Exploring the Playability of 'Air Bonang' in Malay Gamelan Ensemble

This paper investigates the playability of Digital Musical Instrument (DMI) of a Malay gamelan bonang in exploring its practicality, relevancy and reliability for ensemble music making. We present a project involving the Malay gamelan community, where they implemented the DMI named Air Bonang into their musical practices. We argue that the playability of the Malay bonang DMI must be practical, relevant, and reliable to support diverse musical practices. We conclude that designing musical interfaces based on traditional musical instruments must prioritise the authenticity and identity of the musical culture while providing novel means of interaction to elevate musical performance.