Contextualizing True Knowledge: Oral Transmission in Balinese Tembang and Hindustani Classical Vocal Traditions

Abstract

In classical and traditional vocal music, oral tradition remains a vital epistemology where knowledge is transmitted through direct interaction between teacher and student rather than through written notation. Hindustani classical vocal and Balinese tembang represent this paradigm, where knowledge is understood and sustained through oral transmission within the guru-shishya, or teacher-disciple, relationship. This study aims to understand how oral transmission shapes the meaning of "true knowledge" within the vocal pedagogy of Hindustani classical and Balinese tembang traditions, and how this knowledge is inseparable from the context in which it is taught and practiced. This study uses a qualitative literature-based approach to explore how oral transmission influences teaching, memory, and understanding in Hindustani classical and Balinese tembang vocal traditions. In both traditions, musical knowledge is not simply transferred but developed gradually through imitation, attentive listening, and a trusting relationship between teacher and student. Hence, oral transmission does not merely transmit musical information; it cultivates embodied musical knowledge. This study suggests that sustaining oral vocal traditions requires attention not only to the songs themselves, but also to the relationships and contexts through which musical knowledge continues to be taught, understood, and renewed across generations.