Gondang Hybridization and Identity Politics of Toba Batak Society

DOI

10.2991/assehr.k.211110.046How to use a DOI?

Keywords

Gondang Toba Batak; Hybridization; Identity politics; Rural-urban

Abstract

The absence of customary rules regarding music in Toba Batak society causes the ensemble to be very dynamic, and it becomes more complex when gondang is subject to hybridization with Western instruments. Contemporary gondang is generally in two streams of discourse, either modern or traditional, and a sign of high or low social class. This study aims to problematize the identity construction of gondang users through a hybridization approach and consumption that is based on cultural tastes. Research data was acquired through interviews and participatory observations at adat (custom) wedding parties in rural areas (Sipeapea) and urban areas (Jakarta). Western musical instruments are believed to be a symbol of modernization. Rural people consider gondang as a symbol of animism and an outdated cultural system. The use of trumpets and gondang in Sipeapea is considered to represent the high social class. In Jakarta, gondang is a cultural symbol that connects them with their home, while hybridization is an attempt of identity negotiation in a cosmopolitan space. This paper shows that identity attached to gondang is constructed by power and, at the same time, constructs the Toba Batak contemporary community.

Copyright

© 2021 The Authors. Published by Atlantis Press SARL.

Open Access

This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC license.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Vita Pasaribu
AU  - Tommy Christomy
PY  - 2021
DA  - 2021/11/21
TI  - Gondang Hybridization and Identity Politics of Toba Batak Society
BT  - Proceedings of the International University Symposium on Humanities and Arts 2020 (INUSHARTS 2020)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 313
EP  - 319
SN  - 2352-5398
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/assehr.k.211110.046
DO  - 10.2991/assehr.k.211110.046
ID  - Pasaribu2021
ER  -