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August 16, 2005
carnatic concert gripes
...so after attending a carnatic concert yesterday; i am still pondering over carnatic musicians refusal to name the song and its details (like ragam, talam, composer etc) that they perform to the audience before, after or whenever!...they very rarely do it and after attending quite a bit of concerts; i am very disturbed about this. i usually end up asking many people around me and by the time the concert is over; quite a few of them dont remember (since most of them are geriatrics :))...i get lucky sometimes if i go with experienced, learned disciple of this music genre but how many times do i have this priviledge..?
..how will they attract the new generation of passive listeners who are not the hardcore minority ?
shouldn't they also share some stories, background or tidbits about the compositions since they have learnt from the great vidhwans and surely these will generate more interest about the songs ?
won't i enjoy the nuances and the intracies of the ragam more if i know beforehand?
i hear the reasons from the carnatic fanatics that justify this by saying that rasikas (concert goers) must be able to detect/find out the ragams by the alapanai's or by the songs..and they say that there are enough clues..that is fun they say! but i do not buy this. they also say that the perfomers do tell if its a rare or a unusual ragam or composition and thats sufficient and i should be satisfied with this generosity thrown my way..yeah..be at their mercy!!@%$#^$#%&^
why can't they be like their hindustani counterparts who give the details most of the times?
Posted by dharma at August 16, 2005 07:48 PM