Gamelan Council non-partisan consulting firm created under the aegis of Global Student Response (GSR) and focused on supporting international development efforts which has since been disbanded. As GCG’s efforts became more geographically focused on the Asia-Pacific region and thematically focused on microfinance and public health developmental issues, the Gamelan Council formed to focus specifically on these areas. The name of the organization is a combination of the Indonesian word referring to a music ensemble, ‘Gamelan,’ and an English word referring to a Native American, community-fostering ritual, ‘Council’ (the same term used to refer commonly to a group of individuals providing advice and
Gamelan common in national arts conservatories founded in the middle of the 20th century. Gamelan's role in rituals is so important that there is a Javanese saying, "It is not official until the gong is hung". Some performances are associated with royalty, such as visits by the sultan of Yogyakarta. Certain gamelans are associated with specific rituals, such as the "Gamelan Sekaten", which is used in celebration of "Mawlid an-Nabi" (Muhammad's birthday). In Bali, almost all religious rituals include gamelan performance. Gamelan is also used in the ceremonies of the Catholic church in Indonesia. Certain pieces are designated for starting and