THE VAKRA SVAR PRAYOG (SINGING IT OFF THE SCORE)

THE VAKRA SVAR PRAYOG ( SINGING IT OFF THE SCORE )

Arrogance in the guise of humility and being a pious adherent of spiritual musical tradition is the pretence of this famous classical vocalist. Reprehensible when such pretence can even be seen through so easily and makes a mockery of musical manners. When this vocalist of little courtesy, massive ego and imperfect pretence has the temerity to say that he touches the feet of the new entrants to his music school to teach the parents this custom of doing pranam which evidently he assumes they do not know, he crosses the limits of propriety. Such extraneous talk need not fill up the fabric of musical conversation and such pretentious attitude need not any more adorn this musical master of considerable musical accomplishments. Vanity has its limits, so does inferiority complex masquerading in whatever form of assumed wisdom of sorts. One teaches by personal example as Mahaprabhu had famously illustrated in his life by leading a perfectly continent life full of divine devotion, and not by showy stuff doctored to impress and that too in the most arrogant and abrasive manner under the cover of mock modesty. Culture in the hands of these preceptors has applied for a pious precipitation and it remains to be seen when men and women who are of real merit and yet do not seek adulation through self-publicity are born once more and occupy centre-stage to raise culture.

Written by Sugata Bose

P.S : Flattery and veiled boastfulness in alternate terms does mark this musician but does not make true music. Would it were that this vocalist was less vocal about his own self and let others speak in praise of him, if at all. Too much talk about money etc. are extraneous to the discussion and clearly point out the artiste's own fascination for the same. Also it hardly befits a gentleman to vaunt about his own self and his daughter in such carefully crafted terms. After all he is a reputed artiste and so is his daughter which would merit greater self-restraint in speech in real terms and not in such camouflaged terms with a view to giving veiled expression to self-attainment. It is unfortunate to see these developments in men so musically gifted otherwise and is a pointer to the fact that few, after all, pursue music for purer ends. Most do so for commerce and career whose success must be attained at any cost, even if that requires lowering of self-respect, begging for favours from powerful ones and undue and unnecessary vaunting of self-calibre and attainment to seek greater security in a market of mobile mass support that could shift allegiance any time. Unfortunate !

Photo : Ustad Amir Khan, a musician with a difference who has set the standards of not only music but of attitude as well which others may well follow and even try to emulate. It is musicians like Amir Khan who don the stage once in a while to keep the course of classical music along the trajectory of its truest tradition. Let the raag be sung along its right lines, using its pure notes, and let extraneous elements not mar the music in any manner.

N.B. : The subject of this write-up is not Ustad Amir Khan by any stretch of imagination. The Ustad has been called in to purify the atmosphere with his purely spiritual rendition of the raag which is so sadly missing in the subject of our discussion and has been replaced by cheap publicity and politicking to secure earthly ends. Let none misconstrue the context of the post and mess up its meaning by involving Ustad Amir Khan in it in anything but reverential terms which is the intent of including his photograph and this addenda. Amir Khan has here been mentioned by way of providing a reference point to artistes of the day as to what ought to be a true musical attitude devoid of doctored devotion to the stalwarts, pretentious piety and cheap appeals to humour the ones who are in charge of the state of affairs. By his sharp character contrast to the subject of our discussion Ustad Amir Khan helps to draw our attention to the prevailing perverseness in the musical scene and even offers us the panacea for the despicable disease that is afflicting it whose symptom is our subject in many a sense.