The Margazhi season has outgrown its calendar. “It’s been more than 25 years since it became an extended festival. Now, it begins as early as November and continues till February. Some sabhas even rent each other’s halls before their own programmes start. It’s almost a year-round phenomenon,” says S Janaki, senior arts commentator and former Editor-in-Chief, Sruti magazine.
Old roots new reach
Technology meets tradition these days. In former times, there were only few sabhas like The Music Academy, Indian Fine Arts Society, Mylapore Fine Arts Club, Narada Gana Sabha and Brahma Gana Sabha. Now, the number of organisations has increased and with online streaming, the reach has widened. Though the regulars may complain that the quality of presentation may have come down a little, it has definitely opened up the music to many people who can’t attend concerts. This is giving a new meaning to the Chennai music festival.
“Nothing can capture what you watch live,” Janaki puts it matter-of-factly. Streaming and recording may have their own advantage. People who filled the front rows once, can sit and watch from the comforts of their homes. Youngsters running with a packed schedule can catch performances online. The fact, however is that nothing can recreate the ambience of the sabha, raga, the rhythm and the people.
Apart from this technology aids restoration too. “Restoration is fine; alteration is not,” Janaki says pointedly. Technology is good when it helps in documentation, setting the quality or making old songs accessible but digitally removing imperfections, not fine because then the art losses its originality and honesty.
Economics of Art
The economics of art is a problem. Behind the glow of stage lights lies a story of survival. Usually, sabhas are big and they need proper lighting and other sound systems. Money plays a pivotal role. To handle those expenses, sabhas have to find resources. They too have memberships and sponsors and what not. Though there is a pay-to- perform syndrome, a lot of rasikas do not prefer it. “Youngsters are indeed taking to music full-time and they also need money,” points out Janaki. That is why the sense of ticketing is making a comeback. People now pay and get tickets, even for small shows. This will help create an equilibrium between the economics and the expression of the arts. Corporate sponsorships also play a vital role in this Margazhi season.
This season also triggers a whole ecosystem of related activities. As NRIs throng this season for a short period of time, service apartments and hotels are filled. And an interesting sidelight of the kutcheri season is the sabha canteen. She believes that these aspects create an ecosystem that can evolve into a cultural package.
Music Tourism – a note worth catching
None of these sabhas or kutcheris is funded by the government and that is the beauty of this Margazhi music season. “Tamil Nadu should be proud that no other state has such a festival,” says Janaki. Every sabha runs independently. Nevertheless, she feels that the government can build support infrastructure, like transport services between sabhas, tourist packages, or publicity. “The whole experience of culture, cuisine and community can be curated as a heritage tour package where visitors are taken to kutcheris in the morning, lectures in the afternoon, food in a traditional sabha canteen, and a cultural walk to heritage homes. Through this, government can generate revenue as well take the music season to another level,” explains Janaki.
Youngsters and their role
Time and attention span are also rarity these days. Curating a theme-wise Carnatic kutchery might help in bringing a lot of youngsters, even though the whole liking for this art solely relies on the interest of the particular individual. Janaki explains, “curated themes, experimental formats, light concerts, themed programmes and intimate chamber kutcheri formats also help bring younger audiences in.”
“The Chennai music season only needs packaging and not reinvention,” ends Janaki hopefully. Sabhas might dim their light each night, but the music never stops.