NCH Gamelan Debut Album Release
25 June 2024
Ireland's National Concert Hall Gamelan Orchestra has released their debut album, entitled “Kyai Jati Roso”. The ensemble was originally formed in UCD by Dr Peter Moran and Dr Jaime Jones before the group moved into the National Concert Hall.
The orchestra is directed by UCD Assistant Professor of Composition and Performance Dr. Peter Moran. The performers on the album and in the concert included UCD staff members, students, and alumni including Dr Jaime Jones, Dr Donal Fullam, Dr Anika Babel, Professor Denis Shields, Sarah Walsh, Amy Shields, Elenor Ronan, and Sarah Smith-Kohler. The album also features renowned British improvising jazz trumpeter Byron Wallen.
This album has been released to mark the 10th Anniversary since the Sultan of Yogyakarta presented the National Concert Hall with a unique collection of gamelan instruments as a gift to the Irish people in a traditional gamelan naming ceremony in 2014. The music on the album reflects ten years of dedicated study and rehearsal of the gamelan music of Central Java in Indonesia. News of the CD launch has been reported in national Indonesian media outlets such as (opens in a new window)InfoPublik and (opens in a new window)tvOne News.
To accompany the album, Dr. Moran has written a 44-page booklet detailing the history of the instruments and the ensemble, from its roots in UCD to the building of the instruments and the sultan's royal visit, to the orchestra's more recent concerts in Ireland and in Java.
The album is available for (opens in a new window)streaming and download, and a limited-edition 10th-Anniversary Commemorative CD is also available from (opens in a new window)Bandcamp.