Accompaniment over time
On YouTube is a K.V. Narayanaswamy (KVN) concert, listing co-artistes M. Chandrasekaran, Umayalpuram Sivaraman and G. Harishankar. Presenting ‘vAtApi gaNapatim’ after a shloka, KVN sings a classic sangati at the 2 minute 52 second mark when, suddenly, mid-line, the kanjira comes in – for all of 9-10 aksharam-s – clear, ringing, goose-bump producing. The effect lingers, illustrating the power of accompanying artistes at their skilled, appropriate and elevating best.
This article appeared in The Hindu newspaper dated December 15th, 2023.
Though identified by the headliner’s name, Carnatic concerts are, in fact, teamwork, the accompanying artistes an indivisible part of the overall experience. An ideal accompanist is one whose contribution cannot be decanted from the overall concert.
Has accompaniment evolved in the last 50-70 years? At the over-arching level, at least three aspects are observed. Firstly, very few male musicians performed alongside women then. Now, though the oldest vanguard still does not, many younger ones do.
Secondly, due to less repetition of compositions, completely in-sync accompaniment seems rarer. Vocalist N. Vijay Siva and mridangist K. Arun Prakash both observe more audience and peer pressure to constantly showcase new repertoire. (Arun Prakash notes that yester-year stalwarts offered a balance of well-known, oft-repeated pieces with less familiar ones that eventually became requested and ‘common’.) An added complication for accompanists today is musicians learning from a wide variety of sources and pATAntaram-s, making predictability very difficult. Recordings of veteran musicians reveal many songs appearing regularly, allowing the then (fewer) accompanying artistes to predict and respond with near perfection. Mridangist Trichy Sankaran recollects Pazhani Subramania Pillai’s perfect anticipation of Madurai Mani Iyer’s (MMI) pause at the upper shadjam and MMI’s audible enjoyment.
Thirdly, while sound technology has advanced significantly in theory, the vast majority of concerts still have badly balanced sound for artistes and audiences, necessitating constant adjustment amidst performance – detracting from the overall experience.
Sankaran thinks the quality of accompaniment has deteriorated, with less effort invested into customising playing for the various rubrics in the music. Violinist and vocalist Akkarai Subhalakshmi also believes standards have fallen. “I was taught to seek out new challenges,” she says, stating most accompanists have settled into formulaic comfort zones that elicit applause.
Vijay Siva, who provided vocal support to his guru D.K. Jayaraman for years, sees a mixed bag. He says artistes now are very professional on stage, unlike earlier, not allowing off-stage squabbles or disagreements to affect performances. However, he feels that the field is not utilising the numerous communication channels to produce completely harmonious music as one unified entity. “We do not plan or share our thoughts. If we do so, and in depth, there will be improved camaraderie, understanding and better music.”
The violinist’s quandary is described by KVN in a 1986 interview for Sruti magazine. “A violin accompanist…should invariably be more knowledgeable than the singer. Because he has to play for so many main performers, he necessarily has to know more kriti-s and be better at technique and be familiar with a variety of styles. But all the same he has to underplay and subjugate his artistry to that of the singer.” He also says that violinists need not compete for duration, referencing those who played only for a fraction of the vocalist. A general guideline most accompanying violinists still mention is about 60% of headliner’s duration. Today, however, each headliner can have very different expectations.
Accompanying a senior vocalist, violinist Charulatha Ramanujam, earlier in her career, played a nuance of the rAgam that the vocalist had not sung. She was told she ought not to have done so. However, she also encounters the exact opposite – artistes who ask her to specifically play facets they did not present themselves. A new development in certain concerts is the violinist as a melodic equal to the headliner – in such concerts, the violinist has to alternate between accompanying (when the headliner is performing) and independent solos. The semi-circular seating arrangement furthers this visually, but many concerts in this configuration still observe traditional roles. The violinist of today, thus, has to be infinitely adaptable. Akkarai Subhalakshmi adds that artistes now, accompanists included, can justify anything as personal choice, thus circumventing all conventions and quality benchmarks.
‘Mardala tALa gatulu teliyakanE, mardincuTa sukhama?’ (Is it enjoyable to thump the percussion instrument without even knowing beat and pace?) asks Thyagaraja in his composition ‘svara rAga sudhA’ – indeed, some of today’s percussionists are so loud that audiences hear only noise, the headliners dissipated to mere drones. Trichy Sankaran agrees, stating that many percussionists today are more ‘sollu-ful’ (replete in rhythmic syllables) than soulful, not delineating active and passive drumming or giving enough pauses that allow for reposeful enjoyment. Sankaran suggests virtuosity be reserved for the tani Avartanam which should not exceed 10 minutes in a two-hour concert. Now, most are longer.
There have been multiple, significant changes in ‘upapakkavAdyam’. Unlike earlier, a ghatam, kanjira or morsing is now practically standard in concerts of established artistes. There have also been concerts, in the past few years, featuring no mridangam, with a ‘second’ percussion alone and others where the second percussionist is consciously accorded the status of first percussion with the mridangist present. Second percussion artistes are now listed properly in concert schedules, clearly visible in semi-circular seating arrangements and have their own fan bases. Kanjira exponent Anirudh Athreya and ghatam artiste G. Chandrasekara Sharma (nephew of T.H. Vinayakram) say this makes them feel like equal contributors, with more responsibility vested on them. In vintage recordings, upapakkavAdyam artistes are often heard only faintly, due to being seated behind with less localised micing, and their names frequently not listed either. Sharma mentions that there is room for their own creativity now – a huge contrast from the times of V. Nagarajan (Anirudh’s great-uncle) and others like E.M. Subramaniam, G. Harishankar and Vinayakram (in early career) who struggled to even get opportunities. When they were on stage, they were given little playing time, allowed to drum only when the mridangist permitted them to, and even stopped mid-flow. This can still be seen in some concerts today featuring certain, generally older, mridangists.
From the listener’s perspective, E.S. Ramanujam, a lifelong discerning connoisseur, wonders if today’s accompanists are more individualistic – serving to showcase their own skill and virtuosity rather than focusing on genuine teamwork – resulting in less ‘sowkhyam’. While there are undoubtedly many points to ponder and much scope for betterment, today’s concert stage is definitely a more egalitarian platform.
Sincere thanks to the many individuals who made time for this article at very short notice – Trichy Sri. Sankaran and Smt. Lalitha Sankaran, Sri. E.S. Ramanujam, Sri. N. Vijay Siva, Sri. K. Arun Prakash, Smt. Charulatha Ramanujam, Akkarai Smt. Subhalakshmi, Sri. Anirudh Athreya, Sri. G. Chandrasekara Sharma and Delhi Sri. Sairam – this despite picking up the pieces from Cyclone Michaung and scrambling to and from concerts. That they still put in effort to share meaningful thoughts in a timely manner was most touching. I am also in debt to Prof. S. Chandrasekhar for wonderful musical discussion that opened up numerous horizons, particularly in percussion.
Related Links:
Very nice comments. Many thanks.
Thank you.