Curriculum Vitae
I Nyoman Sumandhi,
M.A.
Balinese Dalang
I was born in Bali, Indonesia, December 31, 1944, in a family of dalangs
or traditional Balinese puppet masters. My father was a famous dalang,
and I have followed in his foot steps. Becoming a dalang involves a
mastery of traditional Balinese music, dance, and choreography, as well
as the repertoire and theatrical techniques associated with the wayang
kulit or shadow puppet theater, which is regarded as the pinnacle of
the arts in Bali. I am thus an expert performer of the gender wayang,
the topeng dance, and other forms of Balinese music and dance, as well
as shadow puppetry.
Education
| 1979 |
M.A., Theater, Wesleyan University, under grant
from the Ford Foundation.. Thesis: "A Performance of Wayang
Clonarang." |
| 1972-74 |
Study of ethnomusicology at the University of California,
Los Angeles, with Dr. Mantle Hood, under grant from the John D.
Rockefeller 3rd Fund. |
| 1970 |
Advanced study at the Akademi Seni Tari Indonesia
(Indonesian State Dance Academy), Bali. Subjects: Balinese music,
choreography, dance notation, Balinese theater. |
| 1964 |
Diploma, Music and Dance, Konservatori Karawitan
Indonesia (Conservatory of Indonesian Music and Dance), Bali,
1964. Subjects. Balinese music, dance, and shadow puppetry. |
Teaching Positions
In Bali
| 1991-99 |
Principal, S.M.K.I., High School of Performing Arts,
Denpasar, Bali. |
| 1965-91 |
Instructor, S.M.K.I., High School of Performing
Arts, Denpasar, Bali |
| 1987-99 |
Instructor of Balinese music and dance at the Naropa
Institute (U.S.A.) Summer Program in Ubud, Bali |
In Bali, in addition to my formal duties as teacher and principal at
S.M.K.I., I have for many years taught for village performing arts associations
throughout Bali. I have as well tutored a number of foreign students
of Balinese performing arts, such as Mr. Larry Reed (now a leading exponent
of Balinese shadow theater in the U.S.), Dr. Michael Tenzer (now at
the Univ. of British Columbia), and Dr. Hideharu Umeda (now associate
professor at Okinawa University, Japan), who became a dalang for Balinese
shadow theater. I was the first dalang in Bali to begin to train women
in the art of shadow theater.
Abroad
| 1993 |
Regent Professor, Music Department, University of
California, Santa Cruz |
| 1988 |
Instructor of Balinese music and dance at the Naropa
Institute, Boulder, Colorado |
| 1987 |
Visiting Fulbright Professor, Wesleyan University |
| 1986 |
Conducted, with Larry Reed, a Wayang Kulit (puppet
theater) workshop at the Institute de la Marionette in Charlevil
Mazier, France |
| 1974 |
Instructor, Center for World Music Summer Program,
Berkeley, California |
| 1973 |
Instructor, American society for Eastern Arts Summer
School, University of Washington, Seattle |
| 1972-74 |
Artist in Residence and Instructor, Balinese music,
dance, and shadow puppet theater, University of California, Los
Angeles |
International Performance Experience
| 1999 |
Performed "Wayang Kulit Bali" (Balinese
puppet theater) in Tokyo, and topeng masked dance, in Yokohama,
Japan |
| 1998 |
Shadow theater/topeng dance tour of U.S.A., with
performances at Colorado Univ., Colorado College, Univ. of Wyoming,
Naropa Institute, and for the Tunas Mekar Group, Denver |
| 1997 |
Art director of Tabanan artist tour group to Cheju,
South Korea |
|
Leader of Balinese music and dance group from SMKI
to Adelaide Festival, Australia |
| 1996 |
Leader of a Balinese performing arts tour group
from SMKI to Denmark |
|
Performed wayang kulit in Tokyo |
| 1992 |
Leader of Balinese performing arts tour to Okayama,
Japan, to inaugurate a relation between Bali and Okayama as a
sister province |
| 1986 |
Toured with 40 Balinese artists in Australia for
the Indonesian Department of Tourism |
| 1984 |
Performed wayang kulit at the Indian Ocean Festival,
Perth, Australia |
| 1982 |
Leader of a group of 45 musicians and dancers performing
in Belgium, Holland, France, and Switzerland |
| 1980 |
Performed for the Asian Theater in New York, under
a grant from the International Communication Agency |
|
Leader of Balinese Cultural Mission to Italy, with
performances in ten cities |
| 1979 |
Worked with filmmaker Larry Reed on film Shadow
Master |
| 1974 |
Leader of Balinese wayang kulit (puppet theater)
tour in the U.S.A., with performances at a number of U.S. universities
including Wesleyan, Brown, Michigan State, Yale, Cornell, and
Washington State |
| 1972-74 |
Numerous performances and lecture-demonstrations
at University of California, Los Angeles, under grant from the
JDR 3rd Fund |
| 1972 |
Performances in Singapore with a group of ten musicians
and dancers |
| 1969 |
Member of Indonesian Cultural Mission performing
for arts and music festivals in Iran and India |
Other Professional Experience
| 1975-present |
Organizer and President, Yayasan Pewayangan &
PEPADI (Association of Balinese Shadow Puppeteers) |
| 1981-present |
A coordinator of the yearly Bali Arts Festival |
| 1989-present |
Judge, Bali Arts Festival puppet and dance competition |
| 1982 |
Organized Sekar Djepun, a Balinese gamelan orchestra
for Japanese musicians in Tokyo |
References
Dr. Linda Burman-Hall, Professor, Music Department, Music Center 293,
University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, U.S.A.,
email: lbh@cats.ucsc.edu, phone:
(831) 459-4648; messages: (831) 459-2804, fax: (831) 459-5584.
Dr. Lewis Peterman, Professor, School of Music and Dance, San Diego
State University, San Diego, California, 92182-7902, U.S.A., email:
peterman@mail.sdsu.edu,
phone (619) 594-2431, fax: (619) 594-1692.
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