“A gifted performing artiste is born, not made”

Pandit Vidyadhar Vyas performs at a concert in Panjab University, Chandigarh

Nurturing a rich lineage of Hindustani classical music, the Mumbai-based  renowned  vocal maestro Pandit Vidyadhar Vyas is a rare blend of musical genius, academics and administration. With a Masters in sociology from Mumbai University and a doctorate in classical vocal music, Vidyadhar served as principal, Government Music College Jaipur. He was also Head Department of Music, Mumbai University, and later on, the Vice-Chancellor of the Bhatkhande Institute (deemed music university) at Lucknow. A top- grade artist of AIR, Vidyadhar learnt the finer nuances of music in the family environment and imbibed an in-depth knowledge of classical music under the tutelage of his father and guru Gyanacharya Pandit Narayanrao Vyas, the disciple of legendary Pandit Paluskar.

Credited with scores of albums, Vidhyadhar has performed extensively in USA, Europe and other countries of the world, besides giving lecture demonstrations on the genesis, varied genres and unique features of Hindustani music. He has many foreign disciples abroad who, while practising and teaching Indian music there, still learn from him. Recipient of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, Vidyadhar also remained Executive Director of the prestigious ITC Sangeet Research Akademi (SRA), Kolkata. In the city for a concert at the Panjab University, he shared his experiences and views on the contemporary musical scene with S. D. Sharma. Excerpts from the interview:

In fact, providing academic education and professional training are two different aspects. In the present-day educational system, one can get fundamental knowledge about music as a subject. This includes its theory, basic principles of prescribed ragas and all genres, learning the raga concept,  formation and application of musical notes in ragas and  compositions as specified in syllabus. But music is not just another subject but a sacred sadhna, which can be imbibed through devout dedication, guru gyan, and practice in a compatible environment. A university student can not do swar sadhna for an unlimited period, unlike a disciple learning even the minute nuances under the guru-shishya tradition at a gurukul, where musical training is imparted in a congenial atmosphere on a one-to-one basis and not to a class of 30 students in a college. However, their aim is just to secure a degree necessary for employment. A gifted performing artiste is born and not made. There is altogether a special passion and recipe to groom a skilled professional performer. The disciples trained by top maestros too have their own limitations. For instance, disciples learning at prestigious national academies like Sangeet Research Akademi (SRA) turn out as masters. However, in view of no official degree awarded, they are not eligible for employment or competitions. We need a national cultural policy to effectively preserve and promote our rich musical cultural heritage.

Yes, a teacher or guru is the right person to assess the aesthetic potential,  dormant abilities or passion of a budding artist to decide his future career.

I feel only one or a few genres of music from dhrupad, dhamar, khyaal, sugam sangeet, folk or film music suit the richness of voice and the range of a person. Let me quote Ustad Amir Khan Saheb who for sometime taught classical music to Lata Mangeshkar. He observed that she was too good for light or film music. Even the Ustad used to draw pleasure from her singing in a melifluous voice. There is no dearth of talent if you watch music reality shows. But the irony is that gifted artists are just exploited and not given the right training.

Filmmaking has departed from those ideals. For a devoted classical vocalist and teacher like me it is a distant dream to reconcile that. However, my disciples in India and abroad are keeping afloat Hindustani classical music. My senior-most disciple Dr Stan Scott is an avid performer and teaches Hindustani classical music at the Wesleyan University. His Rangila School of Music received an international award for promoting Indian music, despite the fact that he is a non-Indian musician. Watch him in live concerts in India next month. A majority of youngsters are inclined towards classical stream in the South, Maharashtra and Bengal. In North India too, there are youngsters who want to learn classical music. The Punjab region, with three noted music gharanas, has produced gems of music and history will certainly repeat itself, just wait and watch.

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