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Shri Vijay Siva(vocalist)
The Madras Music Season,
in my opinion, is one of the pride of Asia's cultural environ. The
only other music festival that we hear of such magnitude is the one held
in Vienna, though we do not have specific reports about that, not as much
as is said about this festival. The continuance of this festival
every year & the upsurge in the number of concerts and in the flow
of rasikas in the season only prove, that the musicians and the music lovers
crave for interaction among competition, which directly or indirectly hints
that music is a unifying force. Whatever be the quality that is produced,
whatever be the level of the rasikas, the Madras Music Season proves beyond
doubt that music crosses all boundaries & shall bring eternal peace
to humanity.
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Shri Rajkumar Bharathi(vocalist)
In general,
I like the Music Season in December, just for the reason that Carnatic
Music gets the prime importance during this time. As I have been
observing in the recent years, many people from abroad come down
for the Season. My travel outside India has helped me to appreciate
better, our culture & music and this helps me enjoy it more, when it
comes to Season in India. With the over- ambitiousness of the sabhas
organising concerts at the same time, the audience number gets staggered.
Nevertheless, everybody is buzzing with activity. Several go to the
Halls if not to the concert. If the sabhas can organise the concerts
in a spread out manner over two months, it will be beneficial all round,
with the Season still retaining its charm. So many youngsters get
a chance to perform & more importantly, they get a chance to listen.
This music will never die. In general it is good.
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Shri Sanjay Subrahmanian(vocalist)
For me the Season is the Event Piece De Resistance every
year. Every year I look forward to those three weeks of hectic activity,
performing almost 10 to 12 concerts, besides listening to sometimes even
4 or 5 concerts a day. The entire cross section of the Carnatic Music
listening public can be seen during this time & it really is a must
for every serious rasika of Carnatic Music.
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Shri Shashank(flutist)
Season is good in
the sense that lot of artistes get to participate. On the other hand,
it is also a waste of effort, in the sense that the same artiste performs
in the same area too often with organisations multiplying. Artistes
are also willing to perform, simply accepting all concerts. Artistes
cannot give their best in this condition & by the end of the Season
they get too tired to give their best. If artistes decide on giving
only 3 to 4 concerts of 1 1/2 to 2 hours duration, they could prove themselves
better. This would be ideal for the artiste as well as the listener.
To bring out the merit of the artiste & for better performance, the
acoustics of the auditorium has to be improved. Honest criticism
is lacking. The musicians have to be the most respected persons,
but this is not the case. The sabha secretaries become more important
than the artistes. Enough scope should be given to creativity & the
artistes allowed to grow naturally.
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Smt Nithyashree(vocalist)
The Music Festival has become very famous. Everyone
awaits the Music Season, not only in Madras, but all over India
& even all over the world. The audience & the artistes prepare
themselves for a good knowledgeable fare. Artistes attempt to present
themselves only after serious preparation & talent is acknowledged
especially during this Season. But, in a span of 10 to 15 days, there
are too many kutcheries. The sabhas could jointly organise the concerts
in a coordinated manner. Too many slots, lead to substandard music.
In order to fill up the time & the slots, even mediocre artistes are
being provided opportunity. Even paper plants are being watered.
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Smt Bombay Jayashree(vocalist)
The Madras Music Festival is by itself one of a unique
kind all over the world. It is a time when classical Carnatic Music congregates
its best self to project what Madras is, as a seat of Music. Participation
of seniors, junior & upcoming artistes, makes it very novel.
At the same time, in the span of 15 to 20 days, you get to hear the stalwarts
in the field, those who are preparing for this & those who are appearing
for the first time for the valuation of the audience. For a listener,
it is a feeling of great participation in the deep rooted culture of India.
There are people who come in from abroad (I know of rasikas who have been
coming for around 20 years, without missing even one year) & in this
sense can be compared to an annual visit to a family temple.
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Smt Mala Chandrashekar(flutist)
The season is wonderful, for there is a collective representation
& an integration of various styles of classical music. The climate
may not be at its best, but it is a joyous occasion for all. New
talents are revealed & Sabhas provide opportunity to exhibit their
caliber. It is a good opportunity to listen to good music.
The season's calendar is really packed with programs of leading & upcoming
artistes that people attend from all over the world. The importance
of such an occasion demands the very best from the artiste. The onus
rests on the artiste to ensure that they perform their best & render
innovative music to please the audience. The expectation is for new
& creative performance.
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Shri G.J.R.Krishnan(violinist)
Music Season For years,
people have been talking whether the concerts during the Season should
be distributed, but it is however widely accepted that December is the
best time for this Music Festival. Young artistes get a chance to
perform & every year a new artiste is making a breakthrough.
The number of concerts is increasing & a listener does not know which
to attend. There are two sides to the coin. Audience do get
confused, but more artistes are getting a chance to perform. The
trend of Music Season is a welcome one & should continue.
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Shri T.M.Krishna(vocalist)
For years, people
have been talking whether the concerts during the Season should be distributed,
but it is however widely accepted that December is the best time for this
Music Festival. Young artistes get a chance to perform & every
year a new artiste is making a breakthrough. The number of concerts
is increasing & a listener does not know which to attend. There
are two sides to the coin. Audience do get confused, but more artistes
are getting a chance to perform. The trend of Music Season is a welcome
one & should continue.
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Shri Shashikiran(vocalist)
Carnatic Music is definitely one of the greatest systems of Music in the world & having taken it as a profession there is the responsibility of each & every individual to do well in every concert that he/she performs, but all the more so, during the December Festival, because for professional musicians it is the time when they can catch the eyes of the listeners & organisers all over the world. For youngsters like me, I have always felt it very thrilling, competitive & enthusiastic, apart from a tinge of nervousness, when the Season is approaching. Being a vocalist, to perform in December Festival in Madras & to consistently maintain good standard & voice is a challenge, over a period of 15-20 concerts, since the climatic conditions during that phase does not suit most of the vocalists. Hence all the more the pressure. But once, you do well in the complete season, there is nothing equivalent in terms of any compensation which can match the satisfaction that you attain.
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Smt Jayanthi R.K (veena)
Madras is the Mecca
of classical arts, especially Carnatic Music. The air of festivity in Madras
during the Season in unmatched anywhere else;ie. the amount of international
audience that madras attracts during the Season is something unbelievable.
All the hotels are fully booked, canteens with South Indian food aromas
are packed, concert halls are filled with silk & lovely smell of jasmine
and perfume, artistes are seen all over Madras in cars, taxis, autos sporting
their traditional concert jibbas, veshtis, pattu sarees etc. carrying tamburas,
violins, veenas & mridangams from one concert hall to the other.
Complaining of abundance?
What is a "festival" if there is no abundance? Ever heard of a Diwali with
limited crackers? or Dasherra with limited dolls? Why complain about the
overflowing ragas & talas all over?
One suggestion : If
only experienced (at least with 7-8 years ) are given slots to perform
during the festival, quality of music can be ensured. Freshers can gain
exposure during other parts of the year!
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Poorna Siva(violinist)
I started performing
in the various sabhas as a junior artiste as an accompanist for various
artistes adopting varied styles, which has given me exposure to various
styles & has enabled me to play with an anticipation when I am on stage
with a new artiste. This in turn has increased my repertoire.
This also encourages me to practice more & to strive for perfection.
However, the Season is so packed with programs that I am sure, the
rasikas would enjoy it if given the fare in a more phased manner &
also if more screening is done at the initial level. All this would
increase the quality of performance in the Season.
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Kum Kiranavali(vocalist)
The Season is something unique, one of the greatest Music Festivals in the world, where artistes from all over come to perform, exhibiting their skill & people come from all over to listen. There is now an oversaturation of sabhas & concerts. There can be fewer sabhas which are more quality oriented & it would be better if the sabhas join together & organise the whole thing collectively. With this over abundance of concerts, audience can get tired of this. Even for musicians, it will be better to give fewer & better performances.
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