Dear HRD Minister, Please make classical music compulsory

[vidya raja]

Thank you Rsachi for initiating this cause

[msuresh55]

Okay, I will play the devil's advocate. Let us start with some basic questions - (i) Do we even have enough trained teachers of classical music to do this across all schools in the country? (ii) Any thought given to how much this will cost? You need staff, instruments, space to do this properly. All this is going to cost money. How much? Can we find enough money without significantly affecting other social programmes? (iii) Education is on the concurrent list in our country and a significant part of education is controlled by each state government. Are we sure all state governments are on the same page? At least some state governments, notably those in the northeast would strongly object to either Carnatic or Hindustani but might play along providing provisions was made for Western classical music. They may not be the only ones to object.

The reality of education in our country - take a look at the report of PRATHAM - is dismal. The government schools which most students attend (not of course, the children of "people like us" who go to English medium private schools) can't even teach our children the basics. Madhu Kishwar gives this anecdote which sadly is all too typical: on visiting a village school, she was introduced to a boy who was apparently the smartest in the village . Kishwar asked him to write an essay on himself. After some time, the boy came back with an essay on Mahatma Gandhi. That was all he knew!

By all means, let us - those interested in Carnatic music - do our best to expand its reach. But ill-thought out initiatives which do not even take account of the realities of our country is not the way to go.

Not that my permission is needed but please feel free to flame me

[Rsachi]

Msuresh55,
Excellent points all. Thank you.
Music is not a fundamental physical need. I don't know if the cavemen who drew those deer and cattle pictures on cave walls cared for Kambhoji. Most probably they didn't.

I agree that the government has many more unattended tasks like cleaning rivers. The Economic Times y'day ran a sombre article with charts and figures that show Indians won't have drinking water soon. A byproduct of that analysis showed how vegetarianism brought down demand for water during food production processes.

And so on.

Do you know India is a 2 Trillion Dollar economy now? Do you know India has the largest youth force? Some people think if we educate ourselves, do productive work, and spend on nation building rather than wars, we may become a more prosperous country. So when you start thinking on these lines, you start thinking of finer aspects of life.
I know that today we don't have music teachers, in fact even basic teachers. But I direct you to a video I made as a surprised pilgrim going round the Chitrakoot "Bharat Milap" hill when I saw children singing the prayer in a small private school. It didn't take much to teach those children except the desire to do so.
Video:Kamadgiri Brilliant Public School, Chitrkoot Vide…:
https://youtu.be/IEZcUyKvHx0

1. Make up your mind. 2. Start an implementation plan. 3. Use TV/radio/Internet as force multipliers (not my idea, Vikram Sarabhai thought of it 60 years ago in SITE worlds first satellite broadcast based education scheme) 4. Start with a small syllabus and cross-train teachers.
5. See the incredible response from children you get and take it forward. In fact the best way to create more music performers and teachers and listeners is to teach music!

You will surely know that when the bumble bee learnt to fly, he had a singular advantage - not studying aerodymics, which would have argued he could never fly.

Similarly when man first found a written language, people would have reacted "but why!?"
To many such doubts in our minds, we have a ready answer, "because".

[VK RAMAN]

1. Do we even have enough trained teachers - Let us make use of what we have and do not worry about what we do not have
2. Any thought given to how much this will cost? - Investment is the word. If we do not invest in teaching, progress of future generation will be stagnant
3. Countries solely depending on social program will always be depended on government - a very bad choice
4. What we have seen last 50+ years in India is tremendous progress economically and academically and this could not have been possible if we start concentrating on what we do not have.

[msuresh55]

Rhetoric - "Do you know India is a 2 trillion dollar economy" and "Let us not worry about what we don't have" etc. etc. - does not answer any of the issues I raised. I have nothing more to add.

[Rsachi]

India is now a $2-trillion economy: World Bank report
Jul 3, 2015, 12.27PM IST

Sir, that rhetoric belongs entirely to World Bank.

Here is MY rhetoric:
"The only thing that costs nothing is saying "No" to anything."

[msuresh55]

Oh? Do you even realise that the 2 trillion dollar means very little? If you want a truer picture, divide by the population which gives a figure of roughly $1800. This is the GDP per capita and it puts us in the category of Lower Middle Income countries. Even better, note that the same World Bank puts China's GDP - not a rich country, as yet - at 10.36 trillion dollars! Perhaps you'd like to compare the two countries as put out by the World Bank itself? This is <url= http://data.worldbank.org/country/china]China's data[/url] and this is India's data. Take a good close look.

Since you have so much time on your hands, try reading the Annual Status Report on Education 2014 available via a link at India Spend. (Or at least, read the India Spend article.)

You are free to lobby for whatever you want - who am I to stop you? That's it. Peace.

[kvchellappa]

Such analysis flies in the face of common sense. It does not mean everyone's income is $1800. It also does not take into account the state of Indian economy where there are still many things not monetised. It also is wrong logic to follow; that means we must stop mangalayan, we should not help our neighbours when in difficulty (even SS said give $2bn to us instead of Mongolia), etc. We would do nothing worthwhile with the picture of $1800.

[priyaram78]

Personally for me it would be great if classical music is made compulsory in schools. I love attending carnatic concerts but my 7 year old son doesnt sit in concerts, saying he does not understand a thing. It is so disappointing to leave wonderful concerts in between because kids are not willing to sit. I keep him engaged on my cellphone where he is busy playing candy crush and quizzes, but like yesterday at Smt.Aruna Sairam's wonderful concert at Ragasudha hall, after the 3rd kriti my son just troubled me to leave. I left a lively concert so half-hearted. I really Wish he had classical music compulsory in schools even abroad so atleast he would get some interest and liking for carnatic and other forms of classical music. All parents can then enjoy concerts in peace with kids.

[Rsachi]

Priyaram,
I can assure you whatever classical nutrion is forcefed too has its due recall and samskara value for your son. I have many examples of this.
If you learn music, or sing at home regularly, that will work big time too.
Try buying the SaPa CDs at Amazon. It is well done.
Question: does the kid like any music? What type?

[priyaram78]

Thanks Rsachi Sir. My son loves music. I sing often at home and he listens on and off. Initially he loved the song Guruvayurappane Appan by smt.Ambujam Krishna and has enjoyed singing it. I have recorded it too. But then gradually as he grew up he is now into film songs. When asked he says it is easier to sing film songs. He gets pronunciation right and can understand the meaning too. So he sings kanndaangi kanndaangi a lot. I told him junk food is easy to get but not healthy. So likewise choose good music. Hope he starts enjoying carnatic music. I keep singing as usual....

[Rsachi]

Priyaram,
No question film music is catchy-it is packaged so well. Even Subbudu said so. Don't be too hard.maybe a ratio of 1:3 is good... 1 is CM

[priyaram78]

Yes film songs maybe packaged well but all have their base in carnatic music only. I reveal the raagams of film songs to my son. kumaari enn kaadhal from anniyan is SAmA. Then kangal irundhaal is reethi gowlai. Thus he is awed that all the film songs which he loves is based on a carnatic music raagam. So he keeps asking me raagams of film songs. Is kanndaangi kanndaangi hindolam ? I know film songs have a mix of all raagams....

[Rsachi]

Priyaram
What you're describing is a best case scenario!
Congrats.

[harimau]

?...he is awed that all the film songs which he loves is based on a carnatic music raagam. So he keeps asking me raagams of film songs. Is kanndaangi kanndaangi hindolam ? I know film songs have a mix of all raagams....

Remember the words: Isai Payanam.

Available in CD as well as DVD form. Most likely at Giri Traders.

Disclosure: I am not associated with Giri Traders or with the singer!

[SrinathK]

At this point, I have to admit one thing. If you want a good CM enthusiast, whether musician or rasika or whatever, then the truth is (brace for the word) -- they are BRED for the job. Moulded from infancy (or even before) till the point where their own self motivation is sufficient to carry them further. By the time they are too restless to sit in a concert, I fear it may already be too late! :O:

Few legends have chosen music -- it is the music that chose it's flag bearers and fans. Strangely my own environment at home by a quirk of fate exposed me to very little film music and much more Carnatic music (we only had CM tapes and cassettes collected by my grandparents at the time I was a child and even today my knowledge of film music is mediocre).

We have reached that point where we are enthusiasts ourselves and will see what we can do even if no one appreciates or so much as tries to understand what we do (and that is nearly everyone I know, it's hard emotionally at times to be told you're pursuing a waste of time and you get the thought several times that you are a species that is becoming extinct) -- very few have this self motivation to continue despite the ridicule.

Still this music is ultimately sustained by a handful of such enthusiasts only. Others come to listen and then they go. And the overwhelming majority, unless they have had a moment of revelation and still have their passions burning, will simply never spare any effort for it. Still it is amazing what those few have done till date -- just look at the lyrics websites up there today as an example. Speaking of which, the language barrier is a not insignificant issue in appreciating CM (or even HM). And that is certainly one place where film songs, rock, rhythm and blues and rap score major victories over CM.

Making music compulsory has the right intentions, but not the right phrase to package it -- encouragement would be a better way to put it. But for this, good music teachers and a good syllabus in schools is necessary. Besides you are also aware that schools these days increasingly cut down on all "distractions" right from class IX onwards with the aim of "mass producing" bookworms. (Fortunately, my school did not) -- alas that's where teens lose touch with classical music and then gravitate to whatever is most popular -- at that point it's all up to them now whether they will choose to appreciate CM or not.

At least we should be grateful we are not in places where music has been banned as sinful ....

[SrinathK]

@Rsachi, take a look at most popular genres of music tweeted (geotagged) about all over the world -- this does not include film music though, otherwise India might be invisible under those dots. Still just take a look at the India part of that map, it's surprising.

http://time.com/3697123/music-genres-ar ... my-awards/

[kvchellappa]

Picked from FB:
http://www.dailygood.org/more.php?n=6259