LIVE CONCERTS - CORONA VIRUS ISSUE

[hnbhagavan]

Dear Friends,

Due to the Corona Epidemic all the live concerts in Bangalore have been cancelled.Definitely this will be the case in all Venues across the Country.Specifically in Bangalore Ramanavami a mega affair was cancelled resulting in great loss to all the participants on stage and of course to rasikas.This is due to Covid Lockdown.
But even after Covid Lockdown is lifted i am pretty sure there cannot be any Live Programs till such time safety from Corona is ensured.But this will be 18 to 24 months as a guess .The CORONA Virus Vaccine must be proven and available before any Live concerts start.
This is a body blow to many artists depending on Income from Live concerts especially Carnatic Music.
Whether Rasikas group can raise to the Occasion to support the needy artists?.

[Sachi_R]

You're right HNB.
Unless clear-cut clearance is given by the authorities to organisations, no live concerts.
And unless one is fully confident that one won't get any infection, it is unsafe to mingle and attend gatherings.

[hnbhagavan]

Dear Sachi,
Even if Government permits with some restrictions in place,It would be unwise to take any chance for attendance in live.
Only a Specific Vaccine can solve this problem.
This applies to all gatherings including Functions of relations and friends.

[hnbhagavan]

Looks like Concert goers have not yet taken interest in this topic.As a person who used to attend a number of concerts in Bangalore i am really bored listening only in Youtube or Sangeethapriya.I used to enjoy live not because I understood every item sung,but i used to enjoy the expressions on the faces of Musicians,Interactions and of course company of fellow Rasikas.
Now that the Lockdown period is coming close to end,but normal life will not be as it were earlier.Next two years or till suitable Vaccine is in the market Carnatic Music cannot return to auditoriums.
As it is the concert goers have to maintain social distance..So you can schedule only upcoming artists for whom even in good days response used to be luke warm.This will any way ensure automatic Social distance.You cannot schedule a free concert of Sanjay or RaGa sisters.Ticketed concerts are possible as you can ensure ticket sales of seats which ensure alternate seats.But this would be a challenge as ticket cost goes up.
Organisations which depended on Sponsorship and hence threw open the doors to public free of cost can still try for sponsorship if industry recovers but must introduce Tickets so that earlier rush will not be there.The organisations should employ both sponsorship plus Tickets to keep the show going.
Arrangement for artists on Dias must follow DD model keeping separate dias for the artists on stage.

[Nick H]

Looks like Concert goers have not yet taken interest in this topic.

I am more interested in this topic than almost any other!

Whilst I can easily go into hermit mode, and do not find isolation itself (anyway limited by internet) to be difficult to bear, it still remains that live music is a vital part of my life, both for the music itself and for the interaction with others. It is a great loss to me personally. As well as that, I feel for the artists, who are cut off from both artistic expression and livelihood, and for the organisers, who have had an important part of their lives taken away.

The very existance of live carnatic music in the world, let alone Chennai and other Indian cities, seems to me to be such a wonderful thing, it is good just to know that it exists: humanity is enhanced (mostly ) by our concerts.

But having something useful to say as to the future, at this time... I don't know. May can probably be written off, and, most likely June too. Given the number of elders (and even I am a younger elder in virus-risk terms) in the community we must be conservative. I am not expecting a July-4 birthday concert, and, in the optimistic possibility that it happens, certainly not expecting my favourite octogenarian to risk travel and public exposure.

By July, though, we may have a better idea of whether this disease is on the ebb or not. I guess that the biggest question in our minds is whether or not we will have a December season this year.

[CRama]

As a person habituated to attend live concerts very frequently since my retirement, this lock down period has been much frustrating for me. The webcasts of paalam and Arkay had been a great relief for me even though I had personally attended all the paalam concerts that were webcast. Still watching them for the second time was very much enriching. Many nuances which escaped my attention earlier now I could notice- because of my evolvement as a rasika.

I have recently opened my fb account and that also gives lot of music. But nothing will compensate for the experience of attending live concerts. When the live concerts in Chennai will start- is a million dollar question. From the TV news and other reports, which say that even after the lock up is lifted, we should continue to were masks and observe social distancing for a year or more- the chances of attending live concerts in the near future may simply be a wishful thinking.

I fervently pray that this should not affect the December season concerts.

[hnbhagavan]

Dear friends,
Perhaps free concerts have to be done away with for very popular artists like Sanjay,RaGa etc.These concerts have to be necessarily ticketed.But concerts of upcoming artists and a few others who are established but only have a few dedicated followers can be held.
The seating arrangements have to take Social distancing into account.
In Bangalore the number of free concerts for even very popular artists are free due to funding by corporate and donations.But due to COVID-19 sponsorship may not come forth or come in a trickle.Hence Ticketed concerts is the only route.The dias has to be rearranged.Sitting on dias by rasikas have to be discouraged and in Ticketed concerts this is not to be issued as in Sabhas at Chennai.

[rajeshnat]

I have recently opened my fb account and that also gives lot of music. But nothing will compensate for the experience of attending live concerts. When the live concerts in Chennai will start- is a million dollar question. From the TV news and other reports, which say that even after the lock up is lifted, we should continue to were masks and observe social distancing for a year or more- the chances of attending live concerts in the near future may simply be a wishful thinking.

I fervently pray that this should not affect the December season concerts.

Crama,
Oh No opening Facebook account is a trap that you should have not fallen. . Dont post any content there , just use it to fish out and read some great content somewhere there. Just like me taking illayaraja and taken few vaggeyakkaras like say lalgudi as we are all in lockdown , You revisit some threads and write up more .

For eg i know you can write a lot about Trichur Ramachandran , the flute artist Gopalakrishnan , the evergreen TRS which you have told in person to me . Those information has not reached other than me . You can take those vidwan and vidushi or vaggeyakkara threads , organize your thoughts and type in notepad for a day , then post it in rasikas in daily digestible chunks .

Already you have been taken up by few others, continue your content and more importantly time exclusivity to rasikas.org please. Facebook sucks time .Facebook is a needed marketing weapon for artists but a distraction and drain for music consuming rasikas .

[rajeshnat]

HNB
Let us wait till say May end or June . Those are generally lean periods irrespective of corona . I think many concerts that you wish to happen like say violin concert generally always has a lot of social distance on the consumer side . THe artists can be bit more seperated and as you indicated like doordarshan it is ok to have such a kind of stage. THe more scarier part is international travel tours which appears very far fetched and also bit risky for artists to engage in if the situation improves.

The lock down on india is ending on May03rd , We will wait and see after lock down is lifted, how the whole of say May goes . Your posts are bit gloomy , let us keep it subjudice and we will wait .

[SrinathK]

There is no substitute for a live concert. FB is a last option for me. It has its use, but the feel, the live ambience, the sound and the dedicated atmosphere and a whole lot of other things simply won't come from a small phone screen.

[Nick H]

... the feel, the live ambience, the sound and the dedicated atmosphere and a whole lot of other things simply won't come from a small phone screen.

It won't even come from a monitor. I doubt that it will come from those that watch web concerts on big-screen TVs.

As you say, there is no substitute for being there. But if all we can do is go, listen and leave, although it is better than nothing, it is still lacking being able to chat to each other and meet the artists. And if you talk to me from six feet away, I simply won't be able to hear you .

[ramamatya]

I'd rather not be amidst asymptomatic/symptomatic nris, islanders or intl travellers.

[shankarank]

Musicians are in the first and last category! . So remote listening for you!

[ramamatya]

Musicians are not nris, at least not majority of them. They may be intl travellers but then they'd have stopped travelling from lock down times -- so, invalid points of yours.

Radio is the best, though, unless one wants to watch musicians perform. I'm happy with listening

[hnbhagavan]

It is extremely hard whoever it may be whether Main Musician or accompaniments as the normal activities are unlikely to resume in near future.I am also putting a question mark on all events in all cities including December music season.It is not just Lockdown problem. The Vaccine is also in very initial stages although full effort is put in many countries.Even the treatment for the disease is also trial and error.Although i mentioned Carnatic Music this applies to all art forms where audience is in Live.
Financially as the Government hardly supports our musicians it is a great matter of concern.

[hnbhagavan]

Sri V V Sundaram of Cleveland claimed in a talk that only 10% of our carnatic Musicians take 90% of the money pool and the remaining 90% have to do with 10% of the pool money.When i have talked to those in charge it is common to say that in a week's festival of programs with a budget of 10 plus Lakhs for remuneration,at least two programs take away say 4 Lakhs in terms of remuneration depending on the Musician's standing.
I have also read that the Upa Pakavadyams are the worst paid even in normal times.Hence during the season some of them perform 4 to 5 concerts.
In this Corona Virus scenario the top rung carnatic Musicians can bank on the safety of earnings.Some Musicians also have a regular job.But what about those who are primarily dependent on the earnings.
Bangalore Ramotsavam in at least 3 places used to feature a number of artists.Cleveland aradhana perhaps used to compensate well for 150 or so.More cancellations are likely.
In India Digital Platforms do not fetch good money.

[shankarank]

I am seeing that the teaching activity has picked up steam, with some judicious parents utilizing the lock down and extra time children have, to give a filip for the same, to advance the children before they get busy with academics , even otherwise in higher grades. The vidvans and vidushis can take advantage of the same. Charge a bit less with for more class sessions in this time - it is a win-win!

This is time of vidya, sAdhakam and svAdyAyam. Hope vidyArthis take advantage!