Kroncong

{{Short description|Genre of Java and Eastern Indonesian folk and traditional popular music}} {{Use dmy dates|date=December 2025}} {{Infobox music genre | name = {{lang|jv|Keroncong}}/{{lang|jv|Kroncong}}<br>{{Script|Java|ꦏꦼꦫꦺꦴꦤ꧀ꦕꦺꦴꦁ}} | bgcolor = | stylistic_origins = Colonial (Portuguese and Dutch) and Native (Gambang Kromong, Tanjidor, Langgam Jawa, and Campursari) | cultural_origins = 16th century Javanese and Eastern Indonesia | image = Waldjinah met Orkes Keroncong Bintang Surakarta Tong Tong Fair.jpg | caption = Waldjinah in a {{lang|jv|Kroncong}} performance at the 55th Tong Tong Fair in The Hague (Netherlands) | instruments = Vocals – Ukulele – Cello – Guitar – Bass – Flute – Violin | derivatives = Indorock | subgenrelist = | subgenres = Kroncong Koes Plus – Kroncong Beat | fusiongenres = Pop Kroncong – Kroncong Dangdut | regional_scenes = Kroncong Tugu | local_scenes = | other_topics = Music of Indonesia }} {{Music of Indonesia}} '''Keroncong''' or '''Kroncong''' ({{ety|jv|{{Script|Java|ꦏꦼꦫꦺꦴꦤ꧀ꦕꦺꦴꦁ}}, {{lang|jv|keroncong}}|rumble}}, {{IPA|jv|kəˈrɔnt͡ʃɔŋ}}; {{langx|jvd|krontjong}}) refers to both a specific {{lang|jv|Cak}}–{{lang|jv|Cuk}},<ref name="TED"/> a ukulele-like Javanese instrument,<ref name="TED">{{cite web|url=https://www.ted.com/tedx/events/34349|title=TEDxJakarta: Ribut/Reboot|publisher=TED|year=2019|quote=Keroncong is one of Indonesian traditional music. The key musical instruments of Keroncong is Cak and Cuk that people often get mistaken with Ukulele.}}</ref> and a unique classical colonial Java and Eastern Indonesian (particularly Maluku and eastern East Nusa Tenggara) musical genre that evolved and first developed in Java Island, especially at the Java port cities of Sunda Kelapa in Greater Jakarta, Semarang and Surakarta in Central Java, as well as Surabaya in East Java, dates back to at least 16th century. It is characterized by its lilting rhythm, distinctive sound from interlocking {{lang|jv|Cak}}–{{lang|jv|Cuk}}.<ref name="TED"/> A Kroncong orchestra (especially in Java), traditionally consists of a blend of local and European instruments like violins, European flutes, cellos and bass (usually in Pizzicato-style), pair of Kroncong ({{lang|jv|Cak}}–{{lang|jv|Cuk}}) and a vocalist (usually, but not limited to a female vocalist, traditionally taken from Pasindhèn – a Javanese vocalist in Javanese orchestra).

Although the term Kroncong is a native Javanese term in origin, the Kroncong as a musical genre and instrument is an adaptation of a European (particularly the Portuguese and Dutch) musical tradition, brought by the European colonizers to the Java and Eastern Indonesian port cities in the 16th century.

''Bengawan Solo'' ({{lit|the great river of Solo}}) is one of the well-known Kroncong songs written by Gesang Martohartono, a Central Java-origin legendary and influential Kroncong musician. Besides Gesang Martohartono, a Javanese female singer Waldjinah and a Batavian male musician Ismail Marzuki were amongst the top influential Native Indonesian figures in Kroncong revival in early 90s era. ''Krontjong Kemajoran'' ({{lit|the Kroncong of Kemayoran}}) was also the popular one amongst the Javindo community, it is the Bataviaʼs folk songs revived and popularized by both Native Indonesians and Javindo-descent such as Wieteke van Dort, a Surabaya-born singer. Through their revolutionary revival, the Kroncong gained its global popularity especially in Asia (especially in Japan, Taiwan, Malaysia and Singapore), Europe (especially in the Netherlands) and the Americas (especially in Suriname, USA, and Canada).

Since 2015, Keroncong recognized as the local heritage of Java (especially the Greater Jakarta region),<ref>{{cite web |url= https://kebudayaan.kemdikbud.go.id/ditwdb/musik-keroncong-tugu-kebudayaan-nasional-yang-lahir-di-kampung-tugu/ |title=Keroncong Tugu |author=<!--Not stated--> |work=Direktorat Warisan dan Diplomasi Budaya |date=2015 |publisher=Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic Indonesia}}</ref> and in the following year, 2016, Keroncong is officially recognized and regarded by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of Republic Indonesia as integral part of the National Intangible Cultural Heritage of Indonesia.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://budaya.data.kemdikbud.go.id/wbtb/objek/AA000484 |title=Keroncong |author=<!--Not stated--> |date=2016 |publisher=Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic Indonesia}}</ref>

==Characteristics== {{Listen | type = music | filename = Lgm. Bunga Teratai - Tania Dewi (Seri Album Keroncong Asli Side of X).ogg | title = Lgm. Bunga Teratai - Tania Dewi | description = Example audio of a classic kroncong arrangement featuring cak, cuk, cello, flute, violin, and guitar. Complexly layered to create the genre’s signature soft, rhythmic swing and melodic ornamentation. }} The name "Kroncong" may be derived from the jingling sound of the ''kerincing rebana'', as heard in the rhythmic background of the music created by the interlocking of instruments playing on or off beat. This background rhythm runs faster than the often slow vocals or melody, and is created, typically, by two ukuleles, a cello, a guitar and a bass. These instruments, especially the pair of ukuleles, interlock as do the instruments in a gamelan orchestra, and it is clear that the musical traditions of Indonesia have been applied to an orchestra of European instruments. Previously, they also used the Portuguese musical instrument called cavaquinho, a four steel stringed musical instrument that looks like a guitar; however, cavaquinho was then modified into a prounga, a 3 nylon stringed instrument with low pitch, and a macina, a 4 nylon stringed instrument with high pitch.<ref>{{cite web|title='Keroncong': Freedom music from Portuguese descendants |url=http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2011/06/15/%E2%80%98keroncong%E2%80%99-freedom-music-portuguese-descendants.html |work=The Jakarta Post |publisher=PT. Bina Media Tenggara |access-date=11 June 2012 |date=16 June 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923061057/http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2011/06/15/%E2%80%98keroncong%E2%80%99-freedom-music-portuguese-descendants.html |archive-date=23 September 2015 }}</ref>

One ukulele, called the "cak" (pronounced "chak"), maybe steel-stringed. The instrumentalist strums chords with up to 8 strums per beat in 4/4 rhythm. The off-beat strums are often accentuated. The other ukulele, called the "cuk" (pronounced "chook"), is larger and has 3 gut or nylon strings. The instrumentalist may pluck arpeggios and tremoloes using a plectrum, and the on-beat is emphasised. As a set, the cak and cuk form an interlocking pair that mostly gives Kroncong its characteristic kron and chong.

The cello may have 3 gut or nylon strings and the chords are plucked rapidly, often with a unique skipped-beat using the thumb and one finger. This instrument then adds both rhythm and tone. The guitar may play similarly to either cak or cuk, but plays are often extended scalar runs that provide an undulating background to a chord or bridge chord changes. The bass is often played in a minimalist style reminiscent of the large gongs in a gamelan.

On top of this rhythmic layer, the melody and elaborate ornamentation are carried by a voice, flute, or violin. The violin or flute is used to play introductory passages that are often elaborate. The fills and scalar runs are both faster and more elaborate than the guitar's. The vocalist sings the melody which is slow with sustained notes in traditional Kroncong.

The repertoire largely uses the Western major key with some arrangements in the minor. One departure from this occurs when Kroncong orchestras play Javanese songs (Langgam Jawa). Javanese music ordinarily uses scales and intervals that do not occur in Western music. Kroncong Jawa maintains Western intervals but adopts a 5-tone scale that approximates one of the main Javanese septatonic scales. <!--is that slendro or pelog?--> When playing this style, cak and cuk leave their characteristic interplay and both play arpeggios to approximate the sound and style of the Javanese instrument the siter, a kind of zither. The cello adopts a different rhythmic style as well.

==History== thumbnail|Lief Java Orchestra in Batavia, 1936 Kroncong music began in the 16th century when sailors from the Portuguese Empire brought Portuguese instruments and music to Indonesia. Keroncong music entered Indonesia around 1512, during the Portuguese expeditions led by Afonso de Albuquerque to Malacca and the Moloku Kie Raha (present-day North Maluku) in the Sultanate of Ternate. Portuguese sailors brought with them ''fado'', a form of Portuguese folk song with Arab musical characteristics, typically using minor scales. This influence reflected the period of Moorish Arab rule over Portugal and Spain between 711 and 1492.<ref name=":2">Sunaryo Joyopuspito, ''MUSIK KERONCONG: Suatu Analisis Berdasarkan Teori Musik'', Bina Musik Remaja - Jakarta 2006.</ref> Lower-class citizens and gangs, commonly called ''buaya'' (a reference to ''buaya darat'', a term for playboys literally meaning "crocodile on land") adopted the new musical styles. Eventually, they were assimilated by the upper-class citizens. Paul Fisher writes,

<blockquote> The small kroncong guitar, also the name of a music, is derived from the Portuguese braguinha, sharing its roots with the Hawaiian ukulele. Kroncong music is believed to have originated in the communities of freed Portuguese slaves called Mardijkers in the 16th century. European influence from this time can also be heard in the music of the Batak people of North Sumatra. From the end of the 19th century, the beginnings of guitar accompaniment incorporated within a distinctly Indonesian idiom in music came from Sumatra, South Sulawesi and elsewhere. <ref>{{Cite web|last1=Fisher |first1=Paul |title=The Rough Guide to the Music of Indonesia |url=http://www.farsidemusic.com/RG_INDONESIA.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080727022051/http://www.farsidemusic.com/RG_INDONESIA.html |archive-date=2008-07-27}} Liner notes to recording of the same title.</ref> </blockquote>In 1661, the Dutch East India Company (VOC) administration freed Portuguese prisoners and slaves from Goa (India) living in Kampung Tugu on the condition that they convert from Catholicism to Protestantism. As a result, the practice of singing ''fado'' evolved to align with Protestant church music, which predominantly used major scales.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|last=Jakarta|first=Dewan Kesenian|date=2014-10-20|title=Riwayat Musik Keroncong {{!}} Dewan Kesenian Jakarta|url=https://dkj.or.id/riwayat-musik-keroncong/|language=id-ID|access-date=2026-01-22}}</ref>

Subsequently, around 1880, keroncong music emerged as a distinct genre. In its early development, keroncong was also influenced by Hawaiian music, which likewise employed major scales and experienced rapid growth in Indonesia alongside keroncong. This influence can be seen in Ambonese musical traditions and groups such as ''The Hawaiian Seniors'', led by Police Chief Hoegeng.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=Moluku Kie Raha » Budaya Indonesia|url=https://budaya-indonesia.org/Moluku-Kie-Raha|website=budaya-indonesia.org|access-date=2026-02-02}}</ref>

Kroncong (currently spelled ''Keroncong'' in Indonesian) is now considered as old-fashioned folk music by most Indonesian youth, although efforts have been made since the 1960s to modernize the genre by adding electric guitars, keyboards and drums, notably in the so-called ''Pop Keroncong'' sung by Hetty Koes Endang. The melancholic spirit of traditional acoustic Kroncong (similar to Portuguese Fado music) has been recorded by Krontjong Poesaka Moresco Toegoe Jakarta-based in Tugu, who have performed at the well-known Indo festival 'Pasar Malam Besar' in The Hague. Considered as a Eurasian art form, Kroncong features prominently each year at the Tong Tong Fair. The genre is also being evolved in new directions by Indo artists in the Netherlands.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSsL6sfNOvs|title=Julya Lo'ko & Erwin van Ligten met Kroncong|date=22 May 2010|via=YouTube}}</ref><ref>See also: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yUaY7FQpEpY Video footage].</ref>

==Instrumentation==

Traditional instrumentation includes the flute, violin, cello, contrabass, cuk (ukulele with 3 nylon strings), cak (ukulele with 4 or 5 metal strings), guitar, and vocalist. Modern kroncong can add other instruments such as saxophone, drum kit, electric guitar, and keyboard.

==Evolution of music== {{More citations needed section|date=September 2012}}

===Early period (1552–1880)=== From the time when Portuguese sailors landed in Malacca in 1552 and Portuguese slaves were freed in Kampung Tugu (now part of Koja in North Jakarta) in 1661, the genre of music that was to become known as Keroncong has started to take shape. Modern keroncong came into being after 1880, when its main instrument, the ukulele, was invented in Hawaii.<ref>"Ukulele History" {{cite web |url=http://www.sheetmusicdigital.com/ukulelehistory.asp |title=Ukulele History |access-date=25 October 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061025024028/http://www.sheetmusicdigital.com/ukulelehistory.asp |archive-date=25 October 2006 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=A Little history of Ukulele |url=http://www.geocities.com/~ukulele/history.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091028045102/http://www.geocities.com/~ukulele/history.html |archive-date=28 October 2009 }}</ref> The so-called "long evolution" of 1552–1879 was a preliminary stage of development that led to the modern form. Since the 1880s, keroncong is at a stage known as "short evolution".

=== Later evolution (1880–present) === The later period is divided into four periods:<ref>Sunaryo Joyopuspito, ''Musik Keroncong: A Musical Analysis based on Music Theory'', Bina Musik Remaja – Jakarta 2006. {{in lang|id}}</ref>

====Tempo Doeloe (1880–1920)==== {{anchor|The Era of Tempo Doeloe (1880–1920)}} thumb|Orchestra of ''Komedie Stamboel'', 1905. ''Tempo Doeloe'' means "olden time". ''Komedie Stamboel'' was an Indo touring comedy company that performed folk entertainment, which was very popular between 1891 and 1903, especially in East Java.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Cohen |first=Matthew |title=On the origin of the Komedie Stamboel: Popular culture, colonial society, and the Parsi theatre movement |url=http://kitlv.library.uu.nl/index.php/btlv/article/view/3144/3905 |language=id |access-date=25 July 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110724172029/http://kitlv.library.uu.nl/index.php/btlv/article/view/3144/3905 |archive-date=24 July 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> It performed tales from ''One Thousand and One Nights'', European folk tales, and local folk tales, such as Ali Baba, Cinderella, and Si Pitoeng. They toured by railway and ship to Malaysia and all over Indonesia. Between the scenes, there were musical intermezzos such as marches, polkas, waltzes, and kronchong music called ''stamboel''.

During the ''Tempo Doeloe'' (1880–1920), there were 3 types of ''stamboel'' song. They usually had 16 bars and were played in a fast tempo (up to 110 beats per minute).

:''Key to tables'': ::,&nbsp;– sounded ::.&nbsp;– unsounded (''tacet'') ::I&nbsp;– Tonic chord ::II#&nbsp;– Supertonic chromatic chord ::IV&nbsp;– Subdominant chord ::V&nbsp;– Dominant chord ::V⁷&nbsp;– Dominant seventh chord

;''Stamboel'' I Songs in this category include Terang Bulan, Potong Padi, Nina Bobo, Sarinande, O Ina Ni Keke, Bolelebo, and many others. The structure is A – B – A – B or A – B – C – D (16 bars): {| class="wikitable" |- |- |I, |, |, |V⁷, |- |, |, |, |I, |- |I⁷, |IV, |, V⁷, |I, |- |, |V7, |, |I, |}

;''Stamboel'' II Among the songs in this category are Si Jampang and Jali-Jali. The structure is A – B – A – C (16 bars): {| class="wikitable" |- |I... |.... |.... |IV, |- |, |, |, V⁷, |I, |- |, |, |, |V⁷, |- |, |, |, |I, |}

;''Stamboel'' III The structure is Prelude – A – Interlude – B – C (16 bars): {| class="wikitable" |- |I, |, | | |(Prelude) |- |, |, |II#, |V⁷, | |- |, |IV, | | |(Interlude) |- |, |I, |V⁷, |I, | |- |, |, |V⁷, |I, | |}

====Kronchong Eternity (1920–1960)==== {{Anchor|The Era of Kronchong Eternity (1920-1960)}}

After World War I, American popular music came to Indonesia through ballroom music in hotels. Most of the musicians came from the Philippines. The 32-bar American songs influenced local music; for example Gesang Martohartono composed the song ''Bengawan Solo'' during this period. After a while, the center of development moved to Surakarta in Central Java. The kroncong there is slower (typically 80 beats per minute).

;''Langgam Keroncong'' This structure has a binary form, like a pop song: Verse A – Verse A – Bridge B – Verse A (32 bars): {| class="wikitable" |- |Verse A: |V⁷, |I, |IV, V⁷, |I, |I, |V⁷, |V⁷, |I, |- |Verse A: |V⁷, |I, |IV, V⁷, |I, |I, |V⁷, |V⁷, |I, |- |Bridge B: |I7, |IV, |IV, V, |I, |I, |II#, |II#, |V, |- |Verse A: |V⁷, |I, |IV, V⁷, |I, |I, |V⁷, |V⁷, |I, |}

;''Stamboel Keroncong'': ''Stamboel Keroncong'' has the form (A-B-A-B') x 2 = 16 bars x 2 = 32 bars. It is a modification of the 16-bar ''stambul'' II, doubled to give 32 bars. {| class="wikitable" |- |I... |.... |.... |IV, |- |IV, |IV, |IV, V, |I, |- |I, |I, |I, |V, |- |V, |V, |V, |I, |- |I, |I, |I, |IV, |- |IV, |IV, |IV, V, |I, |- |I, |I, |I, |V, |- |V, |V, |V, |I, |}

;''Keroncong Asli'' ''Keroncong Asli'' has A-B-B' structure made up of 8 rows of 4 bars. It begins with a 4-bar instrumental prelude based on the 7th row. After the A section, there is a 4-bar interlude. {| class="wikitable" |- |V, |I, I⁷, |IV, V⁷, |I, |(prelude) |- |I, |I, |V, |V, |(A1) |- |?? |II#, | II#, | V, |(A2) |- |V, |V, |V, |IV, |(interlude) |- |IV, |IV, |V⁷, |I, |(B1) |- |I, |V⁷, |V⁷, |I, I⁷, |(B2) |- |IV, V⁷, |I, I⁷, |IV, V⁷, |I, |(B3) |- |I, |V⁷, |V⁷, |I, |(B2) |}

====Modern Kronchong (1960–2000)==== Kronchong continued to develop in the vicinity of Surakarta, and some kronchong musicians moved to other parts of Indonesia, like Yogyakarta and Jakarta.

;Javanese Genre Gamelan and other Javanese music also influenced kroncong. The characteristics of Javanese music include: melodies using the Pelog and Slendro (pentatonic) modes; the use of a siter (a plucked stringed instrument), a kendang (a Javanese drum), a kempul (a gong used in gamelan), metal and wood marimbas, gongs, and a unique style of Javanese singing. The songs still follow the binary form used in pop music: A-A-B-A or sometimes A-B-C-D, with 32 bars. In 1958, composer Anjar Any (1936–2008) composed the well-known song "Yen Ing Tawang Ana Lintang" (If there is a star in the sky) and performed it with Waljinah, the winner of a local radio singing contest in Surakarta.

;Keroncong Beat In 1959, Rudy Pirngadie and his Jakarta-based group (Yayasan Tetap Segar / Foundation) used the kronchong beat for accompanying various songs, local and foreign music. He introduced kroncong music to global audiences at the 1964 New York World's Fair. Idris Sardi, an Indonesian violin virtuoso, presented the song "I Left My Heart in San Francisco" with a kronchong beat, but was fined by the US Music Authority for copyright violation.{{Citation needed|date=September 2012}}

;''Campursari'' In 1968 at Gunung Kidul, an area near Yogyakarta, a local musician named Manthous introduced ''Campursari'', a mixture of gamelan music and kronchong. Now{{As of?|date=September 2012}}, it is developing in the vicinity of Surakarta, Sragen and Ngawi.

;Koes-Plus Koes Plus, a rock-pop group from Surakarta, introduced kronchong music in a rock style in 1974 and has produced kronchong-style albums.

====Millennium Kroncong (2000–present)==== {{anchor|The Era of Millenium Keroncong (2000-now)}}

Kroncong music continues today. The pop music industry has not yet produced popular kroncong, but some groups have been experimenting with it. The Bandung-based group Keroncong Merah Putih has experimented with elements of rap combined with kroncong music in the background. Bondan Prakoso has fused kroncong and hip-hop with his group, Bondan Prakoso & Fade 2 Black. At the Solo International Keroncong Festival in 2008, the Harmony Chinese Music Group added Chinese musical instruments to keroncong, creating a different atmosphere. They called the style Indonesian Chinese Keroncong.<ref>{{cite web |title="Bengawan Solo" dalam Musik Tradisional China|url=http://nasional.kompas.com/read/2008/12/13/01194152/quotbengawan.soloquot.da|website=Nasional|date=12 December 2008 |access-date=28 October 2015}}</ref>

==See also== {{Portal|Music|Indonesia}} * Dangdut * Music of Indonesia

==References== {{Reflist}}

== Further reading == * ''[https://folkways.si.edu/music-of-indonesia-series Music of Indonesia] [Series].'' Ed. by Philip Yampolsky. Washington, DC: Smithsonian/Folkways, 1990–1999. 20 Compact Discs with Liner Notes. Bibliography. ** Vol. 2 (1991): Indonesian Popular Music: Kroncong, Dangdut, & Langgam Jawa.

==External links== * Fisher, Paul. "The Rough Guide to the Music of Indonesia." Liner notes to recording of the same title [https://web.archive.org/web/20080727022051/http://www.farsidemusic.com/RG_INDONESIA.html THE ROUGH GUIDE TO THE MUSIC OF INDONESIA] * Indonesian Heritage Society. Mariah Waworuntu and Ann Triman, "History of Keroncong Music, [https://web.archive.org/web/20080516122746/http://www.heritagejkt.org/Keroncong_history.php Indonesian Heritage Society] * Kompas. Sonya Hellen Sinombor, "Keroncong Harus Mengikuti Zaman", [http://m.kompas.com/news/read/data/2008.12.13.15120283 Wayback Machine]

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Category:Indonesian styles of music Category:Indonesian musical instruments Category:Ukuleles