Odalan Bali

Odalan Bali: An Offering of Music and Dance, by Çudamani, Sat., Nov. 3, 2 and 8 p.m., $30, Painted Bride Art Center, 230 Vine St., 215-925-9914, www.paintedbride.org.

by Deni Kasrel

dance/music

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Your ears may require a bit of aural adjustment the first time you listen to Çudamani, a Balinese gamelan ensemble that comes to the Painted Bride this weekend. Employing a variety of Eastern instruments, including mettalophone, xylophone, drum, gong and bamboo flute, Çudamani's sound is based on a musical scale system that's quite distinct from what our Western ears are most accustomed to. It's got different pitches and different intervals between notes, so at the outset at least, the music may sound peculiar. That oddness wears off soon enough, and then you can enjoy the pure spectacle of this performance titled Odalan Bali: An Offering of Music and Dance, where 25 musicians and dancers reenact a Balinese temple ceremony. More than a concert, it's a theatrical event that takes you into the world of Balinese ceremony and ritual. Performers portray priests, warriors and guardian spirits, among other things, while musicians beat out meditative hypnotic polyrhythms. Slip into Çudamani's vibe and it'll put a spell on you.

Odalan Bali: An Offering of Music and Dance, by Çudamani, Sat., Nov. 3, 2 and 8 p.m., $30, Painted Bride Art Center, 230 Vine St., 215-925-9914, www.paintedbride.org.