"The ocean of peace lies ahead of me
Sail the boat, O pilot
You are my constant companion now
Take me in your lap
Along our journey to the infinite
The pole star alone will shine."
- Rabindranath Tagore
“Is the music and dance season a perfect world? Absolutely not, it is still a private upper-class club, restricted by practice, tradition and habit”, wrote T.M.Krishna - a fantastic musician who is expressing himself unpretentiously and tries something different on concert platform. The Hindu which carried his article put a disclaimer at the end and I cannot understand why? If you are publishing an article it implies that you endorse it. Only when you publish a report, something which everyone carries, you automatically absolve yourself from what is said.
I shall not deal about tradition, which in this context refers to ‘musical tradition’; as it is not a cup of tea for a novice like me, who is purely an art lover. I just hop around the sabhas - not only during the music season - and listen to something with which I enable myself to get further deep into myself. It is a tool to get into my abyss and my choices are defined purely on this basis.
But, I will certainly delve about the “…habit” part - not that of the musicians, but that of the “co-rasikas”, for they infringe into my world….. the world of silence and aloneness.
Is not music something that needs to be enjoyed in silence and solitude - where only the performers sing and tap and everybody else listens? My experiences in the past 20 years of listening has been appalling in this aspect.
I see innumerable pretentious listeners whose purpose is to boast that they are a rasika and showcase their “knowledge” by tapping their lap or hands or the armrest of the chair loudly and annoyingly….most of the times non rhythmically.
And they consider it as their prerogative!
There is a certain section of “rasikas” who throng a particular sabha during the season and the musical concert is only a pretext to let others know the fact that they came from Toronto, LA, NJ… only yesterday……and to flaunt their possessions………and to find a match for their…… and all these ‘listening’ to “Nidhi chala sukhama”!
Poor Thiagaraja! He may be forgiven for his naivety on the aspect of material and possession!!
Well, what is the sign of being educated? For me the first sign of being educated is to behave properly according to the place and the situation. If you have to obey certain rules laid down by certain authorities then strictly obeying them not only goes without saying, but is the sign of being educated.
If you have to stop in red, you have to stop. If you have to switch off your phone in a concert hall, you have to. But, I find most of the “rasikas” not only switching off or putting it on silent mode, but worse than that take the call and create nuisance to everybody. Putting a jammer seems to be the only solution for this.
Fine, but how will you put a jammer to the mouth of those who indulge in talking to others as they do in “kalyana kutcheri” and those “humming ….”. If you question, or ask them to shut-up they ask whether it is our drawing room……, without realising that it is not theirs either!!
There are others who bring english newspaper and spread it with the cracking sound so that the others around would know that he knows…. Yet another nuisance is the crushing sound of plastic carry bags in which they carry water bottle or some snacks. God knows what prevent them to read the newspaper in the morning at home or bring the water bottle and snacks in cloth bags and allow others to listen only music!
The true music lovers are becoming a rare breed and even an outcast, during the December season. If you happen to be in a seat where your neighbours and those seated in the adjoining rows do not indulge in loud tapping of their thighs, or keep talking to others or humming and then referring to the handbook on what raga it is (they hum without even knowing the raga!), then you should consider yourself lucky and you made the day!
I do not wish to pretend with a royal ‘we’ or ‘us’ as the words written are merely my expressions and does not need a cover. I may even be writing as some of singers sing to an empty hall; but it will no way belittle the expression as they are always inspite of……!
