The Last Mughal (in Perfomance) With William Dalrymple

Review in the Daily Star Dhaka

http://www.thedailystar.net/the-splendour-of-mughal-india-51476 

About the performance:

Enter a world of music and poetry with The Last Mughal, a performance that takes us back to a bygone era of matchless splendour – the period of the last Mughals. Based on the book of the the well known author William Dalrymple, William and the celebrated North Indian vocalist VidyaShah celebrate the bygone era of India's last Mughals, bringing to life a world of emperors, poets, courtesans, politics, bayonets, intrigue and love through word and music.

This evocative evening features readings by award winning author from his book The Last Mughal: The Fall of a Dynasty, Delhi, 1857 and the vocals of Vidya Shah celebrating the poignant and robust folk poetry of the time and ghazals of the Mughal court.

Sit back on cushions, bolsters and satin throws as Vidya and William take us back in time into the vivid world of the Last Mughal.

Protest Music: Its relevance

The significance of Protest music: In the DNA 
http://www.dnaindia.com/analysis/column-rallying-cry-of-music-2009198

"While it is really every musician's discretion to choose the genre and music that they wish to explore, protest music comes with an added responsibility — it is after all for questioning and protesting, not just about performing! And to that extent the context in which it is performed brings a lot of value to it — the rally, the sit-in protest or dharna, the mass public meetings and so on. Taking it to a performance platform pulls the sting out of it — tames it, reduces it to mere entertainment. The success of protest music in bringing about change is intrinsically dependent on its ability to gather a mass following for a cause — the more the number of people who can identify with the lyrics, the better the chances of the cause being conveyed."

The Poetry of resistance: Reflections on my session at the Jaipur Lit Fest this year

How are we looking at Urdu, progressive poetry, what is the changng social fabric doing to it? From a session titled Urdu Mei Hindustan, this is the next of my monthly column in the DNA 
http://www.dnaindia.com/analysis/column-the-poetry-of-resistance-1960129

The Plight of the traveling Musician My Column in the DNA

This is the first of a monthly column I have started for the DNA on issues related to music:
http://www.dnaindia.com/authors/vidya-shah

i-Tanpura

My recent acquisition the i-Tanpura gives me great pleasure. Its easy to carry, I am happy with the tonal quality of it and yes it attracts a lot of attention - by being practically invisible!
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1120408/jsp/7days/story_15347432.jsp#.T4u8o9kjWxN

The Significance of The Oral Tradition

In Conversation with Pt.Ulhas Kashalkar:

IIC Quarterly

Vidya Shah

The idea of the Gharana is central to Khayal Gayaki in Hindustani Sangeet. It has been discussed by Guru’s and their Shishya’s, by connoisseurs, and written about in fair detail by social historians and ethnomusicologists who write on Indian music. When they appeared in the late 19^th - early 20th century, they were an important point of artistic identity that indicated a comprehensive musicological style and perspective. And the system was a direct result of the patronage in the courts of medieval India as is evident from their names – Gwalior, Jaipur, Patiala, and other princely kingdoms.

The interest of the patron in turn was closely linked to how popular music became in a region. For instance there is often a sense of awe amongst followers of music on why Dharwad in Karnataka was such an important centre for music, which has produced some of the greatest vocalists on the Indian terra, the reason is the patron. Every year during the Dussera celebrations a ten-day music festival was organized by the Wodeyar King of Mysore. This festival saw important artists coming form all over India. And given that the journey was long and tiring, it was not uncommon that musicians who came to the festival settled down here for many months, something the local audiences encouraged. Also Dharwad belonged to the Bombay Presidency before Independent India and so closely was connected to Marathi culture. The third reason was the tradition of musical dramas in this region, again a contribution of Maharashtra. All the prominent musicians of this region took part in these dramas and this formed a major part of their own learning experience in the realm of Indian classical music. So the assimilation of musicians in one space wasn’t just a coincidence or providence.

These Gharanas, usually tightly structured kinship groupings, monopolized the production of professional musicians until well into the 20th century. An important aspect of this tradition was the gurushishya parampara that embodied the living and learning relationship between teacher and the pupil in a very personalized manner in the oral tradition. Although notation of the cheez also came into practice more concertedly around the same time, there is little documentation of what was handed down to a student in class in this seena-ba-seena style of instruction.

But what we know as classical music today has gone through a veritable metamorphosis over nearly four centuries and continues to adapt and evolve even today. Through this period it has undergone several transitions – redefining audiences, their expectations. Post Independence in 1947, non-hereditary musicians too started gaining importance as performers, given the social respectability that music had begun to achieve professionally. This also led to major changes in the Gharana system, a process that in fact continues apace. For one, the reasons behind the emergence of these groupings are perhaps less significant today; this is not to take away from their musical contributions

However to a connoisseur the Gharana is a very important vantage point to judge the presentation of the vocalist even today. The importance of highlighting stylistic characteristics can be done in various ways - through the choice of the Raag, the Bandish, the Badhat and so on. If these were some of the reasons that Gharanas became established in different parts of North India one could then ask how relevant these remain in today’s time? Do we need these systems of stylistic perspectives and music or can music become an amalgamation of different Gharanas as long as some key elements of Alap, Bandish, Taan etc. remain the same?

In an in-depth conversation with one of the best known names in Khayal Gayaki in India today, Pt.Ulhas Kashalkar, the answer in no uncertain terms was a yes. While many practioners, connoisseurs and listeners would agree with this, Panditji with years of Taleem and Riyaaz goes on to explain why. It seems poignant to speak with this doyen of Khayal, since it is the centenary year of both his Guru Gajanan bua Joshi and that of an important influence in his musical journey Pt.Mallikarjun Mansur. Gajanan Bua and his peer Mansurji learnt with the legend Bhurji Khan around the same time. Although Gajanan Bua learnt in three Gharanas namely Jaipur, Gwalior and Agra but was known for his Gwalior Gayaki. Ulhasji spoke about his Guru, his Taleem and the reasons for the ease with which he traverses several Gharanas.

Panditji, Taleem, is really the corner stone of any artist’s existence. I think it combines with Riyaaz in defining the musicality of an artist. Where did it all begin?

I first started to learn with my father. He was an advocate who sang out of interest, shauq se. This was in the Yavatmaal District in Maharshtra. I then went to Nagpur University to do an M.A in Music. Here I learned with Pt.Rajabhau Kokje. And having done well thus far, including a scholarship from the Ministry of Culture and winning several competitions, I felt the need to pursue my music seriously, that I needed intensive Taleem. At this point I went to Pt.Ram Marathe who had learned in both the Gwalior and Agra traditions, in fact he sang different kinds of music. So I received Taleem in both these Gharanas. After learning with him for some time I went to Gajanan Bua.

This is the centenary of Pt.Gajanan Bua Joshi…And you are one of the most important torch-bearers of his lineage. Tell us about your taleem with him.

Yes indeed it is his centenary. Guruji came from an impressive lineage of musicians. His grandfather, Manoharbuva, was-a leading exponent of dhrupad and dhamar, while his father, Anantbua Joshi was an outstanding disciple of Balkrishnabuva Ichalkarnajikar is said to have brought the khayal from Gwalior to Maharashtra.

I am very indebted to him for the time he gave me and the effort he spent in teaching me. I think that was a very important aspect of learning under him. He would not merely instruct he would spend a lot of effort and time with his students to ensure that the taleem was thorough. I myself went to him when he was quite old, nearly seventy. But for him taking on a disciple meant complete devotion to the disciple – you may be a good shishya, but it is also very critical, very significant that one should be able to find a “Guru” (not just a teacher). I was very fortunate that he agreed to take me on as a student. Probably also why he has had many disciples who have done well, many good students – Padma talwalkar, Jayashree Patnikar, Shubhada Paradkar, Madhukar Joshi, both my brothers also learnt with him. Also Shridhar Parsikar a very capable artist learned to play the violin from him.

He was not only a very accomplished singer but also a very skilled violin player. He had evolved his own style of violin playing quite distinct from any other that we know.

An important landmark for any artist is finding a Guru- it is challenging to be a dedicated student no doubt even if we may be willing to be good shishya, but also finding a guru in itself is not easy…

Absolutely! It is very difficult to find someone who can understand you, invest in you and commit himself to teaching you. Gajanan Bua would treat his students like a mission. He was willing to share everything with them. And also what he believed was in completeness, not leaving something halfway through. I was introduced to him through my borther who was learning from him, so he knew me already. But he was already quite old, nearly seventy, so he was hesitant to take me on. At that age for someone who took on a student with great sincerity, it was difficult for him to say yes, understandably its not easy to teach nuances of Raagdaari and taankari…. But it was my good fortune he agreed. He must have taught me some hundred to 150 raags.

And he himself had learned from several Gharanas…

Yes he (along with Mansurji) learnt in the Jaipur style with Bhurji Khan Sahib, with Ustad Vilayat Hussain Khan in the Agra and Pt.Ramakrishnabua Vaze in the Gwalior Gharana. I have been able to sing all the three Gharanas thanks to my Taleem with Guruji. Each one of the Gharanas is a different approach and style and to be able to sing them one needs to have an understanding of the basic tenets.

So from the time when these were fairly tight compartments, where there was even a difference in the quality of the taleem handed out to immediate family vs. women students (like the Bai’s for instance) this is quite a change that one sees in the parampara….

I believe it was common practice to borrow, adapt even incorporate changes. My Guruji’s strength was that he retained the fragrance of each of the systems and followed them sincerely in his singing. And his was not an exceptional situation at all. Take for instance Bhaskar Bua Bakhale. He died very young, but even within the age of twenty two he had Gwalior, Agra and Jaipur with him. Also the borrowing within these systems lead to new formations – Jaipur-Atrauli. Even the Guru would suggest that the Shishya could go and learn from some other Guru who would have certain Bandishes or Unvat Raag or some such thing that would be additional or advanced understanding of another Shaili.

If I learn from several people I can also mix up singing styles, evolve my own, these are sanctions that musicians have. For instance Mallikarjun ji sang Jaipur but was very trained in Gwalior as well. Mogubai learned mostly from Alladiya Khan Sahib but also brought in Agra elements like Bol-Baant into her singing; Kesarbai was influenced by so many people Baskarbua, Bande Ali Khan sahib; it was a given that all these popular performers learned from many Ustads. It was a given thing that students moved around to learn the nuances and details of various Gharanas. I myself have only benefited from this. For one thing I heard so many artists. Sharad Chandra Aarolkar in Gwalior, Latafat Hussain Khan and Sharafat Hussain Khan in Agra, very little of Mogubai, Nivritti bua Sarnaik – I have heard them all live; they have all influenced me. They gave me a perspective, added to what I learned; I could understand the strong points of their singing – Balasthan.

Somehow now this system is being interpreted differently in a more limited way – as if to say that incorporating new stylistic elements means breaking or moving away from a tradition. Not true at all in the old times or even in the manner we have learned or been encouraged to perform. Len-Den amongst and between Ghranas is common.

But given the changes that are taking place in the world of Khayal Gayaki, the influences of technology and the greater listening exposure that it brings to students, the changing performance formats- shorter more auditorium based concerts, how relevant is the Gharanedar Gayaki in today’s milieu?

Gharanas are a body of principles; for eg. In Jaipur you will see long phrases that require breath control; these phrases are closely linked to the taal, highlighting every maatra, which could be on the beat or off beat; in Gwalior one avartan is a unit; anvat raags get sung much more, aakar is important, the taan is different, the bol is treated differently; in Agra you hear the nom-tom. Every Gharana brings with it a fragrance, has its own Khushboo – the nom-tom is beautiful and so is the aalap! You cannot be judgmental in these things – one is more superior than the other and so on. Ultimately the music has to be “ranjak”, attractive. These are important principles which one should adhere to, but that does not mean that one cannot borrow and adapt, that is inherent to classical music. They are important in that give you a framework within which you locate your music.

It is one thing to learn from different styles to know what their specific characteristics, but then you are also singing in a chosen Gharana – Mansurji for instance was trained in Jaipur and Gwalior and knew both styles but chose to stick to Jaipur…

Yes. But you will see elements of Gwalior in his singing – his aalap in Yaman for instance. See, importantly the singing has to be attractive. If the singing is not impressive then what is the use of where you have learnt.

How did Mansurji impact your singing?

I did listen to a lot of people but Mansurji was one of my absolute favourites. I had heard him live very often, I have met him personally I heard a lot of his LP records- Bahaduri todi, Jaunpuri, the mellifluousness of his voice, the tayyari in Taankaari; Jaipur Gayaki is so attractive and with his brilliance I enjoyed it even more, he was really my ideal. I was completely in awe, so much that if my Guru had not said yes to teaching me I would have gone to Mansurji and requested him to teach.

The thing about Khayal is that while it is an improvisatory genre it is also about how much and how well you can learn, at to an extent also memorize, yaad karna. So how does an artist evolve a new experience with the raag – of abstraction, of improvising, of moving beyond what has been learnt….

Now that takes a long time. Yes you go to a Guru imbibe, learn, memorize as much as you can; it is also very important to listen to a lot of music – of other Ustads, of other performers; of how they learned and what they have changed or brought in; people who deeply inspire you- and if they learn in another Gharana, then what is it that can be imbibed from them into your singing. It has to be natural, it has to happen on its own, it cannot be forced, your music and Sadhana has to take you there. In the process you can also leave behind what you learn from your own Guru. But it takes time. But when an artist gets to that point then you can evolve something that is your own, maybe even reinterpret a Bandish or change a Mukhda. This would be allowed then - uska haq ban ta hai.

But do you think in the present avatar of the Guru-Shishya Parampara, in today’s time, there is still potential for this transformation? What can sustain the interest? In your own case you took up a small room in Dombivilli near your Guruji’s house and you were eternally in his house either learning – or listening to other people learn..

Well of course times have changed. It is difficult these days to follow something with patience and rigour with so many other possibilities. But there are a handful of competent students who find ways of pursuing this passion. They find scholarships or there are even some institutions like SRA where I teach – it is a Gurukul system, some private ones as well where young people are able to do their training. But it will take time, it will have to be seen if these institutions can give competent or even brilliant performers. That is going to take some years before we see the results of these efforts, maybe another ten-fifteen years. The most important thing for me in this is to be able to provide a right atmosphere – I might have taken a room, somebody else might have stayed in a hostel – but the important thing is the music that filled the atmosphere around us. If you are listening to your Guru, other contemporaries, other students who are also learning, you are also thinking and living in that world. That should be made available to any student - that is motivating and inspiring. In my case for example, I would go learn in the morning, come back home do my own Riyaaz, go back to him again either learn or listen – this would happen three to four times in a day. Even Riyaaz each student has his or her own capacity – people it is said did eight hours and fifteen hours of practice. I cannot make any such claims about myself, I did sit for practice three to four times a day.

That is why I believe that children who go to music schools and colleges are not able to imbibe so much, it is not possible in that temporary situation – you learn for an hour and come away till your next “class”. Maahaul Zaroori hai.

Panditji, there is a lot of concern about the status of Classical music in India today, what are your thoughts on this?

So many programs are happening even today. There is no dearth of platforms. In fact I think the opportunities are increasing. Its true that the patronage is challenged, and artists need more support, but the number of programs has not gone down at all in my opinion. In fact even earlier there were not very big audiences; it was never running into thousands! And in today’s time we have fairly big crowds even today at important festivals like Sawai Gandharva or Dover Lane. I think we know this is niche singing and not worry so much about what will happen to it!

Pandit Ulhas Kashalkar:

In a day and age when eminent musicians of the older generation apprehend the gradual decay of our grand tradition of Indian Classical Music, Ulhas Kashalkar’s voice and music is an abiding reminder of the strength of this great art.

With a captivating voice and the gifted ability to blend the three gayakees (Gwalior, Agra & Jaipur) with authenticity and aesthetic excellence, Ulhas ji is one of the greatest vocalists in our country.

Ulhas ji is the recipient of several awards such as the Padma Shri, The Sangeet Natak Akademi Award and has been conferred with titles such as “Raag Rishi”.

TOI Fest Hyderabad: Sufi Music is Beautiful

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-09-17/news-and-interviews/30165575_1_sufi-music-carnatic-music-sufi-lyrics

Bathed in moonlight and the magic of soulful Sufi music, the Quli Qutub Shahi Tombs will come alive as part of the Times Sufi Nights.

Renowned classical musician Vidya Shah, who will performing tonight, says she couldn't be more excited. "Sufi music has the potential to create a beautiful atmosphere. It is magical and that's why I enjoy performing it very much," says Vidya, who loves coming back to Hyderabad.

"This is my fourth time in the city in three years and I totally love Hyderabad. It's beautiful and so rich — architecturally, musically and foodwise. I've performed at the Qutub Shahi Tombs, Durgam Cheruvu and there's something about this place that just transports you back in time," she says.

Vidya, a trained classical singer, who was born into a family with a rich musical heritage, says that Hyderbadis can look forward to a tirbute to the Sufi greats tonight. "I like to bring in a lot of rhythm and percussion into my performance. I will be singing the works of Baba Bulle Shah and Shah Hussain. I also I plan to croon a Kaafiya which is sung by a lot of Sufi saints in Pakistan."

The musician is thrilled with the new trend of Sufi music reaching out to more people than ever, thanks to popular music projects in Pakistan and India. "I think it is a fantastic thing to have happened. These kind of cross-cultural music projects create an opportunity to synergize cultures and musical genres. And that's exactly what the idea of Sufism is all about. Currently, I'm working on a crossover project with jazz musicians in Europe. We are using saxophones, electronic sounds, tabla and sufi lyrics — it's all so exciting," says the musician, who has trained in Carnatic music and went on to study khayal, thumri, dadra and ghazal gayaki. "I can never stop learning. It's like getting a dose of vitamin everyday. You just keep going," quips Vidya, who has studied under the tutelage of Shubha Mudgal and Shanti Hiranand.

Even when she is playing the part of a social activist, Vidya uses music as a medium of change. "I feel, culture is a very important vehicle of spreading peace, love and it connects people together like nothing else. And what could be more powerful and poignant than singing these messages," says Vidya, who aims to do just that with Times Sufi Nights.

"I think a festival like this reaches out to diverse audiences. It's a lovely way of bringing people together. After all, there is some truth in the cliché — music transcends all boundaries."

An evening by the river -in Song (For The Yamuna- Elbe Public Art Project)

India is full of mythologies (Namami Yamunamaham ), rituals (Ganga Nahaana), non-theistic verse (jal me kumbh-kumbh me jal), which are replete with metaphorical references to water; semi-classical genres of music – Dadra, Sawan, the Hori, that describe vividly the birds, the swings, imagery in physical spaces …

The performance by Vidya Shah traverses through many of these references both literally and metaphorically. She delves into the deep waters through the various North Indian music traditions.

Q and A in The Times of India

Q&A ‘Music production has undergone a sea change’ Musician Vidya Shah is known for her stirring and soulful performances. However, she’s now stepped into the realm of archiving music and its memorable stars. Speaking with Srijana Mitra Das, Shah explains Women on Record (WoR), her multimedia project documenting female singers of the gramophone era – and why this is relevant in modern times:



Pleasetellusabout‘Women on Record’ – what inspired you to capture the voices and experiences of women singing in a far-removed era of jalsaghars and mehfils?

WoR began a few years ago when i was requested to perform the repertoire of the lesserknown Baijis at a concert in Delhi. I heard a lot of the music from this time and in the process got introduced to women who sang on these records and the incredible versatility they showed. This became the beginning of my journey into early 20th-century India.

Fascinatingly, women were at the forefront of this phenomenon. As a woman performer, i felt that perhaps there was a continuum here – the intersection of women and the record made way for the likes of me to take to the stage, but comfortably, without the social baggage they had dealt with.

Why is it important to celebrate women who sang in the gramophone era?

The Baijis were important to the world of performance, yet they have not been part of a mainstream discourse on music in India. Initially, it was mostly women who recorded in different regional languages across India in the early 20th century. These women of the 78 RPM era made a significant contribution not only to Hindustani music but also to literature, especially Urdu prose and poetry and, later, by their active involvement, to the worlds of theatre and film.

Will the project appeal to younger people whose tastes in music are so different?

Young people today are so challenged by the options they have – so much to choose from! But the flip side is, they have an appetite for all kinds of creative endeavours. We have tried to produce this project with attractive ingredients – it has stunning visuals, different kinds of music, songs, riddles, and now a website. It’s received fantastic responses from young and old audiences in the subcontinent. Having said that, something like this, even if very popular, will never match up to a Bollywood-like scale.

From the gramophone to the iPod, has the evolution of technology shaped music too?

The advent of sound recording changed the experience of listening to music forever. It redefined the world of entertainment. Artistes took on the challenge presented by this new technology – mainly of presenting an improvisatory genre in approximately three minutes. From these beginnings, music production has undergone a sea change. It continues to be more and more democratised. Technology has become very powerful in its presence, be it in live concerts or a recording.

Music is meant to soothe the senses – yet there are musicianslikeyoualsotakingup causes as activists, grappling with hard reality. Can the two roles be reconciled?

Culture has always played an important role in our pluralistic traditions, epitomised by the Bhakti and Sufi movements... but over the years, this critical space has been displaced by a very modular implosion – music has to be entertaining and commercial, its message becoming passé...however, i do not see my role as mutually exclusive to my creative expression. If i perform for World Peace Day, it’s also because i believe in the works of Faiz, Kabir or Surdas…it’s time we stop softpedalling our culture.

TOI Fest Hyderabad

Just back after singing to a wonderful discerning Hyderabadi crowd of nearly 3,000. What a stunning ambience to have the Quli Qutub Shah Tombs in the background, lit up beautifully, a gentle breeze and and a very engaged audience; feel humbled! My Interview in the TOI:
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-09-17/news-and-interviews/30165575_1_sufi-music-carnatic-music-sufi-lyrics

Webite launched

www.womenonrecord.com check it out.
More on http://epaper.indianexpress.com/10278/Indian-Express/21-August-2011#p=page:n=3:z=1

Mori Araj Suno from the Album Mere Paas Raho

A small clip from my Faiz Album 'Mere Paas Raho' (Times Music) : I composed this unusual piece written by Faiz Saheb titled Nazr-e-Khusro, feels like his tribute to Amir Khusro's poetry.
http://soundcloud.com/vidya-sings/mori-araj-suno-nazr-e-khusro


"At this point it is quite hard to figure out which is greater, Vidya’s passion for music, or her love for singing Faiz. Not that it matters of course; what matters is the fact that ever since I have come to know her, I have been deeply moved by her understanding of what Faiz means to the people of the Sub-continent. If music creates an unshakeable bond, words strengthen it ,as does Vidya's celebration of Faiz, poet of love and peace in his Centennial Year."
Salima Hashmi (Faiz Saheb's daughter)

Show cause, will travel : The Hindu, Metro Plus, 15th June 2011

SHAILAJA TRIPATHI

Frequent travels to other countries for performances have made vocalist Vidya Shah more experimental towards food.

Vidya Shah doesn't fuss over food. Anything sour is what she usually keeps at bay and understandably so, as Vidya is a Hindustani classical singer that too in the midst of a busy season. The scorching summers ensure choc-a-bloc schedule with extensive tours around the world for many from the fraternity. Vidya, also, is just back from Switzerland's Schaffhauser Jazz Festival where she performed with a newly formed group Orbital Garden.

“We are like a group now. And at the festival, I sang fairly complex compositions centred on Indian raga Jog. The ensemble has flute, electronics, drums and clarinet,” states the artiste. She appreciates the chana chaat, a typical Indian street food recipe with boiled chickpeas and potato, served as an appetiser at The Spice Market restaurant in Saket. The singer, in any case, loves desi grub.

If incessant travelling, an innate part of her profession, has made Vidya more willing towards experimenting with different cuisines, her stay at a tribal village in Madhya Pradesh, early on in her career gets maximum credit to appreciate and feel grateful for every morsel. She was collating folk songs an oral history of the area for an NGO in 1994. “We used to be so excited whenever we would get a vegetable like baingan or bhindi. After a long day of work, we used to be so tired and sometime it was like whether we are getting anything to eat today or not…”recalls Vidya.

The disciple of Shubha Mudgal and Shanti Hiranand regales us with anecdotes from her travels about the accompanists who while travelling to foreign lands, carry their ‘dabbas' with home-cooked karele ki subzi. She is reminded of a remarkable book by Sheila Dhar, “Raga'n Josh – Stories from a musical life”, which comprises essays on different musicians. Some of them, includes, really interesting quirks related to their eating habits.

The activist tag

The conversation once again veers off to her music as she digs into the main course mirchi ki roti - red or green chillies mixed in wheat flour and ghee, diwani handi - mixed veg with a spinach base. Over the years, Vidya has come to acquire this image of activist-singer. Formally trained in the field of social work, she has been a research Officer with National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO), a consultant with Centre for Development Studies, a programme co-ordinator with Naz Foundation, director of Education in Breakthrough, a Human Rights Organization. She is now the programme director of Centre for Media and Alternative Communication (CMAC), an organization started by her designer-photographer husband Parthiv Shah with the objective of facilitating cultural exchange. Yet Vidya doesn't quite like the activist tag.

“There is social consciousness that can be seen in the trajectory of my work but there are a lot of artists who have a stand on certain issues. There is a certain branding that has happened and I don't know if I am responsible for it,” says the singer who performs regularly at Sahmat's Safdar Hashmi Memorial on January 1 every year. In these concerts, you can often hear her singing the poetry of the legendary poet Faiz Ahmad Faiz.

And quite recently, the artiste has released an album on one of her favourite poets. “I have heard him in so many contexts. People in Narmada ghaati sing him, Iqbal Bano sang “Hum Dekhenge” in a film. I like Faiz sahib because of the kind of subjects he has taken up in his poetry. He is so versatile.” The album is now going to be released by Faiz Ghar, a project of the Faiz Foundation Trust in Pakistan soon.

It takes a little bit of coaxing by our photographer and Vidya gives in to sweet temptations. Gorging on the delicious phirni, she tells us of the sterling project called women on record (women singers in the gramophone era), on which CMAC had mounted an exhaustive multi-media exhibition at IGNCA. Moving on further, CMAC is now focusing on varied technologies in use in different eras “What's the history of arrangements in our music? While researching we got to know from where did the name of Anthony Gonsalves come. He was actually a musician from Goa who was one of the most sought after music arrangers in the film industry,” says the musician who has now got a Charles Wallace Fellowship to deeply engage with the subject.

Keywords: Hindustani classical music

The State Of The Arts How to stop our patchwork cultural fabric from ripping at the seams

Outlook Magazine
Vidya Shah


The very mention of Indian culture brings to mind its sheer diversity both in form and content. But this mental picture is quite different from how narrowly we view it now. Today, there is a tendency to homogenise— like running a road-roller over the cultural fabric of India. While mass media— largely television and cinema— has usurped most of our attention, culture, in the more conventional sense of live performance, is also fast gaining a glamour quotient. One does see more imagination being put into programming and venues today. Can we, then, stop lamenting about how Indian culture is deteriorating? Perhaps not till we’ve found answers to some pressing questions: Whose responsibility is it to safeguard culture? Who will be the patron? Can the thousands for whom their art form is their livelihood survive? And are they surviving now?

Some of these concerns saw a silver lining in a report released recently by the review committee of the zonal cultural centres (ZCCS) under the ministry of culture— in its silver jubilee year, significantly. The ZCCS, created under Rajiv Gandhi’s prime ministership, are located in seven cities across the country. They were set up with the intention of bringing India’s resurgent cultures to its masses and, in this spirit, they were not situated in state capitals, but in smaller cities with an important connection to culture. So, Thanjavur instead of Chennai, Shantiniketan and not Calcutta.

Initially, several promising objectives were put in place— delink the ZCCS from state politics, promote financial independence, encourage young and up-and-coming artists— and some good did come of it. The Shilpgram, a first-of-its-kind, one-stop crafts and culture village, defied its low budget to become a “must see” when in Udaipur. The Manganiyar singers are another success story. ‘Discovered’ by the ZCCS, they now perform internationally extensively.

The review report, an extensive undertaking under the chairmanship of Mani Shankar Aiyar, consulted eminent artists from across the country and concluded that the centres have seen a steady decline in the quality of their content, their promotion of art and their encouragement of artists— contravening the very purpose of their existence. It admits acerbically that the centres have, over the years, become excessively bureaucratised, insufficiently creative and essentially extensions of their state’s department of culture. The folk and tribal forms are worse off than ever before with newer generations having to eschew their traditional skills and become migrant labourers to survive.

Ironically, we need these institutions because the onus is on the State to look after these artists and art forms and to provide platforms for their performance, and because there exist, quite simply, no alternative survival mechanisms.

The re-engineering of the ZCCS has to be a reformative exercise at several levels. The review committee’s recommendations, including the setting up of an Indian Council for Zonal Centres, cutting down on major infrastructural expenditures (raising the centres’ corpus funds to Rs 50 crore each), increasing performance budgets, cultural audits to control corruption, improving documentation and archiving by bringing in the requisite expertise, have the potential to address existing issues. The committee stressed the need to support folk and tribal cultures through a revamped Guru-Shishya Parampara scheme, which will assure talented but indigent artistes to secure livelihoods through such proposed initiatives as a Folk and Tribal Arts Akademi (and National Museum).

While the report’s recommendations are quite comprehensive, it also supports the creation of superstructures and big budgets for cultural management. In a country like India, which has an array of art forms that is as diverse as it is extensive, it remains to be seen how low-cost models can be created. Also, if the youth are to be engaged, then there is a need to find a synthesis between fast-paced change-oriented technologies and the cultural traditions of communities. Community radio, digital archiving and the internet are avenues that need to be used optimally. The greater involvement of local communities and decreased outside interference will only add richness to content.

In three bulky volumes, the review committee’s report is an important contribution in that it not only reiterates how culture is much-neglected in India, but also puts forward concrete suggestions on avoiding an irretrievable collapse. It needs to be seen, however, how these recommendations will be implemented. Given the step-child treatment meted out to culture in India, the reincarnation of these zonal centres should help us rediscover our displaced (read: by Bollywood) cultural pride.

(Vidya Shah is a Delhi-based singer and programmes director at the Centre for Media and Alternative Communication)

Vidya Shah: Singing for women: The Republica, Kathmandu

DIKSHYA KARKI
KATHMANDU, April 12: She’s a classically trained singer, researcher, writer, and a social activist. Her talents are many, but she says, “Singing is closest to my heart. It’s the way I express myself best. All the other things I do are to support my singing, broaden my knowledge on the subject.”

Vidya Shah, the talented Delhi-based artist, was here as a performer for the Melba Devi Mahotsav on April 11 and 12.

She gave a multimedia presentation about her project, “Women on Record” and enthralled the audience with her powerful voice at the Army Officers’ Club in Kathmandu on Monday.

Talking about her project, Shah explained, “During one of my musical performances, I was asked by an elderly gentleman to listen to some women singers of the early 20th century in India. Then I was introduced to a whole new world of music.”

This started her research to unearth the gramophone records of South Asian women singers of the early 20th century.

“Those were the times when the Indian Subcontinent was one musically. There were many women in that era who sang beautifully, but their talents were restricted to their homes.

“But the invention of the gramophone was a boon for them. Women didn’t have to be seen; they could follow their passion by recording their music and not have to come out in the limelight,” she added.

Shah performs those age-old renditions in her concerts along with her own compositions.
Trained initially in Karnatic music, Shah’s teachers include singer Subha Mudgal and Shanti Hiranand.
Secure in her career as a classical singer, Shah discerns popular music derived from classical music.

“Film music has always been popular. There’s no use in comparing it with, or complaining about the devaluation of, classical music.” According to her, classical music has its own audience, “its own niche.” “The audience I sing or play to may not be counted in thousands but I connect with each one of them in person.”

Having performed in prestigious events like the India Festival at Singapore, Trinidad and Tobago, Assilah International Festival, Morocco, and the Bode Museum in Berlin, the singer likes to interact with her audience.

“The audience in the West and the East are different, but as an artist, I’m exposed to newer reactions.” She exemplifies her recent performance at Patan Musuem where the audience sang bhajans along with her.

“I wouldn’t be able to get that reaction from the audience in Europe but they are good listeners. I’m often applauded for the way eastern classical music treats the abstract.”

Hugely inspired by the works of poet Faiz Ahmed Faiz, she enjoys singing to his lines. In a concert one month ago in Bangladesh, she was particularly touched by the reaction of one of the listeners. She had sung Faiz’s lines as recorded by a Bangladeshi female artist during the gramophone era.

The artist’s brother happened to attend the concert and expressed his gratitude to her for having revived his sister’s legacy.

She came across the works of Melba Devi Gurung while working on her project and mentions that her life and work is a testimony of women empowerment.
“Having come from the Gurung community and traveled so far to fuel her passion, she’s a great source of inspiration.”

The multifaceted singer has penned numerous articles on music, gender and other social issues. Currently, Vidya Shah works as the Program Director of the Centre for Media and Alternative Communication (CMAC).


Published on 2011-04-12 11:57:18

Linguistic Survey of India

Some amazing work brought into public domain by Prof.Shahid Amin, read in
http://www.openthemagazine.com/article/arts-letters/voices-from-colonial-india

Melting Into the Word – Singing Faiz

https://www.dawn.com/news/606423

Some years ago, in the mid-nineties, I walked about twenty kilometeres in a Yatra over several days along the amazing Narmada river that cuts across the middle of India through the states of Madhyapradesh, Gujarat and Maharashtra. This was to discuss with villagers along the river the consequences of a development project in the area. It was a peoples rally in a very difficult and remote part of India quite inaccessible to the city bred likes of us. Meetings were held in this Bhil tribal belt through night and day. And an important part of this activism were the songs that were sung. Several of these were tribal/folk songs calling out to the locals to take pride in their identity, their culture rituals and so on. But there was also songs written by Gorakh Pandey, Sahir Ludhianvi and Faiz Ahmed Faiz. I must say coming from a background of musicians and music lovers, I was quite awkward with how out of tune the group singing was, but the energy and the passion with which people sang was enough to forget the musical inadequacy.

But this experience also brought to mind the prolific interpretations that Faiz’s poetry lends itself to. In a comparable political fervour, in a completely different environment Iqbal Bano sang her Hum Dekhenge. The “Inqilaab Zindabaad” one hears from the audience in the recording still makes listening to it a thrilling experience. I for one first became familiar with Faiz’s poetry through Mehdi Hasan Saheb’s music, which played often in our Tamil household. Just as with others in the family, my being a musician brought me closer to the raag before it did to the poetry. But the beauty of the lyric also shines through these renditions. In his singing the poetry and music fuse into each other – the cascading he creates with Baamey Meena Se Mahtaab Utarey in Aaye Kucch Abr in Gaud Malhar is a superb example.

As I became more drawn to the poetry of Faiz, I also saw a distinct musical style in which several of the Pakistani singers approached his work. They were almost always based on a classical raag, but the raag never took over the lyric. In a sense this is a third kind of an interpretation, quite unlike say Khayal gayaki which is about raagdaari, where the raag is central and almost always the lyric is incidental or the Tarannum where the poem is recited so it does not get interfered by the melody. Iqbal Bano, Noorjehan, Farida Khanum, Nayyara Noor and even Tina Sani (an unusual Durga for Bahaar Aayi) while they sing the ghazal or the Nazm based on a raag the structure of the Sher or the couplet also comes through clearly. Perhaps one of the reasons why the Indian Diva of Ghazal Begum Akhtar did not sing too much of Faiz’s work, (Shaam-e-Firaaq stands out in its soulfulness though) considering that she brought raagdari into Ghazal singing like never before.

Singing Faiz gives me an opportunity to address a void that has come to be in the understanding of cultural protest, of raising a concern, of being angry or anxious, within the context of my own musical framework. I do enjoy composing some of his work and the fact that he loved Classical music encourages me to explore various raag – including Shahana, Khamaj, Malhar several of which lend themselves beautifully to his poetry. Singing at the Faiz Ghar at the invitation of his daughters last year and the love and appreciation from the audience that I received seemed ironical, that I should come across the border to sing remembering a man who fought these boundaries all his life.

Vidya Shah

Bhimsen Joshi

Bhimsen Ji
When I was learning Khayal Gayaki, my guru had once remarked somewhat disdainfully, you need to get into the raag, the bandish, feel with it – ek junoon honaa chahiye, only then will you fill your canvas beautifully. Listening to Pandit ji’s Miya ki Malhar or Komal Rishabh asavari or the Puriya Kalyan, actually any of his recordings, to my mind was exactly all of this that was told to me. It was as if he had overwhelmed the Raag itself by exploring every possible aspect of it. To come back to the Mukhda and have a new interpretation almost every time is quite thrilling to a practioner. Panditji had a voice that was Gold. It had power, it could be soft, it had depth, the resonance, it brought with it many colours, therefore the touched hearts of many. His unbelievably flexible voice enabled him to traverse at terrific speed, the great range of 3 octaves.
Although he was primarily a Khayal Singer the star of the Kirana gharana, we also know him for his Thumris, bhajans, Abhang, all of which he sang with equal ease and élan. While it is a well known thing about him that he left home very early in life, but what is more fascinating is his intense search for a Guru at such a young age. Mad about music, single minded in his pursuit (he traveled for months, doing odd jobs to earn his food and travel to get to Gwalior which he knew was an important site for classical music) to know your calling, even before you are twenty years of age, I think is indeed the mark of a genius. An epoch maker; a true inspiration, no less than God!

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Mint Tea in the Medina

Mint Tea in The Medina
The Hindu: 5th Sept 2010

Invited to sing at the International Arts Festival in Morocco Vidya Shah returns with a vivid account of her experience.

The drive from Casablanca to Assilah is confusing; nothing to see on the way really except for occasional towns and hamlets. Also the monsoon hasn't yet arrived so the landscape is very dry. Somewhat like a train ride from Jaipur to Sri Ganganagar. But after a four-hour drive you begin to feel the sea breeze and the coastline starts to appear. Assilah is a fortified town on the northwest tip of the Atlantic coast of Morocco, about 50 km from the better-known Tangier. It is now becoming a popular seaside resort with modern holiday apartment complexes on the coast road.

History, revealed

Story goes that this town was founded by the Phoenicians around 1500 B.C. It was a prosperous trading post until a group of pirates ransacked the place, turning it into a hideout in the early 1900s. The town suffered decades of decline and had fallen into disrepair. It wasn't until the late 1970s when Mohamed Benaïssa, the Culture Minister of Morocco, who was later elected mayor of the town cleaned up Assilah, restoring many of its historic buildings, including the Raissouni Palace, now a concert hall, and the Al-Kamra Tower citadel in the Medina. He also brought together a group of artists, invited them to culturally refresh the town with their ideas and creative inputs. This was really the beginning of the Assilah festival, one that has emerged and established itself as a popular International festival for over thirty years now.

As in most towns in Northern Africa, life in Assilah revolves around the Medina. It is a bit of a maze, but since it is a small town it is difficult to really get lost in — one street eventually leads you to where you need to go. The shops sell everything from antique turquoise, coral and silver jewellery to hand woven Berber rugs. Hotels and vehicles aren't allowed inside the rampart walls making it a lovely walk through its cobbled streets. And around this time of the year the town is particularly alive and buzzing because of the Festival.

This Assilah International Festival established in 1978, is an annual cultural extravaganza that takes place in the month of July/August. Both studio and performing artists from all over the world, journalists, writers, painters, musicians and dancers gather here imparting the setting with colour, exuberance and dynamism. Over the last three decades, the event has promoted cultural dialogue, exchange and solidarity. It hosts more than 100,000 visitors. There is a performance a day from across the world open for general public which included this year contemporary dance from Portugal, Jordanian trio on the Lute, an Andalusian Ensemble from Tangier and my music from India, making the spread vibrant. Of course now every city in Morocco boasts of an annual Cultural festival, the most well known being the Fez Spiritual music Festival.

Farid Belkaiah a well-known artist in Morocco informs me that the festival has grown considerably in content and numbers over the years. Where it began with artists, it now is much more encompassing and brings together major global figures from the world of culture, politics, diplomacy as well as the arts, including journalists, writers, painters, musicians and dancers to meet, share ideas and collaborate. Belkaiah who works with Henna, was most amazed at the “orange” beard of my accompanist Khan Sahib and incidentally has had the pleasure of listening to and knowing Pt.Ravi Shankar from the 70's.

Land of music

Hamza Abdaless studying Business Studies, my transportation coordinator at the Festival over a cup of the famous Moroccan mint tea, tells me in great detail about the different kinds of music that comes from this beautiful country - Chaabi, Rai Andaloussie, Arabic, Gnawa, Berber, Reggada to name a few. He is embarrassed about the “Pop” music blaring out of the shops in the Medina that is busy, full of locals and tourists way beyond midnight. He laments about how music like the Gnawa - the slave music which came into the country in the 16 th century or the Rai - which literally means an opinion, a form of protest music, somewhat akin to the Blues, lead by peasants in Algeria, subsequently banned in the country, or the rich and exuberant Berber music is getting displaced by “mindless” popular stuff!

Haj Youness, the well-known Oud player, endorses this view. Haj who has been recognized by the Smithsonian for his contributions to Moroccan music, is quite a National hero, is very popular, every one wants an autograph and a photo with this director of the Music Conservatory, and says that television reality shows on which he is also a judge are no solutions to real talent. Young musicians need training, hand-holding opportunities, or else they end up playing in nightclubs and no more. A story only too familiar to the Indian terra, a refrain that is also very much a symptom of the satellite television in the globalised world.

But in my travels through this town and then to Casablanca, Marrakesh and Rabat, the one thing that did become apparent, repeatedly is that Morocco is a unique cultural fusion of Middle Eastern, European, and African influences. You can have the opportunity to experience life in a Muslim country while exploring the distinct society and traditions of the Maghreb and the French culture as well. To venture in and out of shops in Morocco is a pleasure for the eye and the mind as diverse colours converge into moments of shopping, eating, and entertainment. A mélange of the traditional and the modern is very visible within different societies and towns in Morocco.

Whether sitting at a café in Casablanca enjoying a croissant and tea, or visiting Marakkesh, wandering through the medina's looking at apricots and prunes, or sitting at the train station in Rabat looking at a woman sweeping the platforms at ten in the night, every experience in Morocco makes one reflect on how irrational stereotypes can be. It is the simultaneous inclusion and exclusion of different cultures that makes the country even more fascinating. A young boy who sells me a little pellet of Indigo rummages through a pile of used plastic bags looking for the one that will be just enough for the portion I have bought. A young woman dressed in a pair of shorts and short top on Casa's Corniche Beach walks along with a more conventionally attired young girl in a Djellaba or a Gandora, this co-existence of modernity and tradition seems to be the face of Moroccan nationalism.

Assilah is a case of political will in moving culture from a softer focus to an issue of cultural diplomacy between communities and countries, leaving me a craving for such approaches here – creating an international platform for not only performance, but on deliberating how culture can become a powerful vehicle to centre-stage syncretism in the sub-continent. Only I wish the wonderful people didn't call out to me on the streets as “Namaste Shah Rukh Khan”!

Women on Record

A Multi-Media Touring Show

Seminar 29th-30th March, 2010
Performance 2nd-3rd of April, 2010
IGNCA, New Delhi


Women in the 78 RPM Gramophone era have made a significant contribution to Indian Art music, and literature, and by their involvement in theatre and film. They have had a profound influence on subsequent performance music.
Ironically there is little that is available in the public memory about the Gaanewali’s, and also not in books on Indian music. This is legacy that has largely been preserved through the gramophone records that first made their appearance in India in the first decade of the 20th century.
The advent of sound recording in India had far-reaching social and musical effects, disseminating various genres of music to a mass audience for the first time. In the early 20th Century it is perhaps the first fascinating encounter between technology and music. The vocalists took on the challenge presented by this new technology – of presenting their work in approximately 3 minutes, this given the innately improvisatory nature of Indian music. Collectors estimate that the number of records issued in India would amount to about half a million – a large corpus of which remains unheard of and inaccessible to contemporary audiences.
Women on Record is a multi-media project that combines newer technologies with contemporary art practices in collaboration with artist communities traversing across film, photography, scenography, dance, theatre and music.
It combines different art practices with the idea of recreating an environment and mood of the gramophone era. The idea of reviving interest in the immense contributions made by these artists in the late 19th and early 20th century lends itself to immense visual possibilities given that their lives were about music, theatre, film and overall entertainment.

The Exhibition: This traveling show is an overview of the women who sang in the gramophone era, of the technology that evolved in the 1st half of the 20th century and the impact of these changes on the world of Indian music

The Video walk through: Through a series of interviews with artists, collectors and connoisseurs, some of whom even witnessed some of these soirees, CMAC creates another world of stories and experiences through the vibrant world of archives

Live Performance: A scripted performance involving narration, visuals and a concert to walk the audience through and experience the time and the challenges of women singers as well as their sense of enterprise including the diverse repertoire they brought into Indian music.

Seminar/Workshop: involving artists, historians, musicologists, film makers, art and media institutions to disseminate and discuss the products, the issues and the ideas that arise from the project. The seminar will focus on the role and status of women professionals in the entertainment industry today. It will attempt to trace the role of technology in overcoming the gendered barriers that women have faced over centuries in the Indian subcontinent.