Season observations

[Vedavanam]

Attended quite a number of events this season, but not in a mood to write about them all. Post-season perhaps. Just a few observations for now.

1. I first feel compelled to write about the obnoxious and at times, indifferent Chennai audiences. In the concerts of most artists, irrespective of their calibre, I found the audience rather indifferent to the concert in progress, esp if the program was followed by that of a star. The old generation kept themselves busy with newspapers/magazines if they didn't need a nap (most afternoon concerts). The younger generation of course had better things to do with their smartphones, if they showed up in the first place. Most of the artists put their hearts and souls into their performances and gave of their best but the audience was unreceptive and insensitive to it, often doing very little to hide their disdain. The exceptions to this were the morning sessions and the NRI concerts which elicited better response in general.

2. The NRI brigade is brilliant with many talents rivaling or surpassing the local-bred ones. Our CM is clearly in safe hands. Many more of our future greats are going to from this pool.

3. The audience laps up anything thrown at them by the 'stars', but couldn't care less if nectar itself were to be offered by the lesser mortals. Not sure whose loss this is!

More as I recoIlect them as I don't make notes during a concert.

[semmu86]

Well, this has been the norm for quite sometime now, maybe you have decided to open up on this just now or you must have experienced this for yourself for the first time this season.

I found the audience rather indifferent to the concert in progress, esp if the program was followed by that of a star.

Harimau's post sometime back comes to my mind, which goes something like this "People are willing to endure anything, even good music, to be able to listen to stars"

[kunthalavarali]

Apart from choosing their accompaniments, the stars should have a say in the selection of artistes preceding them!!!!

[Vedavanam]

Well, this has been the norm for quite sometime now, maybe you have decided to open up on this just now or you must have experienced this for yourself for the first time this season.

I found it particularly appalling in some high-class concerts this time around. When *are* we going to change?

[vaachaspati]

In my opinion, i think there are way too many concerts over a limited time. As per Sasikiran (News7 Interview), there are around 4000+ musical performances during the music season.. give or take on an average around at least 100 concerts per day!! Even if the average capacity of these auditoriums are taken at a conservative estimate of 500, we are looking at a population of 50,000 needed to fill!!! Appears to be a Demand - Supply issue here. For an up-coming artist, it might be disheartening to sing at empty halls repeatedly and even more for accompanists!! some of them have performances every day!! not sure if they will have the stamina to sustain till the end of the season.

I know this is an ongoing issue.. but is there a need to regulate the growth for an optimal experience for both the artists and the rasikas as well?

[hnbhagavan]

Split the concert season into two parts.The upcoming artists may be featured in a separate season say in Oct and only seasoned veterans and recognised young stars in Dec .
As far as reading Newspapers,Scanning mails on mobile phones or reading story books,there is nothing much you can do.This is the same case like in traffic people when driving in India do not follow rules,but same people follow rules abroad.
In the music concerts abroad Indians also toe the line and maintain decorum.

[VK RAMAN]

ILaya Raaja vowed not to have any more of his concert in Sans Francisco as the audience were unruly and will not be silent; so it has nothing to do with place, but everything to do with our people where ever they are in Indian organized functions.

[arasi]

Bhagwan,
Not easy, having twin festivals in Chennai (Bengaluru is doing it!). In tradition-bound Chennai, one could say it's like asking two course rice-eating folks to split their meals into two?? I don't know...

[thanjavooran]

Totally agree with Inbhagavan's statement.
Thanjavooran
29 12 2015

[kunthalavarali]

This is with reference to item 3 of #1.
The likes of VR, TVS, TNS and later Ravikiran, Sanjay, Vijay Siva, TMK, Sowmya, Nithyasree, to name a few, drew huge discerning audience even when they were in the afternoon slots. It is not that they became stars overnight. I am sure we have amidst us youngsters who draw rasikas in numbers. Let us celebrate their music.

[arasi]

It so happens that this year's SK is a good example and inspiration for them in that years of striving and reaching out for creative excellence does yield results. And yes, there are many promising young artistes in today's CM scene. Already, Sanjay's pick of songs are being featured in their song lists, we see.

[rajeshnat]

In my opinion, i think there are way too many concerts over a limited time. As per Sasikiran (News7 Interview), there are around 4000+ musical performances during the music season.. give or take on an average around at least 100 concerts per day!!

Certainly the load is high. But objectively when compared to 2008 to 2014 vs 2015 , it has bit come down- I would say atleast a 10% drop- the barometer is the page 4 or 6 hindu itenary in dec 25 to 27, it is only 80% of the full page . Sabhas like kalarasana (reduced from 12/15 to 3 concerts), few sabhas that come up in sastri hall have reduced , the sabha in MGR janaki college in adayar has not scheduled, few that come up in places like DG Vaishnava college have not come . Also sabhas like CCA(NCA) have decided to start from Dec 30th to Jan 16th and not gone headlong with other competing sabhas like Mudhra, Vanimahala,SKGS etc - may be the rain was a reason.

On a side note despite proliferation every year i am having a chance to hear some one new like this year I did for Jayanthi kumaresh . I even planned to attend a very promising youngster this year but it just got cancelled due to rain. That is on the positive side of having more concerts.

For me what is frustrating is some sabhas are fragmenting and reducing the hours from even crappy 1 hour and 45 minutes to even crappier 90 minutes . That becomes a big bore as there is no time for musicians to sing in those sabhas/halls and they have to sing like non televised Jayatv or margahzhi mahotsavam tv show , that needs correction.

[KNV1955]

Some of the auditoriums are terrible like Vidya Bharathi Kalyana Mandapam ; Mylapore Fine Arts Club; Ethiraj Kalyana Mandapam; MGR Janaki College;Sabhas organising in these venues should do it in Jan/Feb & Mar

[Nick H]

I mentioned to an artist, the other day, that MFAC should be knocked down: of course, she replied that so should a lot of venues.

But MFAC is something of a special case, occupying a huge plot of prime land in the centre of Chennai. I'm assuming that they own it outright, making themselves enormously wealthy on paper already. Surely the obvious idea would be to redevelop the site. They could build a self-financing complex, with music facilities to rival MA and KGS combined, with large-incoming-producing shop/office/residential accommodation above. Whilst the same applies to NGS, they already have facilities that are far, far better than MFAC. Anyway, they'd probably still install lousy sound systems

Speaking of facilities, how about the, err... facilities?

NGS has completely rebuilt its gents' toilet. It is now probably cleaner and more hygienic than the canteen! Have they done anything for the ladies? Is there a ladies' loo on the other side of the building? I only know of the small one on the mini-hall side, which, I am reliably informed, remains just as it was.

Sastri Hall proudly maintains the record achievement of being able to build new (within a couple of years) to a ridiculous design that provides no privacy from each other for either gents or ladies, and which went from new to disgusting at light speed.

MFAC again scores badly on this count. They seem to think a coat of paint is enough:it isn't. Mind you, it doesn't stink, at least not during the small-audience concerts I attend there. They have also catered for those who don't read Tamil. This is not just for us foreigners: there are many Indian visitors that do not.

Music Academy Gents, once the pride of Chennai, even with some new plumbing, is showing its age.

Arkay, of course, is up to the standard of the rest of the venue --- as it would have to be for convention-type events held there.

Much as favouritism makes me unwilling to criticise Ragasudha hall, toilets is the one thing that late Sri SVK did not think out so well. Still, they suffice and are kept clean.

Speaking of lousy sound systems, which are the norm, especially in non-permanent halls, credit must be given when due, and, during the one Parthasarathy concert I attended, I found the speakers of better quality than previous years, and not driven to cotton-wool-stuffing volumes.

[KNV1955]

MFAC should donate land to Isabel Hospital which badly requires additional space. Police & Fire department should deny permission for using Ethiraj Kalyana Mandapam & Vidya Bharathi Kalyana Mandapam or for that matter any Kalyana Mandapam for holding music festival. Music Academy should convert the mini hall to hold mikeless concerts using latest technology. NGS & Bharathiya Vidya Bhavan should redesign the mini hall & make it suitable for mikeless concert. Presently both are miniature strip of space . Chennai rasikas deserve better ambience & sound system in these places for tolerating anything & everything offered by Musicians.

[Vedavanam]

Cannot disagree that most music halls are terrible. MFAC for all its other inconveniences seemed to have a better sound system this time than SPSS, NGS and even MA and KGS. The three concerts I attended there was far easier on the ears than the ones I attended at other venues. The general idea of sound systems in Chennai seems to be to place speakers near the stage and blare it such that people in the last rows can also hear it. People seated in the front rows are sure to lose their hearing. In the Nadaswaram recital before the inauguration and Ravikiran's concert at SPSS, I saw the Tavil artists asking for their volume to be jacked up. Why on earth do they need any amplification in small halls at all? These are open air instruments and could be heard in entire villages. Do they also need to compete for amplification with soft instruments like the Chitraveena? I would say I lucked out by buying tickets in the back section of the hall.

About the mini halls, the less said the better. I have never been a big fan of any of them, including Raga Sudha where seating on uncomfortable plastic chairs makes it hard to concentrate on anything higher! More than the facilities itself, there is a huge apathy to improvement. Any hall doubles up as a music hall. Sabhas do everything ad hoc and audiences are okay with everything. Artists have no choice in such a situation and just have to go with the crowd.