Definition of a Well-structured concert ...

grsastrigal · Post by **grsastrigal** » 02 Jul 2007, 07:34

I have been thinking this issue after our debate on Sowmya's and Unni's concerts. Are we reviewing the conerts according its merits or just carried away by some Ragas which we like the most or the Performer with his/her credentials ...

Is Well-structured concert equal to Well-rendered concert ? I think of Maharajapuram Santhanam, when it comes to well-rendered concert .. Any other segregation is possible to differentiate this.

Should we give marks for each and every concert ?

or Have we discussed this issue previously so that I get so more ideas. I don't want to face the wrath of "vocalist". So, I invite your opinion.

sureshvv · Post by **sureshvv** » 07 Jul 2007, 22:11

A well structured concert will include compositions from different composers in a variety of dissimilar ragas and employ different talas. Depending of the demographics of the audience it could include different languages and styles also.

I like concerts which give both suddha and prati madhyama ragas equal importance. I also like concerts where the singer picks an uncommon raga and attempts an alapana (ragamalika swaras dont count).

I dislike concerts where the singer changes the raga of the composition from an endangered raga to a hackneyed one - like karnataka kapi to kapi. This happens more often than I like. I wouldn't mind if it went the other way.

Nick H · Post by **Nick H** » 07 Jul 2007, 23:50

In a well- structured concert a vocalist will give equal opportunity to his accompanists. I didn't, as some seem to think, pay just to hear him! If he is so very, very eminent and important, then he should be playing with artists of equal importance!

There should not be more than a couple of songs together without alapana, and neraval should not be saved for just one or two main pieces.

An RTP seems to add completeness to a concert for me, although I could not say why.

The thani should be more than a nod in the direction of the mridangist. It should be full and with room for development and time for the others if present. It is a challenge for multiple percussionists not to loose the feeling of the concert, but a mridangist alone should play his thani so that it 'fits'.

There should be two good long 'main pieces' --- one can be the RTP.

There should be a gentle let-down towards the end, in which Thillana can play an excellent part. I don't like the sudden I'm-going-home-now-here's- managalam that seems so common.

rshankar · Post by **rshankar** » 08 Jul 2007, 03:01

grsastrigal wrote:I don't want to face the wrath of "vocalist". So, I invite your opinion.

I would not worry about that!

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 08 Jul 2007, 03:33

Nick,
Another one here who favors an RTP in a concert to make it wholesome. A well structured concert is balanced--your post includes some of the points which make such a concert. I would add, even if the accompanists aren't as prominent as the vocalist, they should be given enough chance by the vocalist to show their mettle. I agree with you about a thillAnA (or an equally engaging piece) which says there is still a lot of life in the concert--no rush to the exit with a few hurried pieces.

Sureshvv,
The first para of your post says it very well as to how a cocert should be...

chalanata · Post by **chalanata** » 08 Jul 2007, 08:31

are there definite rules for this? i would prefer the golden middle path of alapana. neraval, kalpana swaram, RTP, thani, virutham and thukkadas. vidwans overdoing a particular aspect burn out quickly and cut a sorry figure towards the end. ariyakudi was a master in the structure. i would also prefer chembai's bani.

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 08 Jul 2007, 09:22

Ariyakkudi's balancing act...

sureshvv · Post by **sureshvv** » 09 Jul 2007, 19:50

Also beware that a "well structured concert" can take the suspense out and thus make it less interesting. Sometimes an artiste like Gayathri Venkatraghavan would take up a neraval in the second piece itself and really raise the tempo of the concert. Sometimes it helps to have a thani in the earlier part of the concert itself. So you don't want the "well structuring" to remove the creative planning of the artiste.

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 09 Jul 2007, 20:20

I think both those elements can happily co exist. Structure does not mean stricture...

Nick H · Post by **Nick H** » 10 Jul 2007, 03:11

I don't think 'well-structured' necessarily equates to formularised. Several of the elements in my list are often missing.

In one of the best concerts I have heard lately (to be honest there haven't been many this year, though) I was fully expecting a light piece or two at most, the hour already being late, and mentally shifting my attention to getting home --- when suddenly I found an RTP underway! I already felt satisfied; things just got better!

kutty · Post by **kutty** » 10 Jul 2007, 07:53

Depending on the duration available, one can structure one's concert. The main issue is, the artiste, by his/her selection of ragams, krithis, taLams etc must make the concert a 'janaranjakam' one without loss of tempo from the start to the end. The tempo must increase step by step and culminate in the summit. The artiste must know where to stop. Normally, the stage when the rasikas feel that they should hear more from the artiste, is the benchmark to stop. Personally I feel that a concert is meant to take the rasikas to an entirtely different world and must not remind this material one. For this, the artiste should sing with bhavam and full involvement, forgetting himself/herself and make others also forget their presence till the rendering is over.

I would like to make a request here to quaified members to help rasikas like me by analysing each common ragam , a gana ragam or non-gana ragam and then indicating the other ragams that go well with it and those that should not be sung or used in a ragamalikai immediately after it. I tried my best for a table but could not succeed. Is there anyone to guide?

grsastrigal · Post by **grsastrigal** » 10 Jul 2007, 08:08

Thanks for your Contributions. Further thinking on this, my ideas converged in to the following observation.

A) To give marks for every concert (better than Anantha vikatan gives for Films)

The following Criteria should be applied.

1) Need not be considered/only considered for the "marksâ€

mohan · Post by **mohan** » 10 Jul 2007, 11:57

What rubbish! I can see this thread going no where!

Why should someone get more marks if she includes 4 ragas for ragamalika swarams instead of 3? If a singer sings the same song in two successive concerts, how should this matter? What if it is a short concert and no time for a RTP or sub-main even?

Recently at the Sydney Music Festival which featured around 7 concerts by leading artistes, the best one (to me) of the lot was the shortest one!

sureshvv · Post by **sureshvv** » 10 Jul 2007, 17:48

sastrigale... now you can make a machine that will score 100% everytime and then keep listening to it everyday

Nick H · Post by **Nick H** » 10 Jul 2007, 19:48

Well, I can see that, as a metaphor for your personal priorities of what makes a good concert, a scoring method such as this is fine!

In real life, however, we an expect that musicians gave up taking exams when they left school.