BIO

Gamelan Yowana Sari is a Balinese art ensemble in residence at the Aaron Copland School of Music at CUNY Queens College. Founded by Michael Lipsey, the ensemble performs both traditional Balinese music and contemporary compositions on authentic Balinese instruments. The group is currently co-directed by Michael Lipsey, Fred Trumpy, and Ruka Shironishi.

Yowana Sari has performed in Buleleng and Pengosekan, Bali, in 2018, 2020, and 2024, and has worked closely with master composers and musicians, including I Dewa Ketut Alit.

The group is deeply committed to the transmission of Balinese culture through traditional music, while also fostering the creation of new works for gamelan. Most recently, Yowana Sari has commissioned a new piece by Théo Mérigeau of Polypheme. The group has also commissioned pieces by renowned composers such as Michael Gordon and Evan Ziporyn. In 2024, the ensemble premiered these works at Bang on a Can’s Long Play Festival and the MASS MoCA Summer Music Festival, alongside music by Dewa Alit, Vivian Fung, and Kyle Miller.

Yowana Sari’s repertoire combines traditional aspects of Balinese music with contemporary compositional approaches and is distinctive for its integration of electric guitar and bass alongside Balinese gamelan instruments. The ensemble’s debut album will be released April 17, 2026 on Cantaloupe Music.

Photograph taken at Asheville Percussion Festival, June 2019