Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Setting the record straight

An ongoing exhibition in New Delhi unearths the golden voices from the musical history of the nation

They were the first ones who ensured that their music lived on long after they are gone, not just metaphorically but literally. In the early 20th Century, the baijis, as the tawaifs were addressed in those times, took a revolutionary decision of concurring to let their golden voices be canned on 78 rpm vinyl records. A novelty in the course of music in this country, it then created a stir and later came to change the way music was to be heard. The singing stars of yore are at the centre of CMAC's “Women on Record”. Blending various art practices — seminars, performances and an exhibition, the exercise probes how these women “democratised music and made it accessible to people,” as described by photographer Parthiv Shah, who along with his classical musician wife Vidya has put it all together.

The scale of the business and its vibrancy can be gauged from the fact that around 500 artists — as mentioned on a panel displayed in Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts' Maati Ghar — were recorded in different regional languages all over India. “It was a well worked-out business. The challenge was to train them to sing for gramophone records, that is presenting a raga in just three minutes. Then, they were to sing into a horn and the methodology was called wax horn. A number of genres, not just khyal and thumri but even sadra, chaturang, qawwalis and ghazals were recorded. Gauhar Jan and Zohra Jan Agrewali had mastered the technology. In one of the records, she apparently concludes by saying ‘Main Gauhar Jan, champion',” says Vidya.

Full report here Hindu

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