Table Of Contentmakessense.
Antarnaad: Sur aur Saaz
c. It highlights our musicians' widely shared
VijayShankar Mishra emphasischatthe worldofsangeetisutterly
free from the taintofcommunalism.
KanishkaPublishers, Delhi,2004
d. Carehasalsobeentakentodeterminetheduty
471pages,Rs900
and responsibility ofthe media, the society
and the governmenttowards ourmusic.
e. Finally, besides beingvery well written, the
This isdoubtless a work ofsingularvalue.As a
recordofinterviews-generallypointed-with bookisdistinguishedbytheauthor'sabilityto
putquestionstotheartistesinsuchawaythat
thirty-nine leading musicians, four fascinating
is sensible, penetrating and determined, hut
essaysonBharatRatnaawardees,andseventeen
neverimpolite.
honorific, yet truthful ones on those musicians
whoare no longer with us but whose memories A. for the author.pretsce(tilled ai7rall< '"l
wesurelycherish,itistomymind theonlybook ~)Ifindit,verylikeable.Itconvincesmeof
ofitskindsotui ;andhenceitsreviewtoo hasto hiseligibilityforwritingabookofthiskind.What
take a somewhat unusual form. I have gone is more, in acknowledeging the author's own
throughitmore thanonce;Ihadto,becauseitis indebtedness to those who have assisted and
packed with very interesting material and is,at encouragedhim,hisprefacenotonlyrevealshis
places.instructiveandquiteinformativeaswell.It innatehumilitybuthisuncannyeyefordetailwhich
hasnet beeneasy forme topick all its salient isperhapsduetoabasicdemandoftabla-rhythm
features,buthereIhavebeenhelped,inpart.bya in which he specializes, namely, scrupulous
closereadingoftwo(ofthethree)prefatorynotes, attention totheproperexecutionandorderingof
onebyProfessor(Mrs.) KrishnaBisht,aformer thebolswhichtheartbuildsupon,soastoproject
HeadofDelhiUniversity'sFacultyofMusicand their individual sonant uniqueness. what,
FineArts and herselfaverycompetentmusician however,lendsexceptionalvaluetothebookisits
andmusicologist;andtheotherbyShriAnilSinha potentialtoprovokethereaders'ownthinking,in
whichhasgiven mesuchinformationastheauthor addition to providing them with a gooddealof
himself could not provide in his own interestinginformationandafarbetterideaofour
autobiographicalpreface (pp.XIIl·XVIU)whieh musician's ability to think and oftheir sense of
is,however,notonlyreadable,butalsorevelatory .values.Thismany-sidedutilityoftheworkshould
oftheauthor'sinnatehumility.Luckily,some of beclearlyborneoutasInowproceedtodealwith
thebook'skeyfeatureshavebeenwellchosenby its.actualcontent.
Mrs. Bisht; my own reading of the work has However, in so far as this content is very
confirmedthem;and Imaylistthemasfollows: diverse, I propose to divide my reflections into
a. It provides truthful accounts ofthe artistes' separatesegmentsas follows:
0\\11experience,reflectionsonmusic,personal A. InformativePassages
strugglesand familialenvironment,and thus Here,Iwillrefertothosepageswhichprovide
fillsalacunainourconcernwiththeworldof such details about the lives and work ofour
musicas itpresentlyis. musiciansasdeserve tobebetterknown.Someof
h. Italsopresentssomecontroversialviews,such thesepages recountincidents thatare verylikely
as theone relatingto theorigin ofsarod, in tomakethereaderchucklewithdelight;andsome
such abalancedway thatthereaderisableto otherwouldmakehimfeelalittleedifiedbecause
decideon hisownastowhichofthemreally ofthenobility(oratleastgentility)exudingfrom
BOOK REVIEWS
75
themusicians'exemplaryattitudeorattemptsto
Kendra(NewDelhi) whoiswidelyknownnot
makesense ofsomepresentstateofaffairsina
only as asuperlative harmoniumaccompanist.
verybalancedway.
butforhispainstakingresearchesinthefieldof
S. OuestioasandAnsll't'rs MarathiNaryaSangeet.jhefirstparaonp.98which
UnderthisheadIwillJistmainlythosepages recountsTarunBhattacharya'ssantoorrecitalas
where the more penetrating questions and aninvocationofpeaceforthesoulsofthosewho
satisfying answers occur, with occasional lost their lives in the World Trade Center
commentsfrommysidetohelpthereadertoreact cataclysm;verytouchingaccountsoftheimpact
more readily to the verbal exchanges. The of some memorable Odissi performances by
questioner,ineachcase.istheauthorhimself;so, SanchitaBhattacharya(pp.I().I..I05);p.161which
torefertohim,thelatterQshouldsuffice;butin tellsushowBuddhadityaMukerji,oneofourtop
the case of respondents-the artistes sitarists,heavedasighofreliefonbeingtoldthat
interviewed-Lwhearesomany.individualnames therhythmicclappingwhichoncegreetedtheend
willhavetobegiven. WheretheQAduelsare ofhis 5·minute recital in Yugoslavia was an
speciallystriking.someextractsmayhavetobe expression of hearty applause, and nOIof
cited.Thisshouldmakeusrealizethatquiteafew disapprovalasitgenerallyisintheWest;asimilar
ofourbetterknownmusiciansarenotonlygood rarityonp.180whereManilalNag,anothersitar
performersbutwatchfulandbalancedthinkersas maestro,gratefuUy recallshowin hisup-and.
well comingyears,andatabsolutevariancewiththe
C. AccordandDissent practicetoday,hewasopen-heartedlyacclaimed-c.
Thissegmentwilldrawthereaders'attention andsoencouraged-bysucha seniorartistas
PanditOmkarnathThakur;and,onp.I9t,aquite
tothosepageswhichshowtwomusiciansgiving
heart-warmingaccountofhowourmusicians,like
utterance either to different viewsonthesame
PanditMohinderSarin.aresensitivetoourarmed
subjector to commongrievancesorproblems.
forces'sacrifices.
Generally,however.mostofthechapterscallfor
thorough reading.just because theyteem with 1Iwouldhoweverbewrongtobelievethatthe
interestingmaterial. workbeing reviewedisgoodonly atnarrating
A. AsJsaid,Jhaveinmindthemanyincidents incidents.Italsoprojectsourmusicians'tendency
describedinthebookbutthemostdelightfulof to respond, sometimesa little .....aywardly,but
these,involvingSharanRani(sarod)andthetabla mostlyquitesensiblytosearchingquestions,and
maestro UstadAhmadJanThirakwa,occurson generallywith therequisitemeasureofpoise.
p.252;andthemostgrippingone,becauseofits Good or bad. the answers are almost always
sheer bizarreness. relates to a detail ofUstad provocative,theveryfirstinterview(withUstad
Bismillah Khan's riyaz(p.3J8-319). However. AbdulHalimJafferKhan.pp.3~IJ) beingafine
example.
thesearenottheonlyincidentsthatmakethework
fascinating,andevenaquicktookatthefollowing B.Q. WhyisyourAlipasobrief!
pagesIparagraphsshouldkeepthereadergluedto A.Blaffer::Alipa isreallymeanttopreface
thebook. dhrupadsinging,notforsitarplaying.Further,a
Thebig.middleparaonp.S5whichspeaksof vilambitgatprovidesamplegroundforplaying
a very queer challenge faced and met with reposefultonalphrases.Hence.alongandleisurely
'devastating' effect bythetablamaestro,Pandit iilapa before (iJ.rbound playing is relatively
KishanMaharaj;firstparaonp.77inthechapter unnecessary(p.4).
on Jairam Potdar, presentlydirectorofKathak Q. In the fight of the fact that our
76 S.K.SAXENA
instrumentalists today vie with each other in expressionism, Cubism, Surrealism, and
relating their gharana to the legendary Tansen, Minimalism.,isthistobetakenasadisruptionof
wouldyouliketosaysomethingaboutyourown thisvisualartorasaproofofthe infinitescopeit
gharana? providesforcreativity?Thedesiretobeinnovative
A. Gharilnil!Tansen! Iopenlydeclarethat I isperfectly fair, but aglib condemnationofan
andmybaajhave nothingtodowithTansen,As establishedtraditionwhichhasgivenusmaestros
for the word ghar3n3,it isto me quitevacuous. ofdiverse,yetcomparableexcellenceisquiteas
Nordo1attachanyvaluetothegharanasassuch. improper.
How are they necessary? Isnot Camatic music Yet,tobe fairtothe totality ofthismaestro's
flourishing without being hemmed in by answersinthisopeninginterview,Imustaddthat
gharanas?Itisreallyverypainfulthatpeoplehave his other utterances (in this chapter) make
succeededindividing(theworld00surandlaya admirablesense.andthatthewayheemphasizes.
on thebasisofghar3nas.(5) with thehelpofanactualexample.theabsolute
Now, such unusual answers are bound to absenceofconununaIism in the world ofmusic
provoke any thoughtful reader into many (po9, 4th regular para) or the pointed way he
questions.Personally, Iregard thismaestro asa bemoans the state of music in Pakistan (in the
superlative virtuoso. but here. to besure. his immediately followinglines)are refreshingeye
thinking is awry. In innovating his distinctive openers.
Jafferkhanibaa], ] ask. ishe dividing the art of However,not merelyitsopeningchapterbut
sitarplaying (onthebasisofsur,talaandformal theentirebookisrepletenotjustwithprovocative,
graces) or just diversifying it? Ifthe different and (at places) questionable answers, but also
ghacinasspecializeindifferentragas,orif.without withquite afewspiritedyet well arguedand (at
anydamagetoitsgrammaticalschema.they(the places)evenilluminatingrejoinderswhichbespeak
gharin3s)presentthesameraga differently(yet ofourmusicians'c-ceventablaplayers'-ability
winsomely) by availing of varyingly designed to think and argue competently. Here, at once,
compositionsandutilizingformalgracesandtexts IfeelimpelledtorefertoChapter27whichrecords
ofdissimilarlook,meaningand emotivehue. do the interview with Prof. Rangnath Mishra who
theynotmakeusawareoftheexhaustlessaesthetic nOIonly posesthe sensible questionwhy some
potentialofoneandthesameriga?Diversifying. reputedgharanasoftabladonotmakeuseofthe
Jrepeat,isnotthesomethingasdividing.(Itwas inkycirclewhenitissovisiblyapartof'theright
wellafterexpressingmyselfthusthatIcameacross one' (215), but even questions the propriety of
Pandit Bhim Sen Joshi's supportive views, on pronouncing yoga as yoga(214); and, what is
p.l71). And, finally. does this sitar maestro more, even hints at the possibility that rhytlun
proposeare-shapingofHindustanimusicon the maybegiven aplaceofpre-eminenceinsangeet
modelofitsCamaticcolleague?Shouldourvery becauseitisabletocharmus withoutthe aid of
way ofsinging the individual swara become wordsandtonesgradedinascale(218).Butinso
similartothatofoursouthIndianvidwans?Above far as limitations of space prevent me from
all, is it not a hard. unmistakable fact that it is dwellingonallthequestionsandanswersatlength.
essentiallyourghacin5:sthathave preservedand Imaydilateonjustoneor two'interviews'more.
broughtout the limitless creativereachesofour and then quickly list those pages, may beeven
music.Ifthe artofpaintinghasthrownup such paragraphs, which contain some striking verbal
diverse styles (or schools) in the West as interactions.Seeforexampletheverynext chapter
Impressionism, Expressionism, Abstract whichrecordstheinterviewwiththesarodmaestro,
BOOKREVIEWS
77
UstadAmjadAliKhan: outnumberthequestionableones.
Some pointed (at places, even caustic) Inspiteofbeinganacknowledgedconcertartist.
questions (p. 21, 2nd para). and some very Kalpana Komkali's very right emphasis on the
satisfyinganswers, withoutevenasemblanceof valueoramother'sroleinthefamily(42-46);the
getting irked; expressionoffme sentiments in courageous and quiteproper rebuttal ofKumar
respect ofthe ideal nature ofmusicas also of Gandharva'sviewthattabla-playingcannotclaim
sensibleviewson(a)creationofnewragas(20,21). toheanindependentart hyKishanMahar.lj,the
(h) right tahla accompaniment (21,22), (c) firstevertabla-maestrotobe honoured withthe
introductionofintervalsinthecourseofasingle Padma Vibhooshan award (50), and his quite
recital (22,23), (c) fusion inthe realmofmusic warranted opposition to excessively slow and
(thoughamuchbetterviewonthisspecificform quick paces ofIaya in music, as also to over
ofcreativityhasbeenputforthbyVishwaMohan emphasisontheshffstnj-apakshaofthisan(SI);
Bhattonp.233)and(d)onUstadBismillahKhan's Prof.G.c.Srivastava'sverysensibledisagreement
own and othermusiclovers'attitudetohisneed withtheviewthatinstitutionalteachinginmusic
forfinancialhelp(28-29). isnotproducinganyworthwhileresults(58)--a
However, the crowning touches here are reaction whichissues,ifalittlemore spiritedly.
provided, first, by the maestro's amazingly also from PrincipalMadhupMudgal(183-184);
balanced remarkthat thoughhouses ofworship GundechaBrothers'correctdefinitionoftheright
arenotabsolutelyessential(becausethelocusof waytosingjungalbandi(62).-aviewwhichis
true religiousness is the human heart). itis yet notonlyechoedbytheRajan-Sajanduo.butquite
very wrong to destroy them (29, last para); properly highlighted by them inthecontextof
secondly, by due emphasis on communalamity interpersonalrelationstakenquitegenerally(198);
(30);and,thirdly,bythesingularbuthynomeans the many inconveniences ofeveryday living to
insignificantremarkthat,evenliketheelements, which ourtopmost musiciansare subjectto,as
musicisnottieddowntoanyparticularreligion, listednotonlybyFahimuddinDagar(p.J48),bot
and that though it cannot satisfy hunger,music by the famedVaranasiduoofvocalists,though
can certainlynourishthesoul(31). the latteralone highlightthe matteragainst the
The next 'interview' projects some very rampantcrazeforthegameofcricket(204);Gopal
sensible'answers'by Ustad Asad AliKhan, our ChandraPanda'srevelationofthethreeragasand
only Rudra Veena expert (33-37). What the the three specific gamakas which distinguish
maestrosaysaboutthefutureof'veena-playingin Odissi classical music as rooted in the
our country (34·35) should make us aUsit up compositionsofJaideva(67)(andofwhichIhave
apprehensively.Luckily,however.somereliefis no knowledge at all); Sanchita Bhattacharya's
providedbywhatwearetoldaboutadherenceto sensible explanation ofwhy an Odissi recital
thegum-shishyspar.u1¥'anlofteachingatLI.C., generallybeginswithbhoomipr:J.pam(I0I),and
Kolkata. Thenext interviewee, UstadAasheesh hermovingappealtoourpoliticalrulers(106);
Khan, is likely to surprise the reader by his PrincipalMadhupMudgel'sbalancedremarkson
preferring not only Buddhadev Oasgupta, bUI the differring value of words in classical and
SharanRaniaswell10thefarbetterknown.Amjad sugamsangeel(184,186);Pdt.MohinderSateen's
Ali(41).Butwhat!havefoonddifficulttodigest explanationofwhyexactlysuchsangeetshould
is what Aasheesh Khan has said about A.R. beregardedassug301(188)andbismentionof3
Rahman(42).Luckily,however,satisfyingviews little known. but important detail which the
expressed during the course ofinterviews far composerofsug.J111sangeethas10bearinmind.
78 s.K. SAXENA
thatis,theprecisemomentwherethesingermay his recitals as memorable, because he still sees
havetobreatherestfully(190),and(inmyview)a some lacunaein his singing (174); a somewhat
rightfulprotestagainstthecontinuingtendencyto similarexpression ofthe same inability by the
overrateK.L.Saigalasasinger(195). famous violinist Dr. N. Rajan (133); and Ustad
Itwouldhoweverbewrongtobelievethatwhat Zia Fariduddin Dagar's contribution to the
Ihavesaidsofar,onthebasisofmyfirstreading propagationofdhrupad,andhisemphasisonthree
ofthebook, isallthatmakestheworkfascinating suchformal gracesas1hadneverheardofearlier,
andrichly informative. The truth rather is that namely,padchedan,patjhad, andpataka(136).
subsequentreadingsofthe bookhave struckme C. Beitnotedthat,ononepointatleast,this
withanumberofotherfactsandargumentswhich dhrupadmaestroentirelydisagreeswith another
1justcannothelpbutreferringto. very senior member of the Dagar family.
UstadAhmad Jan Thirakwa's 25·year long According to Ustad Zia Fariduddin Dagar, the
stintasatablaaccompanistwithBalGandharvain wordbam·(andits4/5 fonns)arejusttheproduct
various plays, and his noteworthy open-hearted ofsome individual's whims (138, last line). On
admissionthathehadnotseenanyothervocalist the otherhand, UstadFahimuddinDagarinsists
adaptingvariationsoflayatoexpressionofdifferent thattheDagarbanialoneisthatpurebaniwhich
rasas aseffectivelyasBalGandharvacould(80); incorporatesand buildsuponallthe essentialsof
admission ofthe intrinsicallyuntuneful tone of sangeet.Both,however,agreeinmaintainingthat
gaand dhaastheysoundonaharmonium,along it is betterto regard dhrupad as an epitome of
withanexpertplayer'sdevicetocoverthedefect, ancientIndianculturalvaluesthanasameregenre
by such an admittedly competent harmonium ofclassicalvocalmusic(136, 146).
accompanistasJairamPotdar(90);anaccountof All this should be enough to sustain the
themainreasonwhyvocalistshaveoftenpreferred readers'interestin thebook. YetIcannotclose
the harmonium to sarangi as an accompanying thisreviewwithoutinvitingtheirattentiontowhat
instrument(91-92);the non-aestheticworriesof I regard as a superlative instance ofhow one's
today'sprofessionalmusicianswhonolongerenjoy commitment to music can surpass every other
anyroyal patronage(95); aC.D. forde-stressing interest.Once,whenUstadHafizAliKhan,father
(producedbyTarunBhattacharya)whichisselling ofAmjad Ali, met the then President ofIndia,
welleveninforeign countries(97); Buddhaditya Dr Rajendra Prasad, and when the First
Mukerji(the sitarist)asthe firstIndianmusician Citizenanxiouslyenquiredifthe ageingmaestro
to perform in the British House ofCommons needed any help, the latter's ready answerwas:
(153); very interestinginformation(providedby 'Sir! Just protectragadarbari,please;itisfacing
Bhajan Sopori) about the musical ancestry of mutilation;andnow,Sir,Ibegleavetogo--tobe
santoor,asalsoabouttheartist'sowninnovations on time fornamilz(17).
inre-structuringtheinstrumentandhisdistinctive Thebookaboundsinsuchfascinatingmaterial,
playing ofsometaans(anduseofchi/din)which anditsmultifariousrichnessmakeusfeelbeholden
is possible only on a santoor(167-168); Pandit totheauthor.
BhimSen Joshi'sinabilitytocharacterizeany of S. K. SAXENA
