The world of poetry is fortunate to have a basic expectation set from the readers clearly .Any poem that is written and read should make sense and should provide deeper meanings and insights into life .If this expectation was not set, poets with some mastery over words and grammar would have created a whole lot of tongue twisters and funny sounding phrases with rhymes.
The musical world is not so fortunate, since the messages given by musicians through their music cannot always be concretely interpreted; they can take the liberty of revelling in the play of elements and create an illusory structure that is devoid of any real emotive content.
For past couple of days, I have been listening to a beautiful series on Western classical music. “The Classical Classroom” In each of the episode a famous piece /composer is taken and a renowned musician explains it. The explanation is so detailed that every musical phrase is explained for its structure, composition and content. The messages conveyed through the phrases are explained to their minutest details.
When I look back at our music I am troubled by this question. Are we in a position to state what we mean and what we want to say, when we sing a certain phrase or alap or taan? I know one may not always be able to explain these things in concrete terms , such as “let us enjoy the moonlight”, “it is so dark outside" or "I am feeling so lonely” .The feelings conveyed are subtle and are to be felt .But the point is do we really convey anything at all? For instance, this dancing, bumping, thumping, summersaults and a huge long jump on the Sam to the rejoice of all the audience. What does it all really mean? Let us assume it means something. Say the feelings of delight, happiness and joy? But how is it that we find the same routine in every raga? May it be Adana or Marwa? Does it mean we have got habituated to this superficial play of elements that we seem to have acquired some control on? Or is it that we are playing to the audience? Some practical factors at play such as I have to cater to the tastes of feet tapping audience so that they can call me again? Or is our state like that of a man who has a hammer in his hand and all he wants to do is to strike a nail in the wall?
Do we have the musical character to indulge in a leisurely 2 hour Vistar of a serious Raag like Darbari without any of these silly distractions? Can we sit together and get lost in the profound ocean of melodic bliss?
To say something, we need to have something to say .We need to be troubled by intensity of feelings as well as the need to say it with a certain sense of urgency. Mastery over Sur, Taal and Raag are just supposed to serve as a medium of communication. In the end it is just us and our world of feelings. How honest are we with ourselves is a question we need to constantly ask ourselves?
The transformation from a singer of ragas to a soul singer is not easy. You have to question yourself at every stage. What am I saying now? Why did I sing a certain thing in a certain way? What does it mean to me? Does it take me close to myself?
Perhaps pursuit of poetry can help us become more sensitive to this fundamental aspect of music. Ustad Amir Khan used to say “Every artist must have poetic sense. If an artist does not have poetic sense, he becomes emotionless and it gets clearly reflected in his presentation”. He used to often quote a sher of Jigar. “Nagma who Nagma hai jisse ruh sunaye aur ruh sune “How true it is that an artist may weave extremely complex structures and amaze us with his mind boggling jugglery but in the end we will feel empty.
Today I am sharing with you Raag Abhogi by Khan Saheb .It gives me my private moments with my Lord.
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