MADHUKALI – ICH INITIATIVE

DURLABH RAGA PRASANG: BELAVALI

Culmination of 3 Day Symposium Workshop with

Morning Raga-s

Mainly presented by

PANDIT RAJSHEKHAR MANSUR

Jaipur-Atrauli Doyen

January 15^th 2012 9:00 am

Preetamlal Dua Auditorium, Indore

View clip of Durlabh Raga Prasang Symposium – Workshop

Performances by various artistes during Omenad Conference on 31st December, 1st January and 2nd January 2011 left a lasting impression on aficionados of Bhopal. Music lovers, scholars and enthusiasts travelled from across country to attend conference and concerts during three-day event organized by Madhukali in collaboration with Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya. Several well-wishers and music-lovers had expressed for another such event and at cities other than Bhopal.

In keeping with its philosophy to collaborate with like-minded bodies, Madhukali consented to cooperate with an upcoming cultural institution from Indore, Swar-Setu to present rare performances once again in both, Bhopal and Indore. Ethnomusicologist from Sonoma State University, Professor Laxmi Ganesh Tewari shall travel to India to perform in both cities. Madhukali, in all previous Omenad Annual Conferences had emphasized on the urgent need of safeguarding medieval and ancient Veena-s that over the past few decades have fast fallen into near obsolescence. The two forms of Veena that reached 20th century –  Rudra Veena and Vichitra Veena – have almost disappeared in 21st. Generational scions alone may find motivation to master these challenging ancient instruments.

Vichitra Veena was almost in oblivion when Dr. Lalmani Misra took it up and crafted a complete style for string instruments — Misrabani. Misrabani grants the instrument a unique identity. The string is freed from following human voiceand brings out unique elements beyond vocal cords. After his death in 1979, son Gopal Shankar taught himself and perfected the art of Vichitra Veena. Ragini Trivedi moved by the silenced Veena after sad demise of brother Gopal in 1999, vowed to regain its voice and trained herself to play Vichitra Veena in Misrabani style. Baha’ud’din Mohiuddin Dagar  son of famous musician Zia Mohiuddin Dagar was ingrained by his father to play Rudra Veena in dagarbani style. He represents the  Dagar lineage. First generations musicians have always enriched musical traditions; the art gains stability with generational artistes. Today, when globalization is changing dreams, mores and opportunities, such artistes are needed to keep their artistic traditions vibrant and current. Dr. Laxmi Ganesh Tewari too was trained by Dr. Lalmani Misra and was first to record vocal rendering of Sameshwari – a Raga consecrated by Dr. Misra to keep the knowledge of Samic notes alive.

Bhopal

Bharat Bhawan

7th January 2012

6:30 pm

Vichitra Veena          –         Dr. Ragini Trivedi (Daughter of Pt. Lalmani Misra) View Clip

Vocal Recital            –          Dr. Laxmi Ganesh Tewari  (Santa Rosa, California)

Indore

Preetamlal Dua Sabhagrih

8th January 2012

6:30 pm

RudraVeena                           –                           Bahauddin Dagar                                     

Vocal Recital                          –                           Dr. Laxmi Ganesh Tewari                    

For further information and reports, visit http://www.facebook.com/Omenad

Forum of NGO and CBO in their meet at Bali agreed to stay in closer collaboration through a wiki.

Prof. Egil Bakka created this wiki for NGOs accredited as adviser to UNESCO Convention 2003. The wiki is adding members while getting several good suggestions.

The forum had already started publishing an e-newsletter. With cloud-based space for discussions, sensitive issues will find better resolution.

Thanks to Eivind Falk, Wim an Zanten, Amareswar Galla, Carmen Padilla and others for their contributions to this initiative.

Madhukali congratulates all sensitive and concerned citizens for encouraging appreciation of our intellectual and cultural heritage. There are numerous ways that the mammoth task of preserving seeds, if not fruits and flowers, of traditional knowledge rooted in warmth of harmonious nature-human relationship may be addressed. Recently Madhukali made digital release of four albums recorded on magnetic cassette tapes. Of the numerous live recordings of Vichitra Veena made by Dr. Lalmani Misra on magnetic spool tapes, three tapes have been digitally converted. The music would be made available soon.

Read the rest of this entry »

Print is among the first methods of preservation. As all technologies, it too admits limitations but the initiated can comprehend wisdom preserved in symbols. The written language has proved its efficacy  immensely in carriage of ideas and transfer of emotions. Pandit Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande (August 10, 1860 – September 19, 1936) used the available material to preserve classical music of north India. When a change in technology  antiquated its use, new ways to use it and methods better suited to changed technology, were created.

Today when sales of books in print has been overtaken by e-books, unless writing music is made possible through keyboard, knowledge of past would no longer be a part of future. There are several solutions available for western notation system but few cared to attempt expressing Indian music in all its nuances. Shown here is a page from the book, Ome Swarlipi in Sitar Compositions, which uses notation system designed for keyboard input and universal comprehension.

Progress on restoration of audio tapes may also be reported with input from enthusiasts and experts. The restored music would be showcased soon.

Technology has helped in capturing and preserving works of art and artistic practices that relied solely on oral tradition in past. An engine of democracy it has empowered people in many ways. Ever since Hemendra Mohan Bose imported the phonograph machine that Edison invented in 1898 and Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore recorded Bande Mataram in his voice, a sample of Indian Classical Music has been archived — not always the best, experts might claim, but the far and few recordings made are indeed helpful. In the late sixties as analog tapes found a commercial channel in sleeker cassette tapes, the recording companies began to release Indian Classical Music on this media too. Late seventies saw cassette technology become affordable and soon less media-savvy musicians too got a chance to have some of their music recorded. The professional recordings of established music companies were in time converted to digital music but the smaller albums self-published or released by small entrepreneurs are on verge of extinction. Understandably, a part of such music might not measure up to strict standards, yet it allows representation to the individual practitioner and probably to the form and content of his output. Digitization of knowledge and practices is being carried out at all levels. The reclusive stalwarts and budding artistes whose presentations were recorded on analog spool and cassette tapes ought to be credited for their contributions. This would also enlarge the database of Indian music recordings and bring to fore some forgotten bandish or difficult Raga that is no longer practiced.

Madhukali invites proposals from artistes, heritage workers, museum and music industry experts for digital preservation of Indian Classical Music.

Proposals may be for private analog recordings or limited release public recordings on cassette tapes.

Interested parties may send their proposals to ich at madhukali dot org.

In the Fifth Session of the Intergovernmental Committee (5.COM)  at Nairobi a decision was taken to focus attention and garner support at all levels for Safeguarding of ICH practices by celebrating the year 2013 as tenth anniversary of the Convention.  Madhukali plans to organize events in spirit with the Convention. Suggestions for holding activities relating to music, dance and other arts that encourage appreciation, continuance and strengthening of  ICH practices may be sent to ich at madukali.org.

Call for Papers

.

Madhukali announces

Annual Omenad Conference 2010

Art as Vehicle of the Intangible

A three day ICH Conference on  Art as Vehicle of the Intangible in collaboration with

Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya, Bhopal.

On

31st December 2010 – 2nd January 2011

Read the Preamble.

The papers may address the central issue of artistic expression / creation as vehicle of intangible truths in any three of the following areas.

Context of Art. (Theory) Examination of fundamental concepts and manner / mode of transference.

Language of Art. (Practice) Demonstration of manner by which the intangible is sustained within practice; incorporation of intangible in technique of art-form in question.

Life and Art. The need for enjoyer (the Rasika); discovering intangible in the temporal and material; essence of art vis-a-vis contemporary tastes.

Art in India is believed to be an aesthetic embodiment of social reality determined through canons of philosophy. In the first decade of twenty first century, technology, political systems and media have influenced process and essence of thought itself. Does absence of human interaction (using recorded music instead of live orchestra) still sustain essentials of Indian classical dance? Is the ideal of sublimating artist’s self in his art unreachable? Are abstractions like honesty, duty, envy, disdain more concrete than intangible? Can music or painting express them? How can an art-form be the vehicle of something it can not express? What – if any – is the right way to respond to artistic expression?  There are far too many questions than answers.

Call for papers:

Research papers are invited from practicing musicians, dancers, artistes, sculptors, litterateurs, aesthetes and scholars. The paper should be focused, annotated and follow MLA style (The MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, seventh edition). Copy of unpublished / personal material referred to, in print or recordings, should be sent in support. An English version of paper should also be sent.

Prof. R. C. Mehta

Madhukali congratulates Padmabhushan Prof. R.C. Mehta for being granted Pt Omkar Nath Thakur of Rs. 1,00,000 instituted by Governement of Gujrat this year. The award was last granted jointly to Damini Mehta  for Theatre and Shiv Kumar Shukla for Music in 2001.

During its third session held in November 2008, the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage accepted the offer from the United Arab Emirates to host its fourth session (Decision 3.COM 13). This fourth session will take place in Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates, from 28 September to 2 October 2009.
Madhukali shall be sending its representative to attend this session. It is one of the eleven Indian N.G.O. s invited. More information regarding venue and schedule is given at unesco portal