ABSTRACT
Bamboo Murmurs is fundamentally rooted in the notion that the look, sounds, and feel of bamboo have long been, and continue to be, powerful emblems of place in the Sundanese imaginary. This chapter introduces two formative Sundanese bamboo instruments, namely angklung (rattle) and suling (flute), and how the texture that results from their distinctive sounds and playing techniques constitutes a fundamental soundmark for Sundanese music. But, to begin to understand the musical significance of bamboo, as well as the recent revitalization of music made with bamboo instruments in the Sundanese city of Bandung in the twenty-first century, a little historical and geographical context is in order. The sheer majesty of West Java’s rugged landscape may have inspired the Sundanese residents of this mountainous region to call it “Parahyangan”— the land of the gods. Processions featuring marching angklung ensembles have long been associated with small-scale, egalitarian Sundanese agricultural communities.
