To talk of two performing as one is to remember sitar-guitar duets by Rajeev Janardan and Kamala Shankar. The husband-wife duo, hailing from Tamil Nadu and Kerala respectively, and trained in Hindustani music under gurus like Pandit Bimalendu Mukherjee and others, exemplify synergy in more ways than one. Rajeev, who plays the sitar, the surbahar and the Rudra veena, has been employed with All India Radio since he was 19. Twenty-five years later, he is still grateful for the learning opportunities it afforded him and feels there is no better place for riyaaz. Kamala, born in the cradle of Carnatic music, Thanjavur, grew up in the nursery of Hindustani music, Varanasi, and under stalwarts like Pandit Chhanulal Mishra, her slide guitar, designed by Bishan Das Sharma (of Rikhi Ram and Sons), is uniquely melodious even within the gayaki ang she follows. Throwing their weight behind Swar Saraswati, an organisation run by their disciple Shrinka Agrawal, they have been presenting concerts across the country. Also soloists, they have achieved a unique balance in their duets that is not paralleled by their conversation, in which Kamala seems to allow Rajeev to steer. However, with her brief interventions, she makes known her consonance with his opinions, and the operative pronoun is usually ‘we'. Excerpts from a conversation with the duo.
On propagating fading instruments
Rajeev The Tai Situpa (one of the well known Buddhist spiritual leaders) has been learning to play the Rudra veena from me. He wants all his disciples to learn some instrument — the sitar or the Rudra veena or some other. He lives about 70 kms from Dharamasala and teaches them. I support him in this, and I hope, if this project is successful, that about 200 Rudra veena players should be created. This is a fading instrument. Since no one plays, there is no work for the instrument makers either. By creating more players, there is hope for the makers too.
Plans for instrument makers
Rajeev We are planning to bring over and felicitate children up to the age of 15 from families of traditional instrument makers of Miraj.
Kamala In Varanasi our organisation Shankar Arts Foundation felicitated instrument makers. That too was Rajeevji's idea.
On teaching
Rajesh We also teach in the slums (Mahipalpur and Kusmakar Pahadi, near Vasant Vihar). I did this in Jabalpur, before coming to Delhi and we have started it in here for the past two months. I have a very good sitar student who was a sweeper. It changed his life. Another who was a cycle rickshaw puller in Jabalpur got a scholarship and has gone on to do his M.A. His father who was a rickshaw puller too got a job looking after instruments at a music teaching institute. Music gives one a new turn of thought. It's tough to convince people. They say, “What nonsense are you trying?” People won't lend their instrument. I have three-four sitars which we take along on our visits to the slums. If you share even an hour with them, some change comes about in their lives. We teach in a park where they all gather. Now since they know us, we also sometimes sit in someone's house. It's a bit far, and requires some will power to reach there! But it is a good feeling. This work is through the Swar Saraswati Foundation, run by my student Shrinka. It was her idea.
Kamala I teach the guitar and all three of us teach vocal music.
On achieving their seamless matching of sitar and guitar
Rajeev The two instruments are very different. The first thing we did was to change the tone of the Hawaiian guitar. The other big difference is in the manner of playing. Sitar mein kahin bhi bhaag sakte hain — it has vast potential, whereas the guitar, being a slide instrument, has its limitations. But what is easy on it — the meend (glide) — is difficult to achieve on the sitar. So I developed this aspect. I practised the glide from the lower octave right up to the higher octave without breaking the sound. After all, what is raga? It is a vad-samvaad, a conversation. It is not about scales and the notes that are allowed and not allowed. While playing we make sure that the note phrases should be completed, as in a conversation.
Kamala If one plays a part of a phrase, the other should complete it, and if one plays a complete phrase, the other should complement it.
Rajeev This is the reason our matching is noticeable to the listener. When we practice, we ensure that if it is not going like a conversation, we do it again. Another thing we did was riyaaz on taans using combinations of three, four, five, six notes. We have practised the 5,040 taans of the seven swaras. It takes four hours and 34 minutes to play them all once, consecutively. Till I came to Delhi I used to do this regularly.
LALITA SWAR UTSAV
Vocal by Sulochana Brahaspati, Bharatanatyam by Rama Vaidyanathan
Vadya Vrinda by Kamala Shankar (Shankar guitar), Rajeev Janardan (sitar), Shrinka Agrawal (Kathak), Somnath Ghosh (tabla), Ritika Gupta (tanpura)
May 25, India Habitat Centre, 6.45 p.m.
We have tried for the first time, a vadya vrinda of melody, tabla and dance.
