When technology takes centre stage, distance does not matter. And this is exactly what happened when Temple Town's Carnatic music lovers got an opportunity to watch and hear the vocal concert of T.M.Krishna, as it happened at the Chennai Krishna Gana Sabha, through live webcast.
Organised for the first time in the city by Sri Sathguru Sangeetha Samajam, it was arranged at the Lakshmi Sundaram Hall and offered a unique opportunity to classical music connoisseurs here.
“Earlier, people had to spend a lot on travel and entry ticket to listen to their favourite singers' programme. But now with technology, things have become simple and easy. Once we came to know that Mr. Krishna's concert will go live on the web through his website, we contacted him and got his approval. As a trial, we watched a similar concert organised by the Mylapore Fine Arts on December 23,” ,” said Dr. Rajaram, one of the secretaries of the Samajam.
“Such programmes come good when star singers are unable to accept all requests for performances given their tight schedules. We are now planning to show the annual concert happening in Cleveland, USA, with the help of the same technology,” informed S.Venkatanarayanan, another secretary.
The webcast could not have come at a better time when the Samajam is preparing for its Diamond Jubilee celebrations.
“At last, we got what we had been longing for. It was great work to bring the December music season to Madurai. No doubt, there is a difference between watching a performance live and through webcast. Through his performance, a singer communicates with the audience. The way the singer reacts to the audience response is interesting to watch. It can happen only in live concerts. That aura was definitely missing at this event here. But to get a chance to watch T.M. Krishna's concert made up for that,” said V. Krishnamurthy, vice president, Ragapriya Chamber Music Club.
“It was a good arrangement as we were able to watch the concert without paying from our pocket. The organisers of the event have done a great service to the audience craving for classical music,” said R. Vijay Anand, architect.
“Initially, there was a distance between the performer and the audience, as we had the feeling of watching big screen television. But as the programme went on, the distance narrowed and we were totally engrossed into the concert. One big advantage was that every member in the auditorium had a ring side view of the performer. It is a novel attempt,” said Tiruchi S. Ganesan, Vocalist, All India Radio, Madurai.
There were some initial hiccups which were rectified promptly. “We have to appreciate the efforts of the organisers who handled the situation well. The audio and video were in perfect sync throughout the programme. The professional expertise of performers in the area of webcast should also be acknowledged. It is a proud moment for the organisers. Though it was not a live concert, the discipline of the audience impressed me. No one left in between. The decorum was maintained as it would be in a live concert,” said K. Thiagarajan, Assistant Professor (Mridangam), Sri Sathguru Sangeetha Vidyalayam.
Though the entry for the event was free, the turn out did not quite match the effort the organisers put in to make the programme a reality. They hope to get bigger audience for such programmes in the future.
“Usually Samajam concerts begin at 6 p.m. For this evening, it had to start early, at 4.30 p.m. To attract more people, the organisers can perhaps work on ‘deferred live telecasts' in the future,” suggested Mr.Thiagarajan.
The days are not far when singers need not go to a sabha for performances as they can perform in a place of their choice and audiences can watch anywhere their favourite singers' concerts through live webcast or even in the cosy ambience of their homes.
