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INDONESIA TO BREAK WORLD RECORD Angklung Ensemble in Washington DC, USA



On Saturday evening from 5.0 pm - 7.0 pm, 9 July 2011, thousands are expected to gather at the Washington Monument Grounds North Lawn, National Mall in Washington DC to break the World Record for the “Largest Angklung Ensemble” in history. Supervised by adjudicators from the Guinness World Record, the thousands assembled from different nationalities and cultural backgrounds will together shake the angklung bamboo instruments and are assured to make melodious music together almost instantly.

The word Angklung originated from two words angka and lung. Angka means tone, and lung means broken or lost. Angklung then means as an incomplete tone (Soepandi and Atmadibrata, 1977;12). Made of bamboo an ancient plant which has provided various benefits for human beings, Angklung has become a symbol Indonesia’s unique culture, especially in Wast java (sunda).

Javanese Kraton Batik (Javanese court Batik)

Javanese kraton (court) Batik is the oldest batik tradition known in Java. Also known as Batik Pedalaman (inland batik) in contrast with Batik Pesisiran (coastal batik). This type of batik has earthy color tones such as black, brown, and dark yellow (sogan), sometimes against a white background. The motifs of traditional court batik have symbolic meanings. Some designs are restricted: larger motifs can only be worn by royalty; and certain motifs are not suitable for women, or for specific occasions (e.g., weddings).

Batik is a cloth that traditionally uses a manual wax-resist dyeing technique.

Javanese traditional batik, especially from Yogyakarta and Surakarta, has notable meanings rooted to the Javanese conceptualization of the universe. Traditional colours include indigo, dark brown, and white, which represent the three major Hindu Gods (Brahmā, Visnu, and Śiva). This is related to the fact that natural dyes are most commonly available in indigo and brown. Certain patterns can only be worn by nobility; traditionally, wider stripes or wavy lines of greater width indicated higher rank. Consequently, during Javanese ceremonies, one could determine the royal lineage of a person by the cloth he or she was wearing.

A Kebaya is a traditional blouse-dress combination worn by women in Indonesia. It is sometimes made from sheer material and usually worn with a sarong or batik kain panjang, or other traditional woven garment such as ikat, songket with a colorful motif.

Reog is a traditional Indonesian dance form. There are many type of Reogs in Indonesia, but the most famous one is Reog Ponorogo.