Changing 'status quo' of Carnatic music possible only if there is support: Sanjay Subrahmanyan

Bengaluru: Legendary musician Sanjay Subrahmanyan, often described as the 'rockstar of Carnatic music', said change in the 'status quo' of Carnatic music is possible if that can be sustained.

"If you don't call your music classical, you can do anything you want. But once you define it as a classical art form, then there are boundaries and you must convince the audience that there is something in it for them (if the boundaries are crossed)," said Subrahmanyan.

The celebrity musician was answering a question from the audience about changing the rigid structure of Carnatic music. Subrahmanyan was launching his memoir, 'On That Note', written with Krupa Ge, here on December 17 evening at Bangalore International Centre.

Following the launch, he and Kruba discussed the book with writer Anita Nair. He also discussed his musical journey and the shift that happened within him, prompting him to do things differently.

According to him, change is inevitable if there is support for it.

"If there are more musicians coming out and doing things outside the so-called rigid space that has been established and if it is successful, then change will happen," said Subramanyan.

Subrahmanyan said when people make a living out of something, first it is essential to create a space that would take care of this need, before anything can be done.

"So, if you go to those concerts (that change the status quo), you have to take another 3,000 people to ensure that those people can make a living out of that music. Then there will be change," he said.

Known for his strict adherence to the traditions of the artform, it seemed for long that Subrahmanyan was happy with the 'status quo'. But as he manoeuvred skillfully within that space, improvising in his own way, he managed to create a cult for himself. That "3,000 people" who made it possible for him to slowly push the boundaries, mostly with the choice of songs.

Post pandemic though, "changes" started trickling in more frequently. First, it started with how he engaged with people and music. For instance, he took to social media to serve bite-sized portions of Carnatic music. He understood the power of whetting the appetite of people, slowly drawing them into the fold of classical music.

Just as the article is being written, Subrahmanyan has announced on 'X' that he would let people access his Sanjay Sabha live shows on his YouTube channel, which required membership for the last four years, for free.

This year also saw him venturing out even further and doing something that he said he never thought he would do. He joined forces with musician Sean Roldan for 'Anbenum Peruveli' that set the poems of 19th century Tamil saint Vallalar in rock, jazz, blues and what not, tinged with Carnatic music.

This followed his Coke Tamil Studio adventure, for which he had collaborated with Sean Roldan again and sang with Arifullah Shah, who sings 'Nagore-style' Tamil Sufis.

Just as people were reeling from these projects, Subrahmanyan pushed it in with more changes. This time, singing a song for a film, 'Vidhuthalai 2', set to music by his favourite music director Ilaiyaraaja. Again, something that he said he had no intention of doing before the pandemic.

Now with the memoir, Subrahmanyan said he was able to look back and understand the journey that had led him to where he is now.

The first spark happened when he got bored of the routine, said Subrahmanyan, adding that doing nearly 120 concerts a year took its toll.

He said his guru 'Calcutta' K S Krishnamurthi had a theory that even the unfamiliar can be made familiar if more people listen to it. It worked for him, he said, when he went in search of songs that were not common, so he could do something different.

The more obscure the song was, the more liberty he could take in setting the song to a raga, without people pouncing on him demanding to know why he sang that song in that particular raga, said Subrahmanyan. This kept him busy, he said.

"I didn't have time to think about doing other things, because there was so much inside the art form itself that I could learn," he added.

Then the pandemic happened and Subrahmanyan said he knew he needed to move out of his comfort zone. "Maybe, in a way, I was also tired of singing in a concert every two days. It takes a toll and you don't want that monotony to settle too much," said the musician.

A lot also changed for him when he started to engage with Tamil songs, said Subrahmanyan. Earlier, he was mostly interested in the musical aspects and not so much into the language, he added.

"But the moment I started engaging with Tamil in a very serious way, I understood the importance of articulating the lyrics better and automatically, that experience translated to my singing the songs better," said Subrahmanyan.

As for his journey though, Subrahmanyan said he has no regrets in the way it panned out.

"Well, a 100 at Lord's still lingers in my mind," added the musician who said he wanted to, at one point, pursue a career in cricket.

"I think art should evolve on its own. In a way, Carnatic music is a very new art form. 1,000 years or 2,000 years of heritage, that's a different thing. The version that you hear today it's evolved only over the last 100 or 150 years. It's still finding its way," said Subrahmanyan.