Economics of Chennai Music and Dance Season

[munirao2001]

The Hindu deserves high praise for giving the centre page space and publishing Meera Srinivasan’s article “A peep……….” Dt.23rd, Dec, 2010, which beckons serious introspection and remedial measures and actions.

The most critical issues are:

1) Lack of professionalism and excellence in event management skills, barring a very few academies/institutions/sabhas/trusts in – policy, practices, resources and infrastructure factors, in particular.

2) Conditioned minds influencing and affecting:
2.1. Event Managers – self aggrandizement, leaving the noble cause to serve the music and dance taking a permanent back seat.
2.2. Artists and practitioners – weakness for accepting opportunities to perform even with great compromise, humiliation, loss of dignity and self esteem, to meet their deep, genuine and insatiate desire for performing.
2.3. Patrons- Rasikas – well entrenched freebie culture for CM and Dance, unwillingness to learn even the basic knowledge for appreciation and true enjoyment, adoption of easiest method of identifying taste and enjoyment with mass over the class.
2.4 Patrons-Sponsors - unwilling to fund equally and generously the classical Carnitic Music and Dance, in comparison with other forms- western and film music.
2.5. Patrons- Institutions/Academies/Sabhas/Trusts- not supporting meritocracy over popularity, giving opportunities only to select very few prominent artists, leaving the rest of the majority to sulk and suffer in, ignominy. By making ridiculous and shameful remuneration to the teachers, practitioners, research scholars and musicologists and not making music and dance art forms and its practices attractive enough for confidentially making a comfortable living option.
2.6. Patrons-Gurus- not sincerely striving for the development of lakshya gnanam of their students by the acquisition of knowledge through listening and attendance of Great Maestros/Maestros performances.
2.7. Patrons-Opinion makers and influential persons – are not getting rid of their prejudice and bias.
2.8. Patrons-Media- both the print and visual media’s abysmally poor (or even no coverage) and conditioned coverage and space/time slots for music and dance.
Meeting, decisions, actions from all the stake holders together is the need of the hour for results, including better economics of Chennai Music and Dance.

Yours truly,
Sandhyavandanam Madhva Muni Rao
Bengaluru

[rajeshnat]

This is a really brilliant and the best writeup that has come up so far. I did take the hindu url and thought to post a bit after the season is over .

Peep into the music season economics, particularly it was very nice to hear the breakup of expenses and proceeds.
The sad part is the last line "to a zone where money, public relations, and artistic merit will matter – but only in that order"

http://www.hindu.com/2010/12/23/stories ... 431100.htm

[munirao2001]

rajeshnat
Thanks for the compliment. This was first made as a letter to the Editor of the The Hindu the publisher. As I was unsure of its publication and with desire and anxiety to share and reach the rasikas, I resorted to post the copy of my letter, as a new topic.

[Nick H]

It was an interesting article in the Hindu. Whilst it is said that the affairs of the sabbhas are secret (they are private organisations, after all, I guess) it is good that the author was able to find at least a couple of organisers who were willing to talk frankly about income and expenditure.

I'm shocked at how little the musicians earn!

[rajeshnat]

rajeshnat
Thanks for the compliment. This was first made as a letter to the Editor of the The Hindu the publisher. As I was unsure of its publication and with desire and anxiety to share and reach the rasikas, I resorted to post the copy of my letter, as a new topic.

Munirao Sir
I have not complimented you in my previous post(complimented the original writeup) , now I am doing it . This article is simply fantastic talking about the real real real issues .

[kssr]

The letter has indeed got published in the Hindu today. When sensible things are written , it does get noticed, irrespective of whether one agrees with it or not.

[Nick H]

Delighted to see that your letter was published.

[karthikbala]

The Hindu deserves high praise for giving the centre page space and publishing Meera Srinivasan’s article “A peep……….” Dt.23rd, Dec, 2010, which beckons serious introspection and remedial measures and actions...

I find it ironic, given that the Hindu's MD is heading the Music Academy, an organisation that has been known to pay its music college teachers lavish sums such as 1000-odd rupees a month (below minimum wage, even for India?). One of the highly qualified teachers there known to me, eventually had to take up teaching outside India to make ends meet!

[munirao2001]

karthikbala
I am sure you would not have missed Quote"2.5. Patrons- Institutions/Academies/Sabhas/Trusts- not supporting meritocracy over popularity, giving opportunities only to select very few prominent artists, leaving the rest of the majority to sulk and suffer in, ignominy. By making ridiculous and shameful remuneration to the teachers, practitioners, research scholars and musicologists and not making music and dance art forms and its practices attractive enough for confidentially making a comfortable living option." Unquote I had urged for serious introspection and remedial measures by all the stake holders. No doubt some of the critical points in my letter were either modified or edited out by the Hindu in its publication. I resorted to post this as new topic in our forum the letter copy, in anticipation. I wish all the Organizations, including MA will take it seriously this malady and act to remedy this malady, in quick time.

[karthikbala]

@munirao2001

Sri Madhva,
To clarify, the publishing of the piece in that particular newspaper was very ironic to me, not your writing You have definitely hit the nail on its head.
I am glad they published it. I'm surprised they had space for it, given the space they devote to amateurs, many still wet behind the ears, Tom, Dick, Harry, Jane , their pets, and their fleas.
Quality newspapers around the world in their art columns generally only cover professionals and genuine practitioners. The Friday Review in this respect faithfully reflects all that is rotten about the Season i.e. an extravagant celebration of Amateurism. The Hindu's Literary Review mercifully seems to maintain a somewhat higher standard.