T he recent centenaries of GNB, Palghat Mani Iyer, Madurai Mani Iyer, Alathur Brothers, T. Brinda and MS have a lesson for young aspirants — build your music to last. We are in awe of their music despite the passage of five or more decades. They set a standard with their music and their recordings are deemed ‘advance’ lessons.
Each one of them achieved it in different ways, but there are some oft-repeated common elements — hard work, vision, sustained learning, principled concert routines, quest for excellence, rising above the ordinary, unwavering focus on musical values etc. These are easier said than done today.
We are living in different times. Young musicians (and their parents and well-wishers) have different goals. The primary one is getting on to concert stage quickly and being part of the Season (and lately, to be among the youngest to sing at Cleveland). The other goals are to attract crowds (nothing wrong with that, in general), to feature in social media (likes), to get some YouTube uploads, have a style statement and if possible, pocket some awards. These have shaped the formula to get there —– packaged training, a small but well-rehearsed repertoire, swara singing with mass appeal, cultivated fan following and hyper-active Internet presence. The careful nurturing of all these takes precedence over the attention on musical quality. Opinions of sages (informed veterans) matter less, if at all. My fraternity (critics) has been pushed to the fringe (we still chug along).
Palghat Mani Iyer is quoted as having said: “Many are singing well now. But mark my word: this boy’s music will last”. He was referring to the versatile KVN. Even KVN, Maharajapuram Santhanam and a few others had very ordinary early stages in their musical career. But the stones were precious and the lustre eventually came through.
Jim Collins wrote a book titled, ‘Built to last,’ describing corporates that have enduring success in their DNA. In similar ways, permanent glory in Carnatic music should be everyone’s ideal. Quick and short term fame does no good for that quest. It may in fact, lull the musician into a false sense of ‘having arrived’. The longevity of the musical brand is harder to achieve — ask the living legends. But the pay-off is that such music will be celebrated well after their lives.
