Apasindhèn (Javanese:ꦥꦱꦶꦤ꧀ꦝꦺꦤ꧀,romanized: pasindhèn, pesindhèn) (informallyꦱꦶꦤ꧀ꦝꦺꦤ꧀sindhèn) is an Indonesian female solo singer who sings with agamelan. They may perform in dance,wayang orklenèngan (pure music or "concert") performances.
Thepesindhèn may sing together with agerong (male chorus), but their styles and words will be different. The part of thesindhèn is largely improvised within strict parameters (similar to instrumentalcengkok). Thesindhèn is also allowed a much freer rhythm, similar to therebab andsuling, instead of the strict rhythm of the gerong.
Sindhen can also refer to the choir of male and female singers used to accompany thebedhaya andserimpi court dances. In this usage,pesindhen refers to the individual members of the choir.
The original term forpasindhèn waswaranggana, and the women were exclusively background singers forwayang andklenèngan performances. This word was derived fromronggeng, which had undertones of lasciviousness, so in 1948 the most prominent gerong managers gathered and agreed to change it topasindhèn.[1] Along with this shift in terminology, the women took on more prominent roles in the troupes, and started to sing alone. The stage names ofpasindhèn also changed, from pseudonymous birds' names to the women's actual names.[2]Pesindhèn can now be highly paid, with star status, and the presence of a large number ofpesindhèn in a wayang performance is a status symbol.
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