I have heard and read often enough the theory that Carnatic music suffers from Brahminic domination (apart from male-domination etc.) The foremost "Vocalist"or "vocaliser"of this theory is Vidwan T M Krishna, much appreciated for his music as well as his views. I am myself a fan of his music.
I wish to refute this theory of Brahminic domination of Carnatic music continuing even to this day.
I heard many decades ago ( because of my family's involvement in academics in this area) the term Sanskritisation. I quote from Wikipedia the introduction to this term:
So my rebuttal or refutation is as follows:Sanskritization or Sanskritisation is a particular form of social change found in India. It denotes the process by which castes placed lower in the caste hierarchy seek upward mobility by emulating the rituals and practices of the upper or dominant castes. It is a process similar to passing in sociological terms. This term was made popular by Indian sociologist M. N. Srinivas in the 1950s, although earlier references to this process can be found in Castes in India: Their Mechanism, Genesis and Development by Dr. B. R. Ambedkar.
1. It is quite well accepted that Kshatriyas (Swathi Tirunal, The Wodeyars of Mysore) were great patrons and proponents of Carnatic music. Their works dating to 19th Century or in some cases even earlier are available.
2. It is well known that Muthuswami Dikshitar had a number of disciples from lower castes who became torchbearers of his musical tradition.
3. Even those Brahmins who jealously safeguarded the portals of institutions like the Music Academy went and appreciated (and even learnt music from) celebrated men and women who were not Brahmins.
4. Famous music teachers like Naina PIllai, Subrahmanya Pillai had disciples from the Brahmin caste.
5. Musicians like T. Chowdiah were welcomed in the highest musical circles of Carnatic music despite their caste.
6. Many Brahmins associated with Carnatic music had second marriages and alliances with women of lower caste and this had its own effect on the intermingling of castes in Carnatic music.
7. Carnatic music is one of the avowed pastimes and bastions of Brahmins. They also protect their homes and rituals from infiltration and pollution by non-Brahmins. But when it comes to the Carnatic music stage, they have to bow down to greatness, whatever its caste. In this context I heard two stories.
A: Mysore T. Chowdiah, much venerated for his music and noble qualities, was still not allowed to sit and dine with Brahmins even in a big Brahmin patron's household where he was much respected.
B: Madurai Somu once finished a great concert in Nagpur. Lalgudi and Sivaraman who had accompanied him rushed off to the Brahmin host's house to dine first, since Somu was not their equal to sit and dine together with them. He followed slowly, with an understanding smile on his face.
These two examples show a mental deficiency of character among Brahmins, but we do not need to extrapolate it to their respect for music coming from great non-Brahmins.
I also think that many Brahmins have accepted as their spiritual or religious gurus non-Brahmins. Many swamis in Ramakrishna mission (starting with Swami Vivekananda) are not Brahmins. Sai baba, Jaggi Vausdev, Chinmayananda, Nityananda, etc. etc are all born non-Brahmins. But they are hailed as gurus and saints. That would have altered the Brahmin ethos quite a bit.
Since the 1970's a new generation of Carnatic music listeners and musicians (TMK is a great example) have come up. They are exposed to a society where there is
a. Reservation and many concessions for lower castes in education, jobs, including AIR and Doordarshan. There is relatedly much intellectual abhorrance of the Brahminical system.
b. The interactions with Hindustani music has increased quite a lot and HM is not full of Brahminical prejudices. This forces a rethink of values even among Brahmin-born Carnatic musicians of this generation. ( Tansen converted to Islam at the behest of Akbar).
c. Globalisation means that Carnatic music has more commerical drivers than pure tradition drivers. So bonhomie amongst all castes is de riguer.
d. The Madras music season is equally famous for gastronomic excesses in the canteen. How many of these canteen staff are real Brahmins?
e. Who is a real Brahmin? Brahmin-born musicians have been known to indulge in drink, smoking, eating meat, gambling, etc. etc. So apart from hypocrisy, they do not stand for anything great in Brahminism.
f. Governments like the one in TN and Karnataka have been very active in throwing open the portals of even temples (to non-Brahmin priests etc.) So the exclusivity of Brahminism is no longer there.
g. Eminent scholars and musicians born in lower caste have blown away any remaining false notions of Brahminical superiority in CM. You can give me many examples.
h. The influence of Nagaswara vidwans for example on the best of Carnatic musicians has I am sure instilled a respect in them for non-Brahmins who are that good. The only thing the Brahmins will not open to these people is their puja room or the kitchen in their own homes.
i. You cannot ignore the fact that the film industry has had a great influence on trends as well as opportunities in CM. There is no Brahminwood there.
j. The very fact that TMK is repeatedly airing this Brahmin-centric theory shows that as a sincere intellectual he wants things to change. Therefore one can say that just as there are hypocritical ritualistic Brahmins in the world of Carnatic music, there are open-minded people who respect music more than caste.
Do I need to say more?
