ensembles tune their metal instruments, called metallophones, to intricate microtonal scales. These scales, like slendro and pelog, feature intervals smaller than a semitone, creating the music's signature shimmering, interlocking sound. Each gamelan orchestra has its own distinct tuning, meticulously adjusted by skilled craftspeople through filing and hammering the metal bars.
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