The continued journey
C.S. SARVAMANGALA
|
Sitarist Arvind Parikh's short film on his guru, the unparalleled sitar maestro Ustad Vilayat Khan, is a fitting tribute
|
INSCAPE Arvind Parikh says Vilayat Khan saab's music was ever accessible to the majority but never populist
It was simple and graceful: the visual of an elderly artist on stage, with his visage partially lit up by the reading light. It put us through a musical journey into an enigma called Ustad Vilayat Khan. Arvind Parikh, a leading disciple of the sitar maestro Vilayat Khan has closely witnessed the music and inner life of his guru, in all its rich detail for nearly six decades.
Gurudakshina, the audio-visual presentation, is a highly sophisticated endeavour by a real connoisseur bestowed with the interiority of an insider as an ardent shishya of the Imdadkhani gharana. It is equally marked by the objective perception of an outsider who traces the musical lineage as a journey of continuity within the framework of a tradition. Add to this his experience as a committed teacher, his achievements as a musicologist, mature performing artist and effective cultural organiser of Music Forum fame.
Theirs is a rare guru-shishya relationship, full of love and admiration; a long saga unfolding in a mutual exploration of musical experience. This intimate association, backed by a sharp perceptive mind and necessary imagination to understand music in its socio-economic and spiritual dimensions, along with an organised approach, has enabled Arvindji to document the features and nuances of the Imdadkhan/Etawah Gharana of sitar/surbahar music.
What Arvindji does in Gurudakshina is to make us see what constitutes the fabric of his Guru's music lineage thereby making possible a darshana of the Imdadkhani gharana. The audio-visual addresses several common perceptions and labels about Vilayat's sitar-playing and attempts to position them in the right perspective even while elaborating on what constitutes his revolutionary style.
Legendary musician
Vilayat Khan is generally perceived as an elitist performer, but Arvindji clarifies that, "Khansaab's elitism challenged his audiences by the elaborate architecture of his music, richness of musical content and sophisticated presentation." His music was ever accessible to the majority, but never populist. He held his art very sacred and considered himself an orthodox musician, but was generally considered a revolutionary. This can be understood in the context of Vilayat's vocalist tradition and his genius, which evolved the sitar from its simpler originals to sophisticated dimensions.
The sitar, which in his father's time had continued in the tradition of the Rudraveena was now set for a paradigm shift. On account of the growing dominance of the khayal, changes in acoustic environment and several other factors, Vilayat launched his search for a new idiom, which was "a sophisticated blend of vocalised and instrumental expressions."
The embellishments and craftwork and the emotional feelings often associated with vocal music, the tanpura effect - all these define the Vilayatkhani alaap, an experience which narrows down the gap between instrument and vocal music.
A piece in Raag Darbari brought out the nuances of the Vilayatkhani jod. Sitar has followed the dhrupad tradition as far as the structure is concerned.
The stroke pattern of the rudraveena, once believed to be an accompaniment to vocal music achieved a high degree of continuity of the oral experience and the technique adopted here ensures a similar continuity. In order to suit his vocalised style, Vilayat introduced far-reaching changes in the shape, size and construction of the sitar. This change altered the tonal effect dramatically, making Vilayat the pioneer who revolutionalised the sitar.
Multifaceted shishya
After the audio-visual screening Arvindji rendered a soulful alap, jod, vilambit and drut gats in Jog and Zila. He was accompanied on the tabla by Anutosh Degharia, a disciple of Ustad Sabir Khan, the acclaimed tabla maestro.
I was curious to know how Arvindji manages his music world with that of his business as the head of a major international freight forwarding company. His reply was simple and direct: it was a question of priority and time management. The value addition to this statement comes when one realises that his organising and managerial acumen have found their way into his music world as a part of his character. Resonance UNESCO Music Council's magazine carried this unique success story of the Music Forum wondering, "Could Bombay teach London or Berlin a thing or two?"
The very idea of the Bombay Music Forum speaks of an organised effort at understanding music performance in a holistic perspective. Arvindji narrated how it has brought to a common platform performing artists, music critics, connoisseurs, recording companies, teaching universities, music organisers, media administrators and all those connected with music in a meaningful way, enabling them to share their considered opinions.
Arvindji's other illustrious assignments include Vice-president, International Music Council, UNESCO (1994-97), and presently co-ordinator for the Indian subcontinent. Recipient of the Gaurav Puraskar by the Gujarat State Sangeet Natak Akademi and the National Award for instrumental music in 2003, his contribution in bringing about a serious change in the language and method of music criticism should alone put Arvindji a cut above other musicians.
The show came alive with memorable moment and powerful images — Vilayatji's Bilaskhani Todi on his grandfather Imdad Khan's surbahar, a 102-year-old recording of Imdad Khan's Jaunpuri, Khan saab's singing with the sitar at a public concert, the soft resolution of the black-and-white photograph showing the deflected string of the sitar in suspended animation — a rich tale of the sitar indeed.
Printer friendly
page
Send this article to Friends by
E-Mail
Entertainment
Bangalore
Chennai and Tamil Nadu
Delhi
Hyderabad
Thiruvananthapuram
