Second Sundays: Gamelan Yowana Sari and Breakdown Brass

A thousand year old tradition of gongs and metallophones is paired with bluesy funk and hip-hop in these live recordings of Yowana Sari and Brooklyn Brass at the November 2015 Second Sundays concerts at Pioneer Works.

In Java and Bali, gamelan music is as popular today as it was a thousand years ago. It is the musical background to every social and cultural gathering, from religious rituals to mainstream radio broadcasts. At the core of gamelan culture is the belief that music is meant to evolve and adapt its repertoire. Yowana Sari does just that, performing traditional and not such traditional pieces on gongs, metallophones, drums and other instruments crafted by Pande Sukarta in Bali. Yowana Sari was founded by Michael Lipsey at Queens College and is open to community members to join.

This Brooklyn Brass band plays Dirty Funk, Classic Hip-Hop & other groove-based tunes. Breakdown are made up of young veterans of Brooklyn’s soul and funk scene — its members tour and record with Antibalas, Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings, Charles Bradley, Lee Fields, Slavic Soul Party & many others. “The Horseman”, the group’s debut single, was recorded at Dunham Studios by Thomas Brenneck (Amy Winehouse, Sharon Jones, Budos Band, Jay-Z, etc.) and has received acclaim from NPR, BBC and many more.

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