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Shri Karaikudi Mani (mridangist)
The Music Season of Chennai is world famous. Earlier only 3 sabhas were hosting this event, but now several sabhas participate. Artistes take pride in the number of concerts performed, but in my view, the quality isn't being maintained. I am not able to understand as to how those rasikas who appreciate good music are also able to appreciate the gimmicks of certain musicians. As far as thani avarthanam goes, if the artiste plays with concentration, audience appreciate this. Organisations in the name of Art have become totally commercialised. In spite of the growing no. of sponsors, the remuneration offered to the artistes is very low, for most of the sabhas are busy filling their coffers. Another sad trend is that of NRI performers paying money to have their program staged. Critics do not criticize constructively & it is not clear how & on what basis awards are given. Just as the Ganges retains her purity in spite of all dirt & grime flowing into her, the grace that is inherent in the Season is also being maintained in spite of all these happenings.
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Bombay Sisters (vocalists)
There is a view that there is a proliferation of sabhas, but in my view Chennai that existed 20-30 years before has grown & the metropolis has branched in all directions. To cater to the music lovers of all those areas & also to provide a platform for the increasing no. of artistes, this increase in the no. of sabhas is welcome. Because the Season is packed into this specific time, a festive mood is created & people from outside Madras are able to plan, visit & enjoy the programmes. The Season also has panels for discussion & this helps the audience to gain theoretical knowledge. Even though we perform multiple concerts during the Season, we are able to give our best for when one of us feel the strain, the other takes over.
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Kum Kanyakumari
(violin)
New sabhas come forward
to organise concerts during the Season. People from outside Chennai visit
to listen to the concerts & consider it a matter of prestige to do
so. It is encouraging to see juniors getting a chance to perform. The audience
find it difficult to make a choice of concert in this abundance of kutcheris
organised. The strength of audience is greater now. There is a 'kalyana
kalai' in Madras during the period of Dec15-27, which is the peak time.
Several sponsors have come forward & today there is TV coverage also.
Critics could be less prejudiced. It is a tough time for the organisers
& all credit goes to them to be able to organise so many concerts.
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Smt E.Gayathri
(veena)
The Music Season is
a hectic period. There is a mad rush of concerts for the musicians. I have
chosen out of my free will not to have a violin accompaniment & hence
have to perform continuously & this can be extremely taxing physically.
But thankfully I am equipped to handle this situation & am able to
maintain consistency. To be creative in this cramped schedule is very challenging.
I personally feel that artistes should be paid more.
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Shri Chitra Vina N.Ravi Kiran
(Gottu vadhyam)
The Madras Music Season
is probably the most singular music festival. It is qualitatively &
quantitatively unparalleled, not only because of the audience from different
parts of the world, but also because several musicians & musicologists
who come here to live this experience. Every year the number of new organisations
is growing steadily, but not yet able to match the number of aspiring artistes
seeking platform. Sponsorship & wide media coverage have added an additional
dimension to this in the positive direction.
On the negative side,
one wonders where all this is going to spiral & lead to & how much
of solid gains can Carnatic Music boast of in the long run. There are lots
of people feel that this is an overdose & the imparities between the
various organisations in the pricing of tickets & providing concert
slots creates uncertainty in the minds of listeners as well as many of
the artistes.
The other factor is
whether it is fair that an artiste sings about 20 concerts in 20 days,
& can he give soulful, motivated music. My request to sponsors &
patrons would be to adopt artistes(talented youngsters) & also allocate
a budget for furthering their talent under great masters, which is at least
as important as giving them opportunity to perform.
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Shri Kadri Gopalnath
(saxaphone)
The Season time is
a great opportunity for the audience to listen to several artistes at a
time. From the artistes point of view, it is a pleasure to be a part of
this Season. There are people visiting from outside Madras & performing
for this varied audience is a great experience. Even though one performs
throughout the year, the anticipation, planning & preparation is greater
during the Season. It is an opportunity for the artistes to exhibit their
technical skill & talent and also add to their knowledge. Credit goes
to the sabha secretaries, organisers & sponsors for making something
of this magnitude possible.
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Smt Sudha
Raghunathan(vocalist)
Well, what does one
say about the Music Season of December?
I think the rasika
is the one who has most fun, getting to meet a lot of friends & at
the same time taking in an overdose of music (of all sorts!)
The organiser at one
end is I am sure, always in a kind of 'tearing his hair' state, just with
the stress that all those programmes he charted out should work out to
schedule. Yet why do festivals & organisations keep mushrooming every
year?
The artiste, around
whom everything evolves & revolves is the character to be most sympathised
with! One does enjoy all the 'focus' that he gets. He accepts all the lavish
praise as well as the severe criticism like he takes in sugar & salt
in life. He works tirelessly to successfully round off all his concerts
maybe 5 - 7 - 12 - 15 or even more! Yes ! Yes ! But with so much abuse
of the voice & the physique, why does one do it? Where does one draw
the line of maximum utility? How can one stop staleness setting in? Where
does one show priority or preference, and how? I only know the questions.
I have no answers. But I know for certain that the motivating underlines
are 'Its all for Art's sake' & 'Make hay while the sun shines!'
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Shri I. Sivakumar
(Mridangist)
Everybody in the music field, artistes & the rasikas
are alert during the Season. This is the time when artistes give their
best & the juniors are trying their best to prove themselves. Hence
the music season definitely leads to the betterment of music. Shorter duration
of kutcheris should be avoided, for this spoils the quality & the involvement
of the artistes. Thani avarthanam comes at the fag end of the concert &
there is a practice of people walking away as soon as the thani avarthanam
starts. This can be avoided, if it is placed, if not in the middle
at least 20 or 25 minutes before the end of the concert.
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Shri Narasimhan(vocalist)
During the Season time in Madras, the various styles
of music converge here, like the various rivers winding its way into the
ocean & this ocean draws rasikas from the local & foreign populace.
Madras during the Season acts as the touch stone &
the proficiency of an artiste is put to test & id accepted here, they
are considered to be good. Music of all types ranging from excellent to
the not so good is on show. The rasikas are very knowledgeable. The quality
of the rasikas is far more important than quantity.
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Smt Lalitha Sivakumar (vocalist)
The number of kutcheris during the Season is too heavy,
confusing the audience. Due to this, all kutcheris are not well attended.
The selection of the artistes should be very carefully done so that only
the truly talented are being highlighted during the Season.
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