Evan Ziporyn, Founder
I Gusti Darta, Director
"An exuberant blast of metal fireworks"
-ANNE MIDGETTE, NEW YORK TIMES"Intoxicating tone of wave-like rhythms and ringing sonoroties... A cross-cultural, color-rich mix of mesmeric gamelan resonance and rock drama!"
-BRADLEY BAMBARGER, NEWARK STAR-LEDGER“Sparkling interplay… rocking rhythms accelerating into loud, agitated breaks and complicated counterpoint.”
-BOSTON PHOENIX“30 strong players… relentlessly pounded and hammered on gangsa, reong, jegogan, gong and kendang. Unfamiliar with the performance but strangely drawn into it, the audience froze in their seats. ‘I don't want it to end…’”
- JAKARTA POST 2004
For over 30 years, Gamelan Galak Tika has been pushing the boundaries of Balinese gamelan in America, fusing tradition with cutting-edge innovation. Founded in 1993 by Evan Ziporyn, Desak Made Suarti Laksmi, & Nyoman Catra, the group has captivated audiences Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, BAM Next Wave, Bang on a Can, Boston ICA, Cleveland Museum of Art, Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, and at venues and universities throughout the northeast United States. In 2005, they electrified Bali itself, performing at the Bali International Arts Festival, Kuta Beach, and in villages across the island.
Galak Tika thrives on bold, boundary-breaking collaborations, commissioning works from both Balinese and American composers and seamlessly blending gamelan with Western instruments.
Highlights have included Christine Southworth’s pulse-pounding SuperCollider for electronic gamelan and Kronos Quartet, Evan Ziporyn’s Tire Fire for gamelan and electric guitars, and genre-busting new works by Dewa Alit, Ramon Castillo, Gusti Darta, Lou Harrison, Wilco drummer Glenn Kotche, and minimalist legend Terry Riley.
Galak Tika thrives on bold, boundary-breaking collaborations, commissioning works from both Balinese and American composers and seamlessly blending gamelan with Western instruments.
Highlights have included Christine Southworth’s pulse-pounding SuperCollider for electronic gamelan and Kronos Quartet, Evan Ziporyn’s Tire Fire for gamelan and electric guitars, and genre-busting new works by Dewa Alit, Ramon Castillo, Gusti Darta, Lou Harrison, Wilco drummer Glenn Kotche, and minimalist legend Terry Riley.
The group plays on five distinct gamelan ensembles—a traditional pelog gong kebyar, a custom-built just intonation set named the Beta Gamelan, a gender wayang quartet, an angklung Banyuwangi from Eastern Java, and the fully electronic Gamelan Elektrika - which redefines what gamelan can be.
The name "Galak Tika" comes from Bahasa Kawi (a classical Javanese-Sanskrit dialect), meaning
"fierce togetherness" — a spirit that drives every note they play.
Albums
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