Carrying forward a legacy

The M. Balamuralikrishna memorial music college must resist a defensive approach towards new ideas

July 24, 2017 12:02 am | Updated 12:33 am IST

The Andhra Pradesh government’s decision to establish a music college in the memory of legendary composer Mangalampalli Balamuralikrishn a — to mark his 87th birth anniversary, on July 6 — was perhaps the most consequential highlight of the celebrations in different cities. Ironically, while it was proposed to honour him by setting up an educational institution, the man himself received no formal instruction in the modern sense of the term. This fact further underscores the extraordinary influence the multifaceted musician wielded in the cultural arena.

Torchbearer of innovation

Balamuralikrishna was fundamentally a philosopher musician who was impelled by an insatiable curiosity to delve into the scientific principles underlying India’s unique melodic system. Therefore, he set store by his own emotional experience to understand and interpret the rich and varied musical heritage he came across. The compositions he wrote in his early teens in each of the 72 foundational scales of the Carnatic system were foremost illustrations of his tenacious intellect and aesthetic sensitivities.

His audacious endeavours in subsequent decades, of formulating new scales deploying fewer than five notes, were to redefine the conventional contours of conceiving a raga. Similarly, the emphasis the maestro placed on setting his own individual tunes to works, where the authenticity of the originals were a matter of dispute, or giving musical form to the lyrics of men of artistic repute, were instances of his idiosyncrasies as a composer. These and many other characteristic qualities may have remained relatively obscure to the large mass of his fans, probably owing to the phenomenal symmetry he brought to bear between style and substance and simplicity and sophistication in his performances.

The core curriculum in the new seat of learning would place a premium on grounding students in the grand traditions of the classical Carnatic system. But the inculcation of these distinctive traits of individuality and originality would seem intrinsic to the mission of an institution conceived to propagate this illustrious legacy. Such an enterprise presupposes that students who pass through its portals would be receptive to pursue, with equal enthusiasm, rigour and openness, the dynamics of other interrelated disciplines of music.

Moreover, the orientation would be to desist from a defensive approach towards new ideas, either in the guise of preserving convention or with the aim of creating specialists, without undermining new domains of specialised knowledge. In other words, nurturing capable and cultivated musicians with all-round abilities rather than equipping men and women merely with professional competencies ought to underpin the vision of the new centre of music learning.

These are admittedly ambitious objectives, whose accomplishment would be predicated upon a vibrant educational environment that is dedicated to the promotion of academic excellence. Fortunately, these are the same values that mainstream institutions are committed to instil in youngsters and which corporations profess to foster in the business environment. Therefore, no price would be too dear to realise these ends.

Going forward

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu may have got the sentiment and symbolism right when he declared in Vijayawada that the new college would be situated in the maestro’s birthplace, Sankaraguptam village in the East Godavari region. To be sure, the choice of the location imparts a sense of history to this important project. But the composer’s general perspective as regards past events and ages was more nuanced rather than nostalgic as he viewed history as an essential ingredient to enrich the present and enable a reasonable anticipation of the future. Such a pragmatic approach was a powerful influence throughout Balamuralikrishna’s dynamic life — an aspect that perhaps ought not to be overlooked.

Similarly, his life was a treatise on the mastery and transcendence of time-honoured traditions, without the trappings of triumphalism. He often extolled the technical sophistication and richness of the south Indian musical system. But he was equally wont to insist that the term “Carnataka” essentially implied any music that was pleasant to the ear.

The renditions of a few hundreds of the maestro’s own compositions, digitally recorded during his lifetime, would undoubtedly serve as a major repository for teachers and learners to draw upon. But the many direct disciples the great guru has tutored at home and abroad have a special place in the dissemination of his musical ideas. Some of them are real ambassadors who have the sophistication to transmit the legend’s essential spirit of simultaneously staying rooted and steering Indian classical music through the cross-currents of diverse cultural influences.

The three-member committee, headed by the Chief Minister’s media adviser, Parakala Prabhakar, has the enviable task to ensure that the spirit of “Murali ravali” reverberates across the Godavari river belt and beyond.

garimella.subramaniam@thehindu.co.in

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.