Margazhi or the Dhanur or Margaseesha masa occupies a special place in the hearts of not only the citizens of Tamil Nādu, but also of the music lovers of Bharat and the entire globe. Believe me, I am not exaggerating.
Fragrance of Music
“ Margazhi – Music – Chennai what a great combo offer! “ says Smt. Chitra Murali, information security professional . She further exclaims, “ blessed to be living in the city of Chennai particularly in the month of Margazhi, when music is all pervading in the air…we get a buffet of gana (lofty) ragas to light to popular ragas rendered by junior/ upcoming artistes to veterans. Thus, the month is virtually a treat to our ears. “ I remember how she applied and eagerly awaited to get life time membership of two of the leading music sabhas of Chennai just like a first- time overseas traveller would wait for visa from the destination country.
Views of a Vidushi
“ This is a mela time for us. We meet our colleagues and seniors, exchange mutual respect , update and recharge ourselves. We look forward to this season. “ says Smt. Vidya Kalyanaraman, vocalist and the recipient of PAPANASAM SIVAN AWARD’ from Narada Gana Sabha, this year.
She has been performing in the leading sabhas from 2002 season and gratefully recalls all her gurus who encouraged and enabled her to participate in the contests organised by the sabhas in the learning stage itself.
Who brings us together?
Here we have to appreciate the role of Sabhas, organisers of the concerts. The music lovers form into a society or trust and they conduct the concerts, classical dance programs and dramas every month. They are more active during the 45 – 60 days from November to January.
There are upwards of 30 sabhas in Chennai. Sri Parthasarathy Swami Sabha, established in the year 1900 is the oldest and still active in the field. Mudhra is one such Sabha known for several novel initiatives. Sri Bhaskar, Mridangam player and his wife Dr. Radha Bhaskar, vocalist and musicologist are the brain and soul of the organisation. Dr. Radha’s lecture demonstrations are very popular. Let us listen, what she says about the season, “ This is one of the most amazing and unparalleled festival featuring so many artists within one month. As an organiser, I take great pride in being a part of this festival and doing our bit in terms of preserving & propagating our rich art and culture. Of course, keeping pace with technology, we have made our concerts digital so that people all over the globe who can’t make it live to Chennai can also get to enjoy it. “ Dr Radha has recently concluded a series titled Carnatic Music 365, a yearlong online daily program for 15 -20 minutes episodes explaining various aspects of Carnatic music, nuances of raga, tala, rasa etc.
Fourth Pillar
To complete the circle, we need individuals who visit as many halls every day with professional zeal, patiently listen to artistes, upcoming and established, critically assess and write reviews in leading magazines. To me, they resemble bees which hop from flower to flower, collect honey which is a great food for the mankind. My good friend, Sivakumar, who is a flutist by himself, writes reviews in dailies like The Hindu, Times of India, Dinamalar, Dinamani, The Hindu Tamizh Disai etc. He has adopted a pen name ‘ Aarvalar ‘ meaning Rasika in Tamil. True to his words, he says “ as much as I am fan of Dr. Sowmya, a post graduate in Science from IIT Madras and Sanjay Subramanian, a Chartered Accountant by training, I am particular about attending junior artistes’ concerts. I was inspired by late NM Narayanan and SV Krishnamurthy, who were great reviewers.”
Rooted in Bhakti
The Carnatic music is known for adopting changes keeping in pace with the time, for example, assimilating the western instruments like violin, clarinet, harmonium, saxophone, mandolin etc. without compromising the fundamentals very much akin to Sanatana Dharma. Thus, it is traditional and yet modern. Therefore, it is always alive and fresh. The Carnatic music is thriving in spite of, attacks within and without, for it is essentially rooted in Bhakti. Here, music is a form of worship, naadopaasanaa and hence the conviction is it is a path to salvation.
How can we forget the immortal words of Saint Thyagaraja, a great Rama Bhakta , “ Sangeetha gnanamu Bhakthi vinaa, San margamu kaladhe , Oh Manasa “ which means “Oh mind , the knowledge of music, without devotion will not lead to the right path.”
–jambunathan
