Friends of the Gamelan
Photo courtesy Ivan Indrautama
Friends of the Gamelan, affectionately known as FROG, traces its roots to the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893, held in Chicago. One of the many exotic attractions on the Midway Plaisance was the Java Village, complete with a Sundanese gamelan. Chicago's Field Museum of Natural History was founded to preserve, catalog, and exhibit the many cultural treasures from the Exposition, including the gamelan. In the late 1970s, a group began to meet regularly at the Field Museum to play on those very instruments. FROG formed in 1980 as a not-for-profit educational organization with the purpose of purchasing a Javanese gamelan for pedagogy and performance, to continue the work begun at the Field Museum.
FROG has been privileged to work with many outstanding Javanese gamelan musicians, including Hardja Susilo, Midiyanto, Sumarsam, Harjito, Wakidi Dwidjomartono, Raharja, Ki Purbo Asmara, Joko Sustrino, Heri Purwanto, Darsono Hadiraharjo, and Heni Savitri. FROG also enjoys a close relationship with the Indonesian Consulate-Chicago, which often provides dancers for our performances. FROG has performed at many notable venues, including Pritzker Pavilion at Millennium Park, Chicago World Music Festival at Preston Bradley Hall, and the Field Museum.
The Project
HCL provided Friends of the Gamelan (formerly Chicago Balinese Gamelan) with its first rehearsal space for Balinese music in 2017. This partnership set up the ensemble for success.
Photo courtesy of Ivan Indrautama
Photo courtesy Ivan Indrautama
About the Artists
Friends of the Gamelan (FROG) invites Chicago to experience the rich musical heritage of Indonesia. Two performing gamelan ensembles—respectively dedicated to Balinese and Javanese music—comprise the organization.
A gamelan is a uniquely tuned melodic ensemble of metal percussion instruments, xylophones, a two-string fiddle, a zither, a flute, and singers. A set of drums completes the core ensemble. For more than 40 years FROG focused on Javanese gamelan, until it merged with Chicago Balinese Gamelan in 2023.
FROG’s artistry is led by Artistic Directors Alex Yoffe (Javanese ensemble) and Claire Fassnacht (Balinese ensemble). FROG’s gamelan studio is located at Morgan Arts Complex in the Bridgeport neighborhood.
For more information, visit www.chicagogamelan.org.
