MUMBAI, March 8: How would you like to listen to a khayal sung in Carnatic style or the Mohana raga being sung to the accompaniment of an entirely Western symphony? Purists may balk at this idli-with-sauce idea, but if the crowds at a conference on "Carnatic Music in the 21st Century" at the Fine Arts Centre Chembur (FACC) are an indication, there are quite few takers for this fare.The list of speakers and delegates at the two-day conference which ended today read like a who's who list on Carnatic music, like world-renowned vocalist and doyen of Carnatic music Sangeet Kalanidhi Dr Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer, violinists Padamashri Dr Lalagudi Jayraman and Dr N Rajam, and Hindustani vocalist Neela Bhagwat.``The Carnatic music tradition has always looked upon music as a way of reaching God,'' said Dr Iyer after he was felicitated on behalf of the FACC. While thanking the FACC for honouring an ``old man like him'', the 90-year-old had some advice for the young performers. ``Why do youwant to rely on the adbhut to attract the rasikas?'' he asked, and cautioned, ``It may attract them once, and after their curiosity is quenched, they'll not look back.''He said by doing this, performers were doing a disservice to the Carnatic tradition.The state chief secretary P Subranyam presided over the felicitation. While agreeing that taking the tenets of Hindustani and Western music were healthy, he suggested, ``Care should be taken that we do not lose the core of Carnatic music, or we'll end up having more confusion than fusion.''While agreeing that without innovation any art form stagnates, he said that the innovations should stay within the parameters set by tradition. So do you want to take a peep into the future and see what it feels like? From what papers say, technology will usher in new dimensions of growth for the art form. While it is well-known that under the 72-melakarta raga scheme, the permutation and combination of the notes could lead to the creation of innumerable ragas, theassistance of computers could make this task easier leading to a whole lot of options before deciding on a raga of choice.While greater vistas for interaction with Hindustani Classical music over the years will hopefully create a ground for development of ragas like Gamansrama, Nalabhairavi like their North Indian counterparts; Brindawani Saranaga, Dwijwanti, etc will attain weight after induction of Hindustani traits on the kritis. While this was entirely based on appearance of new compositions in these ragas, the fact that the two schools of Indian music have a lot to give and take was evocatively brought out by Neela Bhagwat who sang a thyagaraja kriti in raag Hindolam in khayal . N Rajam, a self-proclaimed purist minced no words when she disapprovingly told this reporter, ``There is enough scope to explore the beauty of the art form within established norms, so why this craze for listening to noise.''
