Indonesia. World knows about the beauty of the incomparable cultures and uniqueness of this country; various tribes that always together in harmony with different of beliefs and traditions. Famous by its wonderful panoramic along the archipelago, a reason why it called “An Equatorial Emerald”, and many more.

It is not always about the cultures and surroundings, but other than that Indonesia has something else, something special. Something that could always bond the nation. It is Music.

What is so different about Indonesian traditional musical instruments? Indonesian traditional music is diverse.  Almost every region or province in Indonesia has different and inimitable traditional musical instruments.

From western of Java we have a musical instrument called the Angklung. Remarkably,on July 9th, 2011, Indonesia has been promoted the traditional musical instrument Angklung in the first Indonesian Festival are held by the Indonesian Embassy in Washington DC, which successfully listed in the Guinness Book of Record as the largest Angklung ensemble with largest number of participants, as well as 5.102 multination participants. Initiated by Saung Angklung Udjo, an Angklung conservationist organization from Bandung, west java province, and this event reaps so many positive responses and invites admiration from

many parties. A musical instrument made of bamboo, create the beautiful sounds that has made to give hope, share so much love to the world.

There is also a musical instrument called Sasando, originating from the island of Rote,East Nusa Tenggara. This stringed instrument is also made ​​of bamboo and has a resonance box made of woven palm leaves shaped a fan-like.

Then Bali also has a musical instrument called the Rindik. Rindik is a traditional musical instrument made ​​of bamboo, and includes the type of percussion instrument. This instrument is usually used in wedding ceremonies or traditional performance called Joged Bumbung”, also played in hotels and restaurants in Bali to entertain the tourists.

And about the famous Gamelan, the music ensemble showing harmony between gongs, drums, xylophone, and metallophone.  Term of gamelan means unity that sounded and accomplish simultaneously. Gamelan mostly found in ​​Java, Bali, Madura and Lombok, with the different melody composition and size of the music instruments. For example the Balinese gamelan, is dissimilar than the Javanese gamelan. But all of them created the touching and mind-blowing sounds which will induce a rhapsodically feeling.

Regarding the history of gamelan, initially marked by the emergence of Hinduism and Buddhist in Indonesia, which dominate at the beginning of the history recording of that period and then grown until this century.

Above are only the small series of Indonesian’s traditional musical instruments, because there are dozens of types of music and traditional musical instruments in Indonesia, which spread across the provinces in the archipelago, a country with plentiful cultures and diversity.