Creating waves of melody
|
The odds are not actually in their favour. But undaunted, cassette companies are constantly coming up with new releases — classical and devotional. What keeps them going? CHITRA SWAMINATHAN finds out.
|
FROM GRAMOPHONE to cassettes to CDs and now VCDs. From mono to stereo and then digital recording. In tune with the changing times, Carnatic music has always been on a sound track technically. But right now it is not on a pleasant pitch commercially.
With the slump in the Carnatic classical and devotional audio sales, most music companies are going through a rough patch, says J. Muthukumar of Kosmic. "For instance, we have been trying to hook listeners through our innovative series like Collectors' Choice (old masterpieces) in a tie-up with the Sri Krishna Gana Sabha, `Listen and Learn' containing slokas for children, Janaksudha (basic lessons in Carnatic music), Sandhyavandhanam in Sanskrit with complete instructions etc."
"Packaging and presentation matter most," says Anand Reddy of Sea Records. According to Reddy, unlike devotional music there are only a few releases in the classical segment as the returns are low and the production costs high.
"Devotional records move fast as the stressed out modern souls seem to seek peace in spiritual music. Also these cassettes do not require much investment."
As the sales graph strikes a discordant note, it is the small music companies that are feeling the pinch more.
Since the famous voices charge exorbitantly they have to make do with lesser-known artistes. Piracy is another problem that the companies are crying hoarse about. "Unless the Government does something immediately to curb this menace, the industry will be in doldrums. The artistes too are badly hit as illegal trade is eating into their royalty," says M. C. Raghunathan of Amudham Cassettes. "Barring a few recordings of established artistes, the future looks extremely bleak. Even though most companies have reduced the price of cassettes and CDs, the sale has not improved. So they seem to concentrate on devotional records that have a wider reach."
Sameer Nandan of Inreco feels that the poor distribution network should take the blame also. Sometimes the cassettes are not available outside Chennai, particularly in the northern cities. Besides, even popular artistes hardly go in for any new composition; most of them end up singing the same songs.
"Oft repeated, yes. But some of the compositions are traditional gems and classical music buffs can never tire of listening to them," opines vocalist Nityasree. "We try to plan and pack an interesting combination of songs in every record. Along with the music companies, we think of innovative ways to pep up sales. The new-age recordings are technically superior, it's only distribution and cassette quality that need some improvement."
"To ensure quality and curb piracy, cassettes should carry a standardised IMI logo. People should look for it before purchasing," says Chemmal Manian of Sa Re Ga Ma. "Being a niche segment, Carnatic music cannot boast of a big market.
However, a positive development is the stocking of classical and devotional cassettes by the burgeoning supermarkets and stores in the city," avers Navin Daswani of Super Audio. He owes the increase in sales during the December music festival to the visiting NRIs.
"It is more a year-end sale and less to do with the Margazhi fest," says Chemmal Manian. An offshoot of HMV, Sa Re Ga Ma holds rights to a vast musical treasure. "We improve the sound through digital cleaning to preserve the soulful past. The demand for vintage recordings will never decline."
A reason why Sri Krishna Gana Sabha thought of offering its `old masters' collection was to raise money for renovating the auditorium. Says Yagnaraman, Sabha president, "We released live recordings from the 1970s through Media Dreams and Kosmic Music."
According to V. Subramanian of Gita Cassettes, "it is only these ever-in-demand masterpieces that keep us going. The recording quality may not be good, yet people prefer buying them."
"These cassettes are not only cherished by music lovers, but aspiring and established musicians can hone their skills by rewinding to the past," feels vocalist Bombay Jayasree.
"Boom time or not, audio records take the artistes' voices even to remote areas where they can't reach personally and help people connect with their culture.
They record a musician's artistic contributions and track his/her creative growth," says Jayasree. Anyway the companies do not have much to sing about the Margazhi music mela either.
"Despite kutcheris, rasikas and tourists galore, the market enjoys just a marginal rise," says N. S. Venkitesh of Vedu's Music Mind.
"There are no reduction sales, it's only an exhibition of the collection of various companies," he adds.
Carnatic audio industry has never seen a boom, mainly due to poor marketing. Hence Charubala of Charsur Digital Work Station has been employing rare promotional techniques to keep the distracted modern rasikas hooked to this classical art.
Dine with the artiste, mega quiz (winner gets Rs. 50,000) and gold coin scheme are some of the ways.
"Even though HMV has been a pioneer in the field and had in its fold the most sought after Carnatic musicians, the company didn't really use its status to the audio world's advantage" says Charubala emphatically. Five years ago when she set her foot in the field, she was keen to improve the recording quality (Charsur has 24-track digital studio), design the cassette covers and plan unique recording projects. "Also, to be listener-friendly, we have branded our music into live concerts, thematic, old kutcheris, raga, ragam thanam pallavi, etc.," she says.
Printer friendly
page
Send this article to Friends by
E-Mail
Music & Dance
