Music was literally a language in which flautist Shashank Subramanyam and his guru, his father, began talking to each other. His first performance was at the age of six and Shashank turned a full-time musician by the time he turned 11. “I was quite young when I was into all this. In the earlier years, there was pressure on the gurus to keep the artists grounded. Fame came early to me, but it was a mix of pressure and responsibility. You learn to deal with it over time,” he says, clearly at peace with himself. The artiste was at Mercure, Hyderabad ahead of his semi-classical act for the Pandit Bhimsen Joshi Festival of Music and Dance.
After attaining quite a bit of mastery over Carnatic music, Shashank had this yen to look beyond. “That's when you try to experiment within your own system, the north, the south, the folk and not necessarily, its western counterparts. In fact, every form brings something to the table. Carnatic music has its own strengths whereas the instrumentations, the harmonies and the chords of Western classical, jazz form their core areas,” he says.
Quite a bit of cultural exchange happened when he was asked to teach at several universities abroad to communities that were keen to chart the progress of Carnatic music. The theoretical side of music is something he deals with, like a surgeon. A plunge into its depths, Shashank mentions, is basically for those who study and research on music, “The reliance on music fundamentals is often the key for performers,” he replies.
After three long decades of consistent performances all around the globe, does music continue to give him the same high, as it did in the past? “The meaning changes with the age. When I started, it was a playful obsession. I'll still maintain that every time I enter the stage, the experience differs. Music helps you mature faster. The more you practice, the more you perform, you'll be quick to pick up things. In the early ages, you are confined with barriers, be it the raga or the composition. Over time, the format takes less precedence,” Shashank elaborates that the musical highs through his life have remained the same, with the pattern though altering its course often.
The flautist reckons that openness in the way rasikas are savouring music now has been a welcome change. “Adherence to tradition continues to be important. But, musicians who experimented with the form and style haven't been as successful as the contemporary ones now.”
Shashank is quick enough to point out the other side of the coin too. Like his concert later in the day that's to be telecast live on YouTube, he says, the ease in accessing music for the rasikas hasn't made them realise musical values to the fullest.
“Maybe aspirant musicians who never stood a chance, say 20-30 years ago, can use the digital platform well to showcase and nurture their abilities. The medium on the other hand tends to influence you more and originality takes a hit.”
Musicians or instrumentalists, Shashank feels, needn't put in that extra-effort to develop their identity.
Better known for his multi-flute transposed fingering technique, he says that's an aspect people should identify even if they close their eyes and listen to them perform.
“The sound is your signature. The moment people hear you and say the artiste is an X or a Y, your identity is sealed. You should be true to yourself, when you perform. The whole style has to become homogenous. But that happens over intense training and not by intention alone.”
