Attack on the TM Krishna concert

[sadananthan]

I read with interest the chain of postings and non postings on the TMK concert in NJ. I have been active in India and US in organizing concerts and dealing with musicians of eastern and western genre. Here are some points
(1) TM Krishna is no exception. Almost all the visiting Indian musicians have their own idiosynchrasies. From my own experience, MS Gopalakrishnan and Narmada once insisted on "chapatis for dinner or no concert" attitude. Ranjani Gayatri duo put up a dirty show regarding housing, Santanam wanted a "pearl shopping" or no concert; KVN and Mrs insisted on free Indian calls. I have gone through all these. If TMK did a sound check with all the audience waiting, he wanted to prove a point that he is very famous and can do whatever he wants, irrespective of the desire of the people who paid for his trip. It is natural and pardonable. He should also be ready to face the consequences if the organizers have the backbone to tell in his face that such acts are not to be repeated if and when he is calld again.
(2) TM Krishna is riding a crest of his fame and can be expected to show certain tantrums. It would have been nice if he didn't. But if he does, that is ok. I know when he toured US in his young days, he performed for 100$ and did as splendid a job as he does now.
(3) In fairness to TMK, the concept of time and sound system doesn't exist among Indian organizations. The artists should insist on both these and pressurize the hosts and "sound people" before the concert begins.
(4) Concerts last too long for comfort. The average attention span of humans is 1 hour. No concert should last more than 2 hours, period. The problem is with the hosts. I can make a musician perform for any length of time. All I have to do is to tell him/her that the previous concert lasted 4 hours and thay will try to outdo that! Many years ago TN Sesagopalan gave 5 hours plus concert in Cleveland and the immigrant population was driven to boredom of death. One person rightly told me" If you cannot show your stuff in 1 hour you cannot show it in 10hours". I agree.
(5) Arun Parakash is a good mridangist. I am sure he is beginning to feel, if not already, the shabby treatment accompanists receive at the hands of the so-called "main artists" and fully supported by the organizers. One leading sabha secretary in Chennai told me last year" sar people like Karthik and Purushotaman are asking for 800 rupees for a concert being upapakkavadhyam". What a plight given the quality of these artists. I asked him how much he pays the mridangist and violinist and he told me : if it is UKS or Ramabadran we pay 1500 rupees". Another case of adding insult to injury.
(6) What is the solution? The bunch of people organizing carnatic music concerts in the US must leave the scene and the whole process should be handled by US born Indian kids. They will do a professional job I am sure. I hope some of the names that have been popping up in this site ( Karthik Venkatraman, Rohan Krishnamurthy, Vinod Seetharaman etc) will take up this challenge. Otherwise, the situation will continue to be as archaic as it is now.Simply implimenting the Chennai culture in the US is bound to die a natural death.

[VK RAMAN]

A disturbing Scenario indeed! These must provoke action within the rasikas without whom artists cannot exist.

[mri_fan]

hese and pressurize the hosts and "sound people" before the concert begins.
(4) Concerts last too long for comfort. The average attention span of humans is 1 hour. No concert should last more than 2 hours, period.

I have to disagree that 2 hours is the limit. If I go to a concert that is just 2 hours long, i'd be upset

and for the record, vinod seetharaman is not a us born indian kid.

[arasi]

And there is Rajna Swaminathan.
A good three hours is what I favor when the singing is good...

[mri_fan]

I think there must be a distinction between musicians and organizers...they cannot always be one and the same

[sadananthan]

There is a well defined distinction no doubt. Most organizers in India and US are successful people, 50 years plus and have lot of time. They have limited scope of advancement in career and little ambition anyway. Let us see. A typical US organization consists of a couple of doctors and engineers. These people have reached the end of their career. They know they cannot be a Pundit(CEO of Citi group) or an Indira Nooyi (CEO of Pepsi). Now what do they do with their spare time? Also their kids have been forced to take to Carnatic music because they like Carnatic music! The best thing is to be part of an organization or better still, start one. This way they can be close to well known names of Carnatic music and show off their power.
By getting and hosting Indian musicians, they satisfy their ego. They force their kids to learn one or two pieces from every visiting musician and the kids are left totally confused. My own friend takes pride in saying" this she learnt from Krishna, this piece from Aruna, this piece from Sanjay". In one evening I have heard or have been forced to listened to all these "bhanis".
Again, I hate to say this, but it was TM Krishna again who ignored all his fans who had come to his concert in a sabha in Chennai and went on to please "an organizer" from Muscat. I was watching it from the side lines. Of course, he had paid his due respects to me earlier since I was from the US and was involved in organizing concerts. I don't blame him. They are all alike. This will stop the moment 1US$ is equal to 1 Indian rupee. Then no musician from Chennai will care two hoots for Cleveland or NJ or Chicago!
All I can say is a fundamental change is essential if Carnatic music is to survive in the US. If not, the future generation of Indians will do what makes sense once all the immigrants of the 1970s fade out.

[cacm]

This will stop the moment 1US$ is equal to 1 Indian rupee.
All I can say is a fundamental change is essential if Carnatic music is to survive in the US. If not, the future generation of Indians will do what makes sense once all the immigrants of the 1970s fade out.

As a currency trader& speculator (not having become a Pundit or Indra Nooyi)----I am a garden variety Scientist who worked for NASA & LOS ALAMOS NATIONAL LAB ---Can I pick your brain? Pray tell me when 1US$ is going to be equal to 1 indian rupee. I WILL SPLIT MY GAINS 50-50 with you.....
`Hope you do not have parents or relatives who are "immigrants of the 1970's"? Hope they are not dependent on you for anything esp. as they are ready to "fade out" acc. to you.....How about guys like me who have been here since '50s but still managing to arranging a few things?....
PLEASE HAVE MERCY ON OLDER FOLK. LET ME PROMISE YOU I HAD NOTHING WHATSOEVER TO DO WITH WHEN & WHERE I WAS BORN.......vkv

[srkris]

Thread closed. Please do not name persons. Attack issues and not people, please.