In 1816, after completing his term as governor of the East Indies, Thomas Stamford Raffles returned to England with other items, namely the first two sets of Javanese gamelans introduced to western society. Thus, this visually very unique gamelan is only used for display purposes. The British only got a sounding gamelan set in 1977, when the Indonesian Embassy in London brought in the Gamelan Kyai Rawatméjå, who is now stationed at the School of Oriental and African Studies.
The Ministry of Education and Science mentions that the study of gamelan, especially through collective composition is a useful way to teach the study of musical structure. Based on Mendonça’s list in his dissertation, there are 68 Javanese gamelan instruments placed in universities, local educational institutions, music institutions, and schools. Within these spaces, gamelan activities include occasional workshops for schools, weekly sessions for certain communities, and paid performances by professional groups.
This group can be further investigated into two categories, namely affinity communities and diaspora groups. Affinity groups refer to gamelan communities formed outside Indonesia. Meanwhile, diaspora forms communities when living abroad. The musical diaspora community was formed by Indonesian immigrants in England. However, this musical community is an extension of the existing diaspora group. To this day, there are two diaspora gamelan groups in England, but only one is still active, namely Jagat Gamelan.
Concerns about the future of gamelan music in Indonesia often appear in everyday conversation and the mass media, through statements such as “In the future, we may have to go abroad to learn gamelan”. Watching Jagat Gamelan, an Indonesian immigrant group whose majority of members are learning gamelan for the first time in England. This concern then only serves as a reminder so that people can live more traditions in the present and in the future that were introduced by their ancestors from the past.
