DO WE STILL NEED A CMANA ? IF SO, FOR WHAT ?

     The late Seventies when CMANA (The Carnatic Music Association of North America) was formed was indeed quite a different time compared to today.  The population of Indians in the USA was very small, with a concentration in the East Coast being primarily in Queens, New York, with even New Jersey sporting but a minuscule population of Indians.  There were few teachers of Carnatic music among us, and only a handful below eighteen who could sing Carnatic music even at the level of a varnam or perform an instrument.  There was no public, not-for-profit organization devoted mainly to Carnatic music.  Getting to listen to a leading Carnatic musician in a live concert was a rare luxury and available only in places like New York such as when an international body like the UN hosted M.S. Subbulakshmi, or at Wesleyan which had an ethno-music department.   In most of these respects, not only the East Coast of the USA, but the entire USA has undergone a major change.

     It would not be an exaggeration to say that CMANA was very instrumental in providing a backdrop in which Carnatic music could grow enormously not only in the East Coast but all over the USA.  Unlike some other organizations, which were very local in focus and often conducted all their events across just a couple of days in a year, CMANA was there year round, and year after year, despite severe losses and many other hardships.  Filling a major void, CMANA organized, on a regular basis, two tours to the US each year of a visiting troupe from India making the artists available at near or below cost to many centers including both major cities like Atlanta, Philadelphia, Seattle, and Los Angeles and many small towns across USA, where only a few Indian families were present. It has helped the growth of many local Indian cultural organizations in the US.    It provided a forum for many visiting artists, local teachers, and promising local musicians to perform. Through its ‘Great Composers Day’ and events like ‘Teachers Day,’ and programs honoring musicians and composers, CMANA raised the interest and awareness for Carnatic music among the diaspora and created a market for it.  By holding various lecture demonstrations and the like (even at significant financial loss), the association has served to increase the level of music appreciation among the general audience and to provide opportunities for the young and the local musicians to hone their skills.

    CMANA’s contributions did not stop there, but went all the way back to the very citadel of Carnatic music and the community of Carnatic musicians.  In fact, a specific event that led to the formation of CMANA was the way two (well-known) musicians got stranded due to an unexpected funding crisis experienced by their (American) sponsor and forced them to take refuge with Dr. P. Rajagopalan, CMANA’s founder, and Mr. Sury Subban who has served CMANA in many capacities and is now an Honorary (and paid) Patron.   That event heightened the need for a non-profit, public organization owned by the Indian community at large that could support Carnatic music and musicians.  Dr. Rajagopalan initiated a call to friends in New York city admitting although that one more organization may be desired by people only “as much as a bullet in the head,” but was indeed necessary.  He received warm support from many lovers of Carnatic music, and the rest is history.

     Many of the now well-known musicians were introduced for the first time to the USA by CMANA, and to many of them that invitation formed a major milestone catapulting them to greater fame even in music circles in India.  The list of such musicians include some easily recognized names like Mandolin Srinivas, P.S. Narayanaswamy, the Rudrapatnam Brothers, K.S. Gopalakrishnan, and Sudha Ragunathan to list just a few.  With no parochial or other vested interest, the Association worked for music without any favoritism based on any criteria other than musical excellence and service to music.  With a carefully crafted award Sangeethasagara that is unique in many respects such as a clear up-front listing of the criteria for the award and the requirement of a high level of multifarious achievement for a recipient besides being just a concert performer, it has honored artists of the highest caliber.  Among the most memorable aspects of this award is the fact that it brought the venerable Semmanugudi Srinivasa Iyer out of a long period of hibernation back on the stage and got four generations of the Pattammal family to perform together.  The Semmangudi award program was even more special in that after a long time, Professor T.N. Krishnan, another Sangeethasagara, played as an accompanist after many decades.  Thus, the Association’s services do not stop at the shores of the USA.  It has established several worthy endowments in India to encourage young musicians.   I am indeed proud to have a long association with CMANA and am a staunch supporter of it.

    It is nice to see that the US landscape has changed in many ways for the better with a vibrant interest in Carnatic music supported by a large number of organizations, teachers, students, and patrons.  The number of organizers conducting music tours and holding Carnatic music programs has multiplied enormously to the extent that in places like Central New Jersey, several concerts take place concurrently on the same day and sometimes even during the same time slots by different entities.  Many organizers support performances by youngsters encouraging them to reach higher levels of proficiency.   But with a well-established ‘market’ for it, the music scene and musicians have also become quite commercialized posing several hurdles for a public, not-for-profit organization in conducting many activities it once pioneered even at significant loss and personal sacrifice of numerous volunteers and donors.  In this backdrop, an inevitable question that arises is indeed the one forming our title, “Do we still need CMANA?”  Outrageous as it may seem to some, this question has been raised even by some (younger) musicians and local teachers of music.  I would be lying if I did not admit that it even crosses my mind, although only rarely and only when I get too dismayed by the artists' and listening public’s inability to distinguish and discriminate between organizations.  Thus, the question is indeed one that deserves to be answered at least once.

    Consider Chennai as an example (although I could pick Mumbai, Bangalore, Trivandrum or many other places and other organizations).  Imagine someone asking why, given the large number of music organizations, television and multimedia, and ongoing entrepreneurial efforts of individual musicians, an organization like the Music Academy or the Narada Gana Sabha should continue to exist.  I am sure any sane person would consider the question as insane for many good reasons.  Those reasons are precisely the ones that not only would obligate an affirmative answer to the question in our title, but will even provide the fundamental reasons for strengthening and supporting CMANA:

1.     When it comes to Carnatic music and related fine arts, there are institutions and there are ‘organizations.’  The latter concentrate primarily on entertainment and, oftentimes, on private profits, but the formers’ goals go far beyond. Organizations like the Music Academy, Narada Gana Sabha, and Shanmukhananda Sabha are institutions that serve the art form in diverse ways.  They celebrate the stalwarts while at the same time expending much effort to sustain the art form and to generate and support future talent.  They have helped to raise the respect and stature of the very art form and its practitioners.  Some have established schemes to support musicians and musicologists, who have not been fortunate, with pensions etc.  They conduct scholarly discussions and events raising the art to higher and higher levels.  CMANA certainly belongs in the class of institutions by its demonstrated focus, activities, and accomplishments that form an illustrious track record for a 100% volunteer organization.

2.     Organizers come, and organizers go, and that has been the painful history of Indian music and dance in the USA.  When an organization is by an individual or by a small oligarchy and run with a vested interest of profit or to promote a special subset of artists or students, its activities and operation are not only hostage to the whims of one or a small few, but the very continuity of the organization gets threatened when a main person can no longer perform a lead role.  One reason Dr. Rajagopalan chose to make CMANA a public organization with elected trustees etc., despite recommendation from many founding members to keep it as a private entity, is to ensure continuity and to eliminate as much as possible the operation of vested interests or profit motives.  Again, there are very few organizations of the type of CMANA devoted to Carnatic music and related fine arts that fit these lofty criteria.

3.     A Harvard Business Review article on non-profits has emphasized the importance of transparency and fiscal responsibility as two of the most important desiderata of a real non-profit.  In its own words, this is to ensure that the obligation of the founders and trustees towards future generations – note not just their cohorts, but future generations – are met, and to assure continuity of operation over a very long future.  They called this ‘inter-generational equity.’  CMANA shines as a (rare) beacon in these respects with successive teams of trustees sharing much of the financial information with CMANA members with a high level of transparency and running its affairs with utmost probity and fiscal responsibility.  We not only need CMANA, but we need to put pressure on other organizations to step up to the highest levels that CMANA has maintained from its start in matters that characterize a true non-profit, public organization enjoying tax subsidies.

4.     An unfortunate fact of the Indian diaspora is that it has carried with it the baggage of all forms of divisions that divide Indians.  Though many organizations based on state, language, and other criteria may support Carnatic music and the arts, CMANA’s greatest strength is its non-sectarian character.  Never in my long tenure of over twenty-five years with CMANA can I cite one instance where anything other than musical merit has played a role in the selection of a musician for a tour or even for a single concert.  We, as trustees, have differed and even quarreled sometimes, but never on the issue of maintaining a high level of impartiality.  An event like the Great Composers Day, for example, is conducted with so much meticulous care to avoid even a semblance of a conflict of interest in the selection of judges for the competitions or in the opportunity to youngsters irrespective of who their guru is.  Yes, we need organizations like CMANA for this reason too.

     Not that I cannot cite more reasons to support my affirmative answer regarding the need for continued presence of CMANA, but if the above four will not convince you to agree and to support CMANA strongly, then nothing more will.  So, let me turn to what role CMANA should play in the future to continue to distinguish itself from the crowd of music organizers in the USA, a good many of whom may be motivated by a variety of interests not as lofty as CMANA’s.

    a. First and foremost, the Indian community in the US has come of age, and we now have a group of young Carnatic musicians born and brought up in America.  CMANA should take it as an important objective to help them attain high visibility in India and around the world so that they have a level playing field that is well deserved by their hard work and effort.  Similarly, there are many highly talented young musicians in India who lack visibility in the US, with most organizations here marked now by a competition for only name brand artists.  CMANA should revive its pledge to young talent from India by making them visible to music lovers in the USA.  I am pleased to see that CMANA has forged a major partnership with Narada Gana Sabha for this purpose.   A similar effort with one other major organization in India, I learn, may also bear fruit soon.  The trustees of CMANA deserve high kudos for thinking up such a collaboration and working hard towards making that possible.  It has indeed been my pleasure to help them in both those efforts.

    b. Carnatic music in the East Coast is still by and large an activity limited to the South Indian diaspora.  The art form is highly rich in many ways, and it would be a travesty not to bring it to the attention of a wider audience – our North Indian fraternity and our American friends.   “Man does not live on bread alone,” and certainly not we, the successful Indians in the US; Carnatic music is a cultural heritage that we need to display as proof of that.  As a leading organization, CMANA should take it upon itself to elevate Carnatic music to higher levels by taking a variety of steps to draw support from a much larger community.  In the old days, we used to have lunch hour demonstration programs in several NJ companies to popularize and inform about Carnatic music.  These, and several other means of outreach, should be considered in addition to running music programs, tours and children’s competition aimed primarily at the Indian diaspora.

    c. It has become quite evident that a very narrow focus makes an organization not sustainable.  Although CMANA needs to maintain its primary focus on Carnatic music, pragmatism requires it to support other Indian art forms so that the support base of the organization can be enlarged.  This should also form a priority for CMANA.

    d. Finally, a major regret of mine is that even after forty years of existence, CMANA has not assured its long-term existence through an adequate corpus of endowments.  It does not even have a permanent venue of its own to conduct its activities.  For the perpetual continuity of CMANA, it is absolutely important that a careful plan is evolved to raise such an endowment and to lay down clearly the principles under which the association will continue to be operated in the future.  CMANA cannot meet loftier goals like the ones mentioned above unless the trustees and organizers are freed from the financial burden.  I truly believe that for CMANA to rise to its due level, activities have to be supported by an endowment to a substantial degree. 

     Although I have stated some lofty goals for CMANA (and am doing my part to make some of them possible), it is for the community at large to step up to the plate and make it happen.   This is a precious organization of the community and not of any individual or small group. We cannot just want our children to sustain an Indian connection and culture, but we need to also make it easy for them to do that.  We need to support CMANA much more than we do at present recognizing its uniqueness as an institution and as a great legacy for future generations.  For example, a sufficient number of us are at the stage of life when we are in the exercise of estate planning, and I would beseech every one of the senior members of CMANA (and senior citizens interested in Carnatic music and related fine arts) to step up to the plate and make it possible for CMANA to free CMANA from the fear of going bankrupt through some unanticipated major loss or competition from vested interests.  Based on the support that has made CMANA to have survived and prospered this long, I have the confidence that you will not only agree with my analysis, but will join me in strengthening CMANA. 

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[1] Dr. V. Ramaswami is a former Secretary and President of CMANA.   With a keen interest in things Indian, he has authored many articles related to India and has also written recently a book titled, “innovation by India for India, the Need and the Challenge.”  He holds no official position in CMANA, and opinions expressed here are personal and do not represent those of CMANA as an organization.

Carnatic Music - Additional Audio Pointers

BHADRAM KARNEBHIH SHRUNUYAAMA DEVAAH !

Oh Gods, May we hear only good thrings with our ears !

Here are some fine points to attend to that will bring you closer to being a real professional:

1. The audio person cannot set the audio once and walk away.  Our concerts are long, and musicians inevitably move or shift their positions.   You need to be watchful and compensate for that.   I am not even talking about major impairments such as the ones to follow.  Sometimes, the violinist turns around resulting in a big hum from his/her mic picking up the monitor speaker.  Someone needs to be there to take care of these exigencies instantly.  During solo, the volume has to be slightly increased for the involved channel; it is true that two musicians together sound twice louder (due to the way signals behave in an additive manner and vice versa.)  This is where people who know nothing about our music and cannot anticipate various distinct parts of the performance do terribly at the board. Be warned, however, that constant meddling with the system can also become disconcerting too, both to the musicians and to the audience.

2. No one appears to use the pan controls properly.  Used properly, in a vocal concert, we should be hearing the violin more from one side and the mrdangam from another.  Perfect stereo sound cannot be obtained in the auditorium as in a studio where musicians sit in separate booths and there is no leakage from one source to another's mic, but one can come close to it with a proper selection of microphones,  the use of pan control, and running the volume at a reasonable level.   Not setting the volume too high (especially on the monitors) is necessary to minimize leakage of sound from one end to the mic at the other end either as echo from the hall or from the monitors.  [Musicians from India especially are used to very high volumes and ask for it, often  affecting negatively the enjoyment of the audience.  My advice to them: if you are serious about your music and sound quality, please take a course on audio.]

3. Sruti: Some musicians keep the electronic sruti box so loud as to drown everything else.  This is very annoying and is something that all musicians should pay attention to when they are performing on stage.  It also makes it hard to discern problems and to make corrections.

4. Microphones:  (a) It is important to pick high quality microphones appropriate for vocal and/or for the specific instrument.  Shure 58 is the minimum, yes the minimum, quality to shoot for.  Try to pick mics in such a way that their response curves do not tail off in the frequency range of whatever frequency range you are trying to capture and remains pretty flat in that range with high fidelity; this is particularly important for violin and the left side of mrdangam.  (b) Be wary of powered microphones.  The slightest movement of the musician towards or away from the mic becomes highly noticeable, with the former making a vocalist look like he/she is shouting.  These may be great for studio recording in a controlled environment with one song at a time, but it is unrealistic to expect musicians to maintain a constant distance throughout a 2.5 to 3 hour concert.  Note also that the closer the vocalist gets to the mic, there will be increased bass in the voice.  With powered mics, if their lip touches the mic or if the violinist's bow touches the powered mic, God help you!  (c) I personally hate the cheap contact microphones that many Indian instrumentalists use; these days, some leading artists do use good mics, but the audio people have not learned to deal with them.  The cheap mics and/or poor audio settings distort sound, and I bet have very bad response curves.  Once the source is bad, there is little the person at the mixer board can do, especially if the channel gets overloaded and clipping occurs.  Musicians who insist on using contact mics should purchase one from a good store with the help of someone with a high level of expertise and after testing in the store with several of them.  (It is customary for professionals in most professions to invest in equipment for one's own trade!)

5. When you have a duet like of various famous sisters, please equalize so that they sound reasonably as one voice when they sing together.  Same for violin duets etc.

6. Speakers: The high frequency cone (which is the uppermost in the speaker) should be above the head of the audience close to the speaker.  Otherwise, they get a headache from the higher frequency sounds.  This is often forgotten by many who do audio.   When the hall is long and deep, it is often a bad idea to blast from just 2 speakers in the front.  Have 2 additional speakers somewhere half way, but run the volume low and just enough so that those farthest from one pair of speakers don't hear two distinct versions of the same music.  Turn the speakers so that they are centered towards the center of the half portion at the back of the hall (or the last row) you want to serve with them.

7. Recording: Remember that a lot of things can be fixed later but not the overload resulting in frequency clipping.  [When you exceed the maximum level, your system just sets things to the highest level and you lose information totally].  So make sure your gain and volume levels do not overload the channel.  When preparing a recording, please do not shut off the sruti between pieces and let it sound like a continuous concert, and also avoid abrupt starts (what technically is called 'attack') etc. and consider using fade in and fade out if necessary.  Set the recording level at about -6dB (and not at 0dB as most Indian technicians do) to avoid overload.
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The author Dr. V. Ramaswami is a former President and Secretary of CMANA (Carnatic Music Association of North America).  As a volunteer, he has managed the audio for CMANA and some other non-profits for many years.  As a researcher in the citadels of technology - Bell Labs, Bellcore, AT&T - he has also had the privilege of learning many technical aspects of audio and video from experts and sometimes the very inventors.  He himself holds several patents related to video distribution over the Internet and related communication technologies.

Carnatic Music - Audio Engineering Basics

BHADRAM KARNEBHIH SHRUNUYAAMA DEVAAH !

Oh Gods, May we hear only the good !

NOTE:  The goal of this post is to give some general pointers to those managing audio in Carnatic music or Bharatanatyam programs and written for a non-mathematical, non-technical person.  All too often, the enjoyment of a program is really affected by audio problems. Hopefully, these comments will be helpful to some.  I have kept things at an elementary level and avoided jargon as much as one can.  I have to be cryptic to save on space.

1. Frequencies are measured in Hertz.  Also kH stands for kilo Hertz or 1000 Hertz, ie one thousand cycles of the signal wave per second.  Sharper, squeaky sounds are in the higher frequency range. Thus, for example, Balamularali Krishna's voice may traverse a frequency range that is lower than the one traversed by Musiri Subramanya Iyer (or a female vocalist like MS).  The Hz level changes continuously as the singer "goes up or down."    Understand the frequency ranges of voice and various Carnatic instruments.  This is important in setting the equalizer. [Male voice: 100Hz - 1800 Hz; Female voice: 150Hz-2500Hz; Violin: 350Hz - 4000 Hz; mrdangam: 100Hz-2000Hz; these are approximate].  Just to understand how these numbers relate to what you hear consider these: if you push up the higher frequencies, a male voice will start sounding like that of a female and a female voice will become very squeaky,  violin will become unbearably high pitched and squeaky, mrdangam right will start sounding metallic.  Push up the lower frequencies and you distort sound again - some examples: voice and mrdangam right (sollu) will become less clear; violin will boom in lower octaves; left side mrdangam will boom drowning most others.  Got it?  This also gives you a hint on what to change if you see these types of problems.  Play around with your home equalizer if you have one and if not with the treble (high frequency) and bass (low frequency) knobs.  Best is to try doing the experiment with only audio portions where only one musician is performing.   [Unfortunately, many systems today like Bose don't let you do anything; trust me, they provide less optimal sound than what someone who knows, even moderately, what to do with manual controls.  It is just like using your camera in Auto versus Manual. Rarely will a professional put the camera in the auto mode unless they know they won't have the time to compose their pictures!].

2. In terms of equalization thus for a male vocalist, I may set the equalizer with the frequency  around 1200 or so high and tapering down to the sides; for a violin may be centered around 2000 Hz; etc.
Make sure successive frequency knobs form a reasonably continuous curve. [The modern day digital mixers are a challenge to most technicians since it is much harder to get a smooth curve without a lot of experience and a larger screen to work with.  I still prefer analog mixers for this reason.] Since you are not doing some fancy stuff with a separate equalizer for each instrument or musician, use the main person as your guide for this.  Things may have to be changed later depending on the auditorium, the size of the crowd (that alters sound characteristics ), etc. for which your ears are your best guide.  There is no one single set of numbers that work always.  So, treat these as starting points.
After setting the equalizer thus, adjust individual instruments or channels with the frequency knobs low, mid, high on your console which cover different frequency ranges.

3. Volume and Gain: One big cause of problems is setting the gain high.  Without getting technical, think of gain as the input volume level.  If gain is set high, a small movement towards the mic by the musician can amplify things very much.  Such abrupt moves will make them sound like they are shouting or screaming.  (Hear those awful squeaks in the auditorium? Most of these are due to high gain settings.)  A common mistake I see with most audio people in Indian programs, including so-called professionals, is that they treat the gain control as the main tool for increasing or lowering volume.  That is really asking for trouble.  Golden Rule 1: Try to make do with the minimum possible level of gain to avoid squeaks and overloads of your system.  How do you find it?  Here is a simple trick.  Set the volume control at 0 (i.e., at center), let the person play or sing and increase gain just to the level that is comfortable.  From then on change using only the volume knob!  Volume knob is what controls the output level.  Golden Rule 2: Move the knobs gently and in a continuous motion at a very slow rate; especially so with gain.

4.  If you hear the violin or the left side of the mrdangam booming, reduce the lower frequencies.  Some violinists and vocalists will ask for more "base" without realizing a little bit what it can do to how they sound.  Make them play the lower octaves and use that as a guide.   Pay attention to the right side of the mrdangam; is the sollu clear?  if not ,you don't have enough treble (higher frequencies) for that; does it sound too metallic (then you have too much treble or are using high frequency ranges too much).

5. Never work without a stage monitor.  Make sure you can increase or decrease the volume on the stage monitor without affecting the way things sound in the hall.  Don't run the stage monitor too high.  Then amplified sound enters the mic, gets amplified again, and this process repeats God knows how many times since things travel at speed of light, overloads your channel, and you get a terrible squeak; in the worst case, it blows your equipment (yes, I have seen that happen too!)

6. Unless you have undergone some serious professional training, stay away from things (especially done manually) like Effects (Reverb) which some musicians will ask for although they have no clue whatsoever what it means or how it affects sound.  [You may be able to get away with the automatic setting of Vocal-SmallHall or Vocal-LargeHall for most Carnatic programs giving good reverb but beware of hall reflection properties of sound.  If it feels like you are hearing multiple versions of the same sound, don't use it!]  Smile, nod your head, do what you have to do.  In my long years, the only musician I consider as knowing anything about sound engineering is Sangeethasagara Balamuralikrishna.  How I wish a day comes when no one is allowed to ascend the stage without some minimum training on using the mic and the essentials of audio!

Also, when it comes to recording, please set the peak level at about -6dB.  One common error I see especially from India is to set it at 0dB resulting in frequency clipping.

Some other golden rules: #3 Go  and listen from various places in the auditorium and readjust. #4 Dont respond to each and everyone who comes to you and asks you to change this or that.  #5 Have some trusted people (like those who you know can make a good judgment about sound quality) who can tell you. #6 Don't set up and walk away for good.  Unexpected exigencies do occur.  #7 Don't get too cocky; there is a heck of a lot to learn, and at any stage, what we know is a very small part of what is out there to learn.
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The author, Dr. V. Ramaswami, also wrote the books 'Innovation by India for India, the Need and the Challenge' as also 'Bhaja Govindam - A Topical Exposition'  besides writing and editing several books in his fields Applied Probability & Telecommunications.  He is a former President & Secretary of CMANA, the Carnatic Music Association of North America under whose Presidency its Sangeethasagara award was instituted.  He has penned over 40 compositions in Carnatic music.  A probabilist by profession, he has been a serial inventor with many patents, and among his positions was one as Chief Scientist at Bellcore.  He has published over 75 scientific articles and written and/or edited several books.  He was named a Distinguished Science Alumnus by Purdue University, an honor given to a very small percentage of its graduates.

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Some additional comments related to audio in  future posts.  Your comments are most welcome. Please post them here and only here if they relate to question, additional technical matters etc.  Kudos and criticisms you can place wherever you choose.  If you have not seen the page for my book, kindly visit http://www.innovationbyindiaforindia.com
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NOTE ADDED AFTER SOME SEQUELS TO THIS BLOG:
You may also wish to read

https://veeraam.blogspot.com/2016/10/carnatic-music-additional-audio-pointers.html

and
http://veeraam.blogspot.com/2017/04/audio-basics-for-carnatic-musicians.html

A Great Book on Carnatic Music Remembered

Great Masters of Carnatic Music 1930-1965 Author: Indira Menon, Publisher: Indialog Publications Pvt. Ltd., 2004 ISBN: 81-87981-53-9, 308 pages A review by V.Ramaswami*

This delightful book is comparable to a grand onam saddhya (feast) with a variety of exquisite dishes embellished by the right amount of spice and seasoning, prepared by an expert chef for discerning palates, and served in a regal style. It should serve as a standard bearer in a field where a majority of work on the lives and times of musicians is but a shallow exercise in sycophancy or derision based mostly on gossip and innuendo, focusing more on personalities than on the art, and worsened only by poor editing, paper quality and printing. Be it in artistic content, language or presentation, this book is an example worthy of emulation.

A chapter is devoted to each of the following grand vocalists who reigned during the golden era of Carnatic music – Ariyakudi, Maharajapuram (Viswanatha Iyer), Musiri, Chembai, Semmangudi, MS, GNB, Brinda-Mukta, DKP, Madurai Mani, MLV, KVN and MDR – and the book also contains a set of highly informed and informative articles penned by some of them. Eschewing both the ubiquitous beginning with inconsequential natal facts and standard clichés like “hails from a musical family,” the author starts each essay with several pages describing the stature, style and significant contributions of each vocalist – the raison d’être for inclusion in the book.  Often the details of birth etc., appear well after five or six pages that describe the uniqueness of the musician in a way that brings out the nuances of Carnatic music like sarvalaghu and laya and the differences between styles such as the briga-laden and gamaka-laden and serve as valuable pieces of reading that can improve one’s own level of music appreciation, a facility clearly highly honed by the author through critical listening. The narratives are interspersed with a variety of related information on other grand masters of previous eras, various locales in Southern India and, occasionally, even spicy humor (like Semmangudi’s remark that Chembai’s voice needs not a microphone but a silencer), and these make them highly readable.

Through beautiful command of the language supported by a level of cultured, cultural erudition not so common these days, the author wins the respect of the reader comparable to that evoked for the subjects her pen has served well to embellish. I quote some example text below.

"If architecture could be described as frozen music, then the best analogy of Chembai’s style would be a column of the Doric order, solid and beautiful in its simplicity. Just as it would be ridiculous to say that the Doric order had something missing, namely, the fluted columns and floral decoration of the Corinthian order, so would it be ridiculous to say that Chembai’s music lacked the glides, graces or emotional fervor of, say, Musiri’s music.”

“The difference between the Brinda and GNB styles (to take two extreme examples of gamaka- and briga-oriented styles) may be likened to (that between) a river of the plains winding slowly along and a torrential mountain stream.”

“A briga that consists of a cluster of creative ideas sung in a fast tempo can be very exciting. But if speed is used for merely traversing up and down the scale …. or for the display of virtuosity, there is no aesthetic joy in it. It is like a sprinter who enjoys a special thrill while sprinting, but who cannot claim to have noticed the landscape around him”

While being unabashed in the expression of her admiration for the artist, the author avoids sycophancy and does provide a balanced portrait bringing out their deficiencies too in the most inoffensive manner. Thus, while MLV with a style “more cerebral than emotional, … excelled in all aspects of improvisation and opened up new worlds for lovers of Carnatic music” and “displayed a hitherto unprecedented flow of ideas of a rich and fertile imagination,” the “tara sthayi was MLV’s Achilles’ heel … and her rendering of kritis was mannered and lacked spontaneity.” Read in their context, these criticisms could evoke only a nod with tempered acquiescence even from ardent admirers of MLV like this writer.

It is tempting to write more about this book and to quote from it, but it would rob a potential reader the pleasure of directly partaking from it. So, I will rest by simply recommending the book as a “must read” for the serious connoisseur of Carnatic music. The only ‘negative’ I can say about this book is that its pages have an addictive characteristic, and once you start reading, you can barely keep it down, and when you are done, you may wish to start all over again.

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The author of this blog also wrote the books 'Innovation by India for India, the Need and the Challenge' as also 'Bhaja Govindam - A Topical Exposition'  besides writing and editing several books in his fields Applied Probability & Telecommunications.  He is a former President & Secretary of CMANA, the Carnatic Music Association of North America under whose Presidency its Sangeethasagara award was instituted.  He has penned over 40 compositions in Carnatic music.  A probabilist by profession, he has been a serial inventor with many patents, and among his positions was one as Chief Scientist at Bellcore.  He was named a Distinguished Science Alumnus by Purdue University, an honor given to a very small percentage of its graduates.

That Indian DJ

For a long while, I thought DJ stood for Deaf Jockey. Usually, people who talk way too loud almost like they are shouting, and play up the volume of the radio, TV etc way too high, are often deaf and can't hear well.

Could you blame me? With the level of volume at which these DJs play anything and at all times, what else would one think? If they are not deaf, are they leashed out by some on Wall Street who have some futures contract on hearing aids and the like, or are they some agents spawned by the ENT doctors' guild to drum up business for themselves?

My name is not Andy Rooney, and I am not against fun either. And, I do believe that functions like a wedding or a birthday should be nothing but fun. But ask yourself: is it fun to have your ear drums torn apart while you are having a dinner? Or how much social is that social event where you cannot even have a conversation above the unending din? BTW, the writer is also guilty of patronizing the DJ experience once, having been forced into doing so by "the kids" although we did manage to keep the volume level to reasonable limits by making a clear statement to the DJ that his tip depended on how tolerably high the volume was.

Why is it that we seem to need some professional help just to socialize and have fun and to even applaud the stars of the party and the hosts who have kindly invited us? Isn't that funny and weird? Well, I am glad in one way though that in these days when most jobs have been outsourced and off shored, there are some new occupations like DJ-ing that have opened up for some people. I only wish they add value with sensitivity and some aesthetic sense as part of what they do.

To me, the ideal DJ is one who understands sound and sound equipment well. He should know how to position his equipment and equalize sound depending on the needs of the environment avoiding echo, squeaks etc. He is one who should know how to provide professional audio in a way that speakers can be heard clearly (can they use wireless lapel or

headset mics, given that most clients don't know how to hold a hand held in an optimal way?). He should be someone who knows when to play what type of music. For example, during dinner time, soft instrumental music that does not interfere with people's conversations

and enjoyment of food is what I guess most would prefer to loud music with undesirable vibrations. In short, the DJ should, in the least, understand the difference between noise and sound, period.

I agree there are times when the volume level has to be racked up to maintain a certain level of tempo, like for instance while announcing certain key events like the entry of the bride and groom in a wedding reception or during dance. But that does not mean that it has to be raised to a level exceeding all OSHA standards and provide an experience comparable to that of having a

few jack hammers going in full blast. After all, a large audience such as at an Indian wedding invariably includes some old, babies, and some with ailments who cannot tolerate high levels of noise, and we do take offense if they don't show up.

Certainly, the DJ plays a useful role as an MC bringing some order in what would otherwise be a chaotic gathering. But he has to do it in a carefully careless way without appearing to be comical. Some DJs are so mechanical and so contrived in the way they make announcements that it all makes all too Bollywoody and takes away the spontaneity one would not like to lose.

Also, the DJ's overall tone should be one that displays a certain level of respect for the audience and not one treating them like a set of puppets. Sometimes, the whole process reminds one of an old Indian scene of the street gypsy with his monkey with the latter jumping over a stick to each command of the gypsy.

There are many things in which old is gold. There is a need to ask ourselves if this whole canned DJ experience is one that could be modified to bring some of the gold back for greater enjoyment of our social events by most if not all. No one is proposing that we replace the DJ with classical Hindustani music at a slow pace or whatever, but some of us do wish that we be spared of an experience that produces heartburn and headaches.