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Song in the Sumatran Highlands

Context: Community Celebrations

There are a wide range of occasions celebrated by a community that could incorporate saluang. Some that I have encountered include:

halal-bihalal (which means asking for forgiveness). These are community gatherings, often held to celebrate Lebaran, the week or so of celebration following Ramadan, the month of fasting in the Islamic calendar. Examples include
- Performance: Kampung Jambak, December 2, 2003
community entertainment
- Performance: Balai Cacang, July 16, 2016
fundraisers
- Performance: Pariangan, February 10, 2004
institutional events, such as reunions, conferences, meetings
- Performance: Sekolah Tinggi Seni Indonesia, December 23, 2003

Some of these events are held explicitly as fundraisers for a community project (Pariangan, February 10, 2004) and others might include collecting fiscal contributions to offset costs of putting on the event (Kampung Jambak, December 2, 2003). If attendees are paying for requests, then a janang is always involved. At these events, refreshments may be available nearby, but pagurau need to purchase for themselves.

Economics: Even if one of these events are designated as a fundraiser, the performers for all these occasions are contracted and paid a fixed fee. Unlike bagurau lapiak, they are not working for tips: funds raised go the designated cause.

Space: These performances do not take place in the yards of private homes, rather they happen in spaces accessible to the targeted community, including by the side of the street, in an open area, in institutional buildings,

Musical Style: The context does not circumscribe the musical style, but all those I witnessed involved saluang klasik

Behavior: Most of these performances followed mainstream Minangkabau standards of decorum. They are more jovial and interactive, however, if there is a janang present. At some events, men might play games in the background, present for the sociality of the evening as much as for the music.

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Contexts for Saluang Performance 9 This page explains various contextual factors for saluang performances image_header 2021-09-02T01:09:26+00:00
This page outlines a range of contextual factors that all have a hand in shaping the way a performance unfolds.
What
Saluang performances are held in association with a wide variety of events, ranging from events hosted by families to those hosted by communities or institutions. All the events at which saluang is found have a celebratory nature: the music enhances a sense of festivity and sociability.
- Life cycle events, especially weddings and circumcisions
- Community celebrations, such as fundraisers, halal-bihalal
- Bagurau Lapiak
When
Saluang performances are more common at certain times of the year than others. While Indonesia adheres to the Gregorian calendar for official business, the Islamic calendar equally structures the passage of time in Minangkabau society. Saluang performances won't be found at all during the holy month of Ramadan, when it is not appropriate to hold celebrations of any kind. As the most popular time for weddings and circumcisions is the month following Ramadan, saluang performances are the most frequent then. Jennifer deliberately designed her plan for fieldwork around this calendar. The patina of religiosity lingers through Lebaran and in the week or two afterwards, which does have some influence on the participation in and modesty at saluang performances. Finally, families and communities hosting events might give some consideration to season, whether it is the rainy or dry season. The dry season is better for hosting events held outside with strong attendance. The weather, however, has been less predictable with climate change. In summary, the following are important temporal factors that structure the ways events unfold:
- The year: performances were different in 2003-2004 vs. 2015-2016
- The month, particularly according to the Islamic calendar
- The season: dry or wet, which will affect people's ability to travel.
Where
Saluang performances occur wherever there is a sizable Minang population. The location where an event is held is very influential on the way an event will unfold, in part structuring to some extent the performers who are invited and the pagurau who attend, but also for the repertoire that might be requested. Historically, Bukittinggi was considered the "center" for saluang, with many performers in residence there. Over time, however, Payokumbuah became the center: many performers are now located in or near Payokumbuah.

The broadest distinction with regard to location is between events held in the darek vs. the rantau, including areas of the rantau beyond the borders of West Sumatra. The specific luak is another factor, as is the specific nagari, particularly if there are songs affiliated with it. A performance held in Luak Agam is likely to have some differences from one held in Luak Limo Puluah Koto. Both will have differences from a performance held in areas of the rantau, such as Solok or Pasaman. Those performances held beyond the province would be different yet again. The best singers, like Te E, have stories of traveling to neighboring provinces in Sumatra, including Riau, Jambi, Bengkulu, North Sumatra; to Jakarta and other parts of Java; and to parts of Malaysia. I've never attended a saluang performance in the rantau so I can't speak to how they are structured, but I wonder if people don't request the most classic songs, the songs closely associated with their hometowns. Finally, events held in urban centers are likely different from those in more rural locales. This factor is probably most influential on the participants, generating greater attendance closer to population centers. But it is not the only consideration. If a very famous singer will be singing in a more rural location, like Te E in Suayan (about 2 hours one direction by motorbike from Payokumbuah), pacandu are willing to travel.

Another factor that plays into the way performances unfold are the physical spaces in which they are located. There is a difference if they are held in a home or in a communal space, the inside of a house or in the yard. When they are held in communal spaces, are these regular gathering spaces for community events, a public marker, a specially-built cafe or road side stall? Are the guests seated at tables and chairs, on rows of chairs, mats on the floor, or must they stand?
Who
Who is hosting a saluang performance has a strong hand in shaping it, including the choice of performers, the choice of saluang styles, and so on. These factors include whether the host is an individual/ family, a community, or an institution. The economic capital of the host affects the budget for an event, which is turn might affect the style of saluang and the physical set up. The performances with the lowest budget, for example, are least likely to have seating or snacks for the pagurau (see Performance: Suayan, August 1, 2015 vs. Performance: Batu Balang, July 17, 20160. The religious values of the hosts--the relative piety--will affect the presence or absence of porno lyrics. The performers and pagurau will be more modest if they know a host is more devout. If a host is a known pacandu, then the event will be of a different quality, have different songs, and/or different interactions between performers and pagurau or among pagurau than if the host is less familiar with the scene.
Economics of performance
How a performance is structured relatively to economics shapes its structure. The most important distinction here is whether
- Performers are contracted in advance for the event: they are paid some uang muka ("face money," an advance) at the time they are contracted and the remainder at the performance. This can be the case even if the performance is functioning as a fundraiser, where all funds contributed for the honor of making requests goes to the designated cause.
- Performers need to generate their own income, working for tips and a share of the evening's takings (see bagurau lapiak).
Summary
In short, each event is completely unique and the conditions are not replicable.
Role: Janang There are some saluang performances that involve a person who functions as an emcee, hired as part of the team to mediate between the pagurau and the performers. There are two terms used to describe the emcees: janang, which I have heard most frequently and term used throughout the site, and tukang oyak ("the crafter of the shaking (as in shaking the hips)"). Their job, as the second term hints, is to enhance the joviality of the evening. The emcees are present at specific contexts for saluang performance, such as community celebrations or bagurau lapiak. Their presence is essential when a performance is designed to raise funds (e.g. Performance: Pariangan, February 10, 2004), cover the communal cost of hosting, or to generate income for the performers, such as bagurau lapiak (e.g. Performance: Ngalau, July 31, 2015). They can also be present simply to add to the joviality of an event, even when pagurau don't pay for the privilege of making requests (e.g. Performance: Sekolah Tinggi Seni Indonesia, December 23, 2003). It is considered inappropriate to have janang involved at events that are hosted by individual families, at weddings and circumcisions.

The janang--always a man--typically sits on stage with the performers, situated at one end for easy audience access. Often they have a card box placed near them, in order to receive the money and/or requests. The pagurau have the option of writing out requests on paper or whispering them in person to the janang, as the performance proceeds. When the pagurau pay for their request, they will put the bill on the side of the box, especially if they need to make change. It often works on an honor system: they help themselves to the change they need in the box.

After receiving the requests, the janang's job is to deliver them. They do so verbally, announcing the requests over the sound system while the tukang saluang continues to play in the background. Their announcements include the particular request, the name of the requestor (either an individual pagurau or a group), and the amount offered. The requests can be for a particular song, the prolongation of a song, the repeat of a verse, or demonstration of an ornament. I've also heard requests of different nature: to remove a jacket, sit closer, or for a particular singer to respond to a question.

The janang interjects in the course of the performance, jumping into what might seem like the middle of the song, but usually after several pantun, to deliver a request to extend it or a request to change it. This is the beauty of the flexible song structures--padendang can continue to deliver new verses as necessary. When these interjections happen during a song, it might seem like an "interruption," but it is actually more of an "extension." Their announcements are a key part of the performances that include them, the interactions between padendang and the pagurau considerably livelier for their presence. The janang will also often introduce a performance and the performers, and make public service announcements, such as ushering invitations to upcoming saluang performances.

At the Bagurau di Udaro sessions at Radio Republik Indonesia, there were a couple of announcers who acted like janang, except they didn't take money for requests. The requests had been submitted in advance of the radio show, and the announcers read them out, announcing the request and the name of the person or group making the request. They also engaged in public service announcements and enhancing joviality. Their function was similar enough to janang in a staged performance with performer-audience interaction that I have grouped them here for that purpose.

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