Indonesia is a country rich in musical culture. Here we would like to introduce traditional music instruments from various regions which can be divided into 4 big groups: Aerophone, Idiophone, Chordophone, and Membranophone.

Aerophones are a type of instruments that produce sounds by vibrating air through the windpipe (wind instrument). The instruments can be further classified as: free Aerophones, objects that produce sound because of the wind, such as blower, ingon-ingon (Simalungun), or bull-roarer (Aborigin, Australia); side blown flute, end blown flute, and double-reed (e.g. serunai).

These instruments are usually made of bamboo, carribou’s horn, and different kinds of perforated woods. It is a sign of masculinity because mostly male uses it.

This aerophone can be used either as a solo instrument or together with other instruments in an ensemble.

Following are some of the instrument, which can be entered into the aerophone group:

Aceh: Serunai (double reed), serunai kale (double reed), suling (side blown flute);

North Sumatra : Baling-baling (Karo, free aerophone), surdam puntung (Karo and blown flute), olek-olek (Karo, made from rice-stalk, multi reed), balobat (Karo, whistle), sarune (Karo, double reed), suling (Karo, side blown flute), sulim (Toba, side blown flute), saruna etek (Toba, double reed) sarune bolon (Toba, double reed), sarune bulu (Toba, Simalungun Mandailing), sordam (mandailing, Pak-pak Dairi), ingon-ingon (Simalungun, free aerophone), saligung (Simalungun, blown through the nose), sarune (Simalungun), serinai (melayu, double reed), lobat (Pak-pak Dairi), bansi (Melayu), empi-empi (Karo, trumpet, made from carribou’s horn);

Riau: Serunai (double reed), bansi;

West Sumatra: Serunai (double reed), saluang (end blown flute), bansi (recorder);

Jambi: Serunai (double reed), katet sekorong (multi reed, made from rice stalk);

South Sumatra: Empiu-empiu, seruling;

West Java: Suling (end blown flute), seruling (sidee blown flute), tarompet (double reed), serunai (double reed), bangsing (side blown flute), sarawelet;

Central Java : Suling bambu, salompret;

Jogjakarta: Suling

East Java: Terompet, suling;

Bali: Serunai.Idiophone

Idiophone is a classification of music instruments based on the process of producing the sounds by vibrating the body of the instrument. This instrument classification was existed thousands of years ago naturally, such as sticks, stones, bones, clapping hands, and also thumping which accompaniment the songs and dance. There are many kinds of instruments in Indonesia that are in this classification. Gong for example, can be called as one of Indonesian characteristic instrument and almost every culture have this particular instrument in their traditional music.

Gong can be found in almost every culture in Indonesia with different names and shapes. Gong is classified in the group of struck idiophone, where sound is produced by the beating the objects. The instruments include the following:

Aceh: Canang, gong dua, talempong;

North Sumatra: Ogung (Toba, Simalungun, Mandailing), doal (Toba), odap (Toba), panggora (Toba), gong dadaboru (Mandailing), gong jantan andailing), kalondang (Pak-pak Dairi), gung (Karo), penganak (Karo) or small gong, gong (Melayu Deli), tapudep (Dairi);

Riau: Tawak-tawak, gong;
West Sumatra : Talempong (gong chime), a set of gong in a rack, it is melodically and percussive;

Jambi, Bengkulu, Lampung, and South Sumatra : Each ethnic has its own gong in different sizes;

West Java and DKI Jakarta: Gong and kromong (Betawi)

Central Java, East Java, and Jogjakarta: Gong (hang up), suwukan (hang up), bonang panerus (set down) bonang barung (set down), kempul (hang up), kenong (set down) kethuk (set down), bende (hang up, not part of the gamelan, only as a sign for the soldiers of the royal palace and accompaniment for jatilan dance (kuda lumping)), Japan (hang up);

Bali: Gong 3 buah (gong kebyar), terompong (gong chime);

West Kalimantan, Central Kalimantan, South Kalimantan, East Kalimantan: Dahu tau dau, ketawak (Melayu) – a set of 6 gongs;

South Sulawesi, South East Sulawesi, Central Sulawesi, and North Sulawesi: Gong;

West Nusa Tenggara: Gong dua, gong gabiar, gong gebyar, gong pegorgar, gong suling tandakan, tawak-tawak, tawaq-tawaq, terompong.

The following are the percussions are under the idiophone group:

Aceh: Geurantung (xylophone);
North Sumatra: Garantung (xylophone), toba, hesek (Toba), mangkuk mbentar (Karo), keteng-keteng (Karo), jatjaulul (Simalungun), tungteng, nungneng talisasayak, ertepuk tan (Karo), concussion, genggong (Karo);

Bengkulu: Ginggong (Jews harp), kelintang;

South Sumatra: Keromongan;

DKI Jakarta: Gambang Kromong (xylophone);

West Java: Kenthongan, angklung, angklung gubrak;

Central Java, East Java, and Jogjakarta: Kemanak, kenthongan, gender, slentem, saron, gambang, angklung, tuntang;

Central Sulawesi: Gulintang, kulintang, Kakula,

North Sulawesi: Angklung kuna, kolintang kayu, kolintang tembaga;

South East Sulawesi: Matatou (kolintang);

Bali: Pemade, kantil, ceng-ceng, klintang, genggong;

West Nusa Tenggara: Angklung, gambelan, gamelan baris, gamelan beleq, gamelan belia, gamelan cungklir, gamelan gambus, gamelan rebana, gamelan wayang, gantoang, gaplik, genda mbojo, gender dasa, genggong.

Another idiophone is made of metal, wood and bamboo and can produce sounds by beating the objects. Kenthongan (slide-gong) is one of many instruments used by almost all ethnic in Indonesia. It is actually a personal instruments used to console oneself in the field or rice field (sawah). It is also used as a tool for announcement or alarm. It has many names in different places though the shapes are almost the same, such as kohkol (Sunda). Ketuk (Karo); kenthungan or kenthongan (Java); tungteng (Mandailing), ketongan, (North Sulawesi) – used for the ‘figura’ performance, and ketuk (Bengkulu).

Concussion is another idiophone that produced sound by beating the same object to the other. This instrument is made of bamboo, wood, and metal. Ceng-ceng (Bali), talisasayak (Mandailing), kap-kap (Karo), kecrek (Sunda), and hesek (Toba).Chordophone

It is a classification of music instruments based on the sound from string or dawai, which vibrate by plucking, beating or rubbing with bow. These instruments are found in many parts of Indonesia.

It is made from wood, bamboo, coconut shell; the strings are usually made of tree fiber, roots (usually arenga-palm roots), whereas the strings of the bow are made from the horse’s tail.

The strings on the instruments are varied from 1 string (bow lute) to 10 strings (zhyter). Today, the materials for the instruments are easier to obtain. Even some of the strings are made of metal, which of course affected the sounds of the instruments.

Rebab is one of the string instruments found in most part of Indonesia, especially Melayu. In the old days, the Persians used one-stringed rebab for the dance known as “rebab ul shaer”. This kind of rebab is as prestigious as violin to the Western.

Rebab came from the Middle East, through to Persia and India, then to Indonesia (Al Farabi, 870 – 950 M; Al Musiqi al Kabir).

Chordophone instruments can be found in many parts of Indonesia, as follows:

Aceh: Gambus (plucked), rebab (rubbed with bow);

North Sumatra: Murbab Karo (rubbed), kulcapi Karo (plucked), hasapi (Toba), hasapi doal (Toba), husapi (Simalungun), gambus (Melayu Deli), keteng-Keteng (Karo), tung-teng, jatjalul, nung-neng, kucapi (Pak-pak Dairi), rebab (Melayu);

West Sumatra: Rebab (Riau);

Bengkulu: Gambus, rebab;

South Sumatra: Gambus, begambus, rebab;

Jambi: Gambus, cangor, rebab;

Banten/West Java: Kacaphi, kacaphi rincik, kacaphi indung, jintreng, gitar-rebab, kacapi perahu, kacapi baduy, kacapi peti sabun, kacapi rarawuan;

Central Java and Jogjakarta: Rebab, siter, celempung;

East Java: Rebab, siter, celempung, gambus, gambus misri, tung-teng;

West Kalimantan: Gambus, rebab, sampek (kecapi), kecapi Dayak, rebab cina (Tehyan);

Central Kalimantan: Rebab, gambus, sampek;

South Kalimantan: Rebab, sampe, gambus, kecapi Dayak;
East Kalimantan: Sampe, rebab;

South Sulawesi: Kecapi bcc (kecil), kecapi lpl, kecapi, keke;

Central Sulawesi: Kecapi Dadendate

West/East Nusa Tenggara: Sasando, sansando rote;

Papua: Kecapi Irian, Membranophone

Membranophone is instruments that produce sound thumping the membranes or hide (animal skin), such as kendang, taganing, etc. Nowadays it is known as the gendang (drums). Until today gendang still hold a very important part in the religious rites in many parts of Africa such as Wahinda.The shape of gendang of Old Java was first found on the relief of Candi Borobudur, Candi Siwa (Prambanan Complex), and in Candi Panataran. According to Kuhnst (1961:fig.121), from its shapes gendang can be divided into gendang cylinder, gendang tong symmetrical, gendang tong asymmetrical, gendang pinggul (hip), gendang kerucut (cone), and the shape of damaru.

Matahatikita will arrange your special interests tour through islands in Indonesia, especially intending to identify and learning how to practice various ethnic music instruments