CHAT CORNER
‘Perfection is a journey’
Voice culture and mindset matter a lot in building a temperament to render their kritis.
N. Ravikiran
Chitraveena and Ravikiran are synonymous. A child prodigy who has delved deep into the ocean of music, he still considers himself a student of the art. N. Ravikiran shares his thoughts on world music, composers and his gurus, in a chat at his home in Kottivakkam, whose vintage beauty is as fascinating as his strains.
A prodigy …
May be, but where did I get the musical inputs from? Many saw my ability to identify more than 300 ragas, their arohanam, avarohanam, key phrases, talams etc. when I was just three. The less visible part is my father, Chitraveena Narasimhan’s effort to infuse knowledge right from the day I was born. I owe everything to him. He is my guru, god … everything. He has been an inspiration to many parents, who have begun to expose their children to music at a very early age.
T. Brinda ...
She opened a whole new world of music for me with accent on its beauty, subtlety and nuances. It was with the clichéd idea of learning padams and javalis that I became her student. By then I was already performing. My 10-year tenure with her changed my philosophy of music. She was a storehouse of knowledge. An expert in the compositions of the Trinity, she was equally adept at compositions of many others. Her voice was absolutely in sync with the tampura. There was no artificiality about her or her music.
Oothukkadu …
In my early teens, I was exposed to his compositions by jalatarangam vidwan, Sita Duraiswamy, and her daughter. Astounded by the format, I started learning them even more seriously and began collecting authentic versions of his compositions. Though he is believed to have lived about 350 years ago, his thinking has been very modern. You will find all varieties such as madhyamakalam, changes in gathi, complex talams and structures in his compositions. His style has now vanished.What people boast of today as innovation was done by him several centuries ago. His technique is very original and can be called as part of the five styles, the Trinity and Kshetrajna being the other four. His proficiency in Sanskrit and Tamil, languages diametrically opposite to each other, is something amazing.
Approach to the five styles …
A word to aspiring artists — each of the styles demands much effort from the musician. Voice culture and mindset matter a lot in building a temperament to render their kritis. One has to practise kritis of all speeds and to reach greatheights one needs to approach music with humility. Perfection is a journey, never the destination.
Your analysis of the Trinity …
Tyagaraja wasn’t a hypocrite. In vara raga laya, ‘Theliya Ledhu Rama’ and numerous other compositions he has hit out at society. His cries, which are emotional at times, are transparent. Dikshitar doesn’t appear emotional — he is highly internalised and cerebral and his pace is meditative. The style is mostly indirect. Syama Sastry was always in conversation with Sakti. Purandaradasa spoke his mind out without worrying about its political correctness. In fact, his songs were also a reflection of the society that existed then.
Fusion …
I think it is all confusion — profusion of second rate ideas and diffusion of thinking without proper infusion of quality ideas. To be a good innovator, you should be the best in one of the two styles. Sometimes innovation is an escapist route for shallowness in knowledge. Right from childhood I’ve been listening to Western classical music or jazz, with an Indian ear, trying to identify the ragas in them. A chord may not fit into a particular raga. That’s a technical problem. Similarly Western audience while listening to our music miss the chords and harmony, and look only at the exotic beauty in our music. I’ve started the concept of Mel Harmony where emphasis is on melody typical to Indian music. It has chords, counterpoints but always within the rules of our music. Still you cannot do justice to both the systems. As I have only a working knowledge of Western music, composer Robert Morris works on my pieces before I present it. He has researched my concept and also presented a paper on it at an international music seminar. It is just a small beginning and will take at least two decades for me to get a grip of it.
Mastery over instrument …
My grandfather Gottuvadhyam Narayana Iyengar’s innovation has helped the instrument produce many micro tones. Basically I started off only as a vocalist. I sit with the chitraveena only to sing with it. At home, I play the recordings of great masters and practice as an accompanist. It is a great learning experience. Gradually your horizons widen. Playing alongside legends at concerts has also helped me create new techniques. I am still a student of music. None can master an instrument; at best one could become its good friend or partner. Believe me, my greatest partner in life till date has been my chitraveena.
V. BALASUBRAMANIAN
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