Archive for 'Reviews'

[The article below appeared in the Denver Post on Monday, January 25, 1999.]

By Glenn Giffin
Denver Post Dance Critic

Attendees at the Gamelan Tunas Mekar’s Sunday afternoon “Celebration of Balinese Music and Dance” got a surprise: the Colorado premiere of “Cendrawasih,” a dance choreographed in honor of the Bird of Paradise, which inhabits Irian Jaya in the Indonesian islands.

It is said often enough that all dance is imitative in origin, and “Cendrawasih” fits that idea.

But this is a beautiful exposition, even ...

[The following review appeared in the Balinese magazine ‘Gatra’ on July 7, 1996 after Tunas Mekar’s performance at the Bali Arts Festival in Denpasar, Bali.]

“A group of gamelan musicians from the U.S.A. played angklung bravely, surprising the Balinese audience.”

Gamelan seems to be spreading around the world. One group of gamelan musicians from the U.S.A. displayed their capabilities with confidence ...