Background
Gamelan Dewi Malam (Gamelan "Queen of the Night") was founded in the spring of 2017, and is directed by Astrid and Martin Randall.
Other members of the group have also played in various gamelan groups throughout the US for many years, including groups in Rochester, NY, Santa Fe, and Los Angeles, or have strong connections to Bali, having lived there for extended periods of time. Two current members are actually native Balinese but didn't start playing gamelan until joining our group in Tucson!
Martin has been playing Balinese gamelan since 1991, and Astrid followed soon after, first playing as part of the University of California at Santa Cruz Gamelan Swarasanti ("Sound of Peace"), and in 1997 co-founding the Santa Cruz community Gamelan Anak Swarasanti ("Child of Swarasanti"), which they directed until they moved to Tucson in 2016 and founded Gamelan Dewi Malam to bring Balinese gamelan to the Tucson area.
Astrid and Martin have studied gamelan both in Bali and in the US under a number of Balinese master teachers including I Nyoman Sumandhi, I Wayan Suweca, I Nyoman Wenten, I Nyoman Sedana, and I Wayan Rai. Martin has also taught the Balinese Gamelan class at UCSC, and has performed well over 60 times with Gamelan Anak Swarasanti, with renowned musicians and dancers including I Made Suryasa, Ni Bulantrisna Djelantik and Ni Made Sukerti. I Nyoman Sedana has also visited and taught the group here in Tucson.
