Pathet - Classification

Classification

In Javanese music there are traditionally six pathet, three for each tuning system, pelog and slendro. The systems correspond to each other in emphasized pitches, as in the table given below (given in kepatihan notation), although of course the numbers do not indicate the same frequencies.

It will be noticed that manyura is one step higher than sanga, and indeed it is common to transpose entire pieces from one patet to the other as well as to share cengkok at different transpositions.

Note that in pélog, 4 is always a dissonant pitch, since elaborating instruments such as gendér and gambang cannot play it, and usually play the adjacent pitches 3 or 5 instead. Pathet barang is the only pathet to feature 7 as a common note. The avoided notes are only rare as seleh, especially in slendro; in pélog the rare notes are rare anywhere. The names "tonic" and "dominant," though the analogy to classical music is not strong, are used by some sources. Another system of designation, used by Mantle Hood, is Gong Tone I for the stressed note, Dasar for the strong note, and Gong Tone II for another strong note involved in the cadential system.

Two other terms are sometimes encountered for pélog: pathet bem and pathet manyura. Pathet bem is used as a general term to cover pélog pathet nem and lima (especially in Jogya, where that distinction is not traditionally made), which use the same subset (121356) of the pélog scale and are sometimes difficult to distinguish. Mantle Hood found through an analysis of gendhing in these pathet that they remain distinct in their typical patterns. The other pathet, pélog pathet manyura, also called pélog nyamat, is a direct transfer from slendro manyura into pélog, without the substitution of 7 for 1 as in pathet barang. It is observed in a small collection of gendhing.