Music Touches the Soul

Music Touches the Soul 

The University of Waterloo is a rigourous academic institution and our students are incredibly dedicated to their studies. How fortunate then, that each term, Grebel’s Music Department offers hundreds of students a way to connect to others, a way to express emotion and passion, and a way to take a break from their studies. Whether joining a music ensemble for credit or for pure enjoyment, students relish the opportunity to participate in the communal experience of making music. 

Grebel Gamelan Stars in Viral Video 

Over the last two years, Grebel’s YouTube channel has become a go-to source for quality gamelan videos. This moderate internet fame is spurred on by one performance in particular—a piece called Hujan Mas performed by the UWaterloo Balinese Gamelan at their end-of-term concert in March 2017. This video has garnered almost 125,000 views and continues to pick up momentum, now approaching nearly 1000 additional views per day. Hujan Mas is a fun, energetic, instrumental piece composed for gamelan gong kebyar—a new musical style that developed in North Bali in the early part of the twentieth century. It is characterized by shifting dynamics, shimmering unison attacks, and energetic kotekan (interlocking) rhythms. Among the first pieces a gamelan player will learn in Bali, it functions well as a practice piece for musicians to develop their technical skills and build group cohesion. In the last year, the Music Department’s gamelan videos have occupied all top ten slots and pull in 75 percent of its viewers from Indonesia. See what all the excitement is about and visit Grebel’s YouTube channel! 

http://www.youtube.com/ConradGrebelUC