THE disciples of an Indonesian martial art will come together with an orchestra of traditional Javanese instruments to perform scenes from a Hindu epic poem.

But there is no need to book a flight, because this cultural showcase will take place right here in York.

The University of York’s Gamelan Sekat Patak, an ensemble of tuned gongs and metallophones from Java, and the Yorkshire Pencak Silat Academy, practitioners of the Pencak Silat martial art (seen above), are collaborating to present fight scenes from the Sanskrit epic, the Mahabharata.

Ginevra House, of the University’s Department of Music, said: “In a performance which coincides with the anniversary year of Europe’s Great War, the Mahabharata has particular resonance, telling the tale of a devastating war between cousins, in which all civilised rules of engagement are gradually undermined and an entire race of warriors wiped out.”

The performance starts at 7:30 pm tonight, Wednesday June 4.