Suwitra Jaya is a community gamelan based at the University of New South Wales, Sydney. Founded in 2013 by Dr Manolete Mora, the group creates striking performances that feature cross-cultural collaborations and reflect the connection between Indonesia and Australia.
Since 2014, Suwitra Jaya members have travelled to Bali to study traditional and contemporary gamelan music, and have brought their experiences back to Australia. The group has performed in arts festivals, temple ceremonies and the Australian Consulate-General in Bali.
In Australia, recent collaborations include bilingual dance-drama The Jelma Fable (2026) co-produced with Satoe Productions and Javanese dancer Rosmala Sari Dewi, Common Ground (2025) NSW South Coast tour with Steel City Strings, and East-West Resonance (2025) with Sydney Guitar Collective.
Highlight festival appearances include Indonesian Night Markets 2026 with Arada Bali Entertainment dancers Ni Kadek Ayu Linda Gayatri and Kadek Ambarajaya Kaswara, Festival of the Winds 2025 with Talaandig musician Waway Saway (Philippines), and National Multicultural Festival 2023 with dancer Sisca Haskew and tabla player Maharshi Raval.
Suwitra Jaya’s instruments were commissioned by the UNSW School of Arts and Media in 2012, and are modeled on the gamelan semar pegulingan of Sanggar Bona Alit (Bona Alit Art Centre) in Gianyar, Bali. We maintain close ties with Sanggar Bona Alit, which was established by Alit Adi Putra and his wife Agung Rai in 1996. The name Suwitra Jaya, meaning ‘noble friendship’, was given to us by Alit Adi Putra.
236 words | Updated 1 July 2026
Suwitra Jaya Gamelan 