I Wayan Konolan

I Wayan Konolan was born in 1931 in Banjar Kayumas Kaja (Central Denpasar). He was the head of a family of gamelan makers and tuners, and was one of Bali's greatest gendèr masters. He himself learned from many great teachers, and knew pieces and techniques not only from his own Kayumas style but also from the Sukawati tradition. He passed this knowledge on to his children: I Wayan Suweca, Ni Ketut Suryatini, I Nyoman Sudarna and I Wayan Sujana. Pak Konolan died on September 27, 2008. (Photo by James Kippen, June 2007)

I Wayan Suweca

I Wayan Suweca is the oldest son of the late I Wayan Konolan. He studied and taught extensively in the USA and Canada, and was a founding member of Seka Jaya. He teaches at Institut Seni Indonesia in Denpasar, and in recent years has been studying Balinese religion and shadow puppetry. He is considered for the foremost living expert on the Kayumas style of gendèr wayang.

I Nyoman Sumandhi

I Nyoman Sumandhi is from Tunjuk in Tabanan Region, and is one of Bali's greatest hereditary puppeteers and gendèr players. He has taught and performed all over the world. He taught for many years at Kokar in Denpasar.

I Nyoman Manik

I Nyoman Manik is from Kuta, and has learned gendèr from I Wayan Teling who in turn learned from the legendary I Wayan Lotring. He plays in the Kuta style. We contacted Manik through our friends Vaughan Hatch and Putu Evie Suyadnyani who run the excellent organization Mekar Bhuana. Their goal is to help preserve the older and less commercially popular styles of Balinese music.

I Wayan Sinti

I Wayan Sinti is one of Bali's best-known and most knowledgeable musicians and composers. He studied with some of Bali's greatest musicians – among them I Wayan Lotring, I Nyoman Kaler and I Wayan Konolan. He learned gendèr in both Kayumas and Sukawati styles. He taught for many years at Kokar in Denpasar, and recently spent two years teaching at the University of Washington, Seattle. He was Artist-in-Residence at the University of Toronto during the fall of 2008.

I Wayan Muditadñana

I Wayan Muditadñana lives in Tenganan in Karangasem Region. He is a famous calligrapher and writer of Balinese lontar (palm-leaf manuscripts), and has a huge repertoire of gendèr pieces from his region. Although we did not learn directly from him, we collected certain pieces from him that we aim to include in our repertoire.

Ni Ketut Suryatini is Pak Konolan's daughter. She teaches at the Institut Seni Indonesia in Denpasar, and is a highly respected composer and choreographer. She has also taught at Bard College (New York). She is one of the few professional female gamelan musicians in Bali.

I Nyoman Sudarna is Pak Konolan's son. He is a teacher and composer who is now in charge of the family's instrument-making business.