About
Mekar Bhuana Centre
Mekar Bhuana means “to blossom around the world”, symbolizing the hope that the ancient music and dance music of Bali will be better known again not just in Bali but also in the rest of the world.
Mekar Bhuana educates about the intrinsic value of Balinese art-forms which more than a millennium ago were inspired by the natural beauty of the island’s tropical surroundings. Mekar Bhuana does this by teaching about their roots in agriculture and how this agrarian lifestyle gave birth to the complex art-forms that Bali is famous for today.
Mekar Bhuana Aotearoa
Meet Our Founders and Teams
Vaughan Hatch established the gamelan side of Mekar Bhuana in 2000 and Putu Evie added the dance side in 2004.
While studying classical gamelan in Bali on a Dharmasiswa scholarship in Bali between 1997 and 1999, Vaughan became aware of how negatively mass tourism was affecting traditional performing art forms. Few classical gamelan ensembles had been recorded and many gamelan were either no longer played or had been melted down. In the year 2000, Vaughan chanced upon purchasing and restoring a disused antique Semara Pagulingan gamelan and came up with the concept of Mekar Bhuana, with the aim of doumenting, reconstructing and repatriating endangered classical gamelan and its extensive repertoire. Since he arrived in Bali, he has been researching Semara Pagulingan and other rare ensembles in Bali.
In 2002 he met Putu Evie Suyadnyani a talented Legong dancer and singer who is now his wife, who also shared the vision. Together they combined the music and dance aspects, professionalizing Mekar Bhuana in 2004. As well as running the centre and Mekar Bhuana Sourcing, they enjoy playing Selonding, Angklung, Semara Kirang and Gender Wayang together with their family group at ceremonies around Bali.
Programs
Join our in-depth workshops led by English-speaking experts, including a native English-speaking ethnomusicologist. With our skilled team, you’ll gain a comprehensive understanding of the art-forms, beyond just practice. Our interactive sessions include PowerPoint presentations, videos, and local practitioner demonstrations. Experience hands-on learning in gamelan or dance, or both. Immerse yourself in the beauty of Balinese music and dance today!
Note that since our centre is family based, we don’t accept walk-ins. All bookings need to be made at least two weeks in advance via email.
If you are thinking of creating or doing a study abroad from your country, you can take a cultural immersion program at our centre.
Facilities
A family based centre, Mekar Bhuana is attached to our home and focussed around our garden, pavilion and studio areas.
These are some of the facilities and features at Mekar Bhuana:
Collections
We have more than 27 gamelan sets at Mekar Bhuana, with 22 at Mekar Bhuana in Bali and five at Mekar Bhuana Aotearoa in New Zealand.
Projects
Find out about our completed, current and planned projects as well as how you can help
We are currently restoring Gender Wayang set #5 which consists of four instruments, but keys only as the original casings no longer exist.
We are in the process of trying to get funding to embark on a restoration project of a historic Javanese gamelan with Chinese connections and rare pakurmatan-style instruments that dates back to the early 1800s.
TERMS & CONDITIONS
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