As a researcher of theories of sound, Evans also said he finds gamelan an interesting way to reverse conceptions of time. Because gamelan rhythm is punctuated by the intermittent strikes of the gong and the tenong—a xylophone-like percussion instrument with triangular keys—players draw their timing not from measured beats but from listening to the ensemble as a whole.

Diamond, who has been playing gamelan since 1970, said she loves this fluid notion of time and the culturally specific way of listening that gamelan teaches.

“Playing gamelan offers a different way for us to hear time, to connect with each other, and to uncover feelings that we didn’t know existed before,” Diamond said. “It’s a totally new way of relating and discovering.”

Diamond believes that the appeal of the gamelan, especially at Harvard, is that unlike other activities, gamelan affords students the freedom to be a total beginner and to make mistakes.

“We didn’t grow up hearing music this way,” Diamond said. “We’re like little children. Learning the gamelan is like watching yourself learn English as a baby. That’s why I fell in love.”