Q : Just two years after the West Bengal Govt introduced it you received this prestigious Alauddin Memorial award. The first person to receive this award was the legendary Sarod player Timir Baran. This award is an acknowledgement to musicians who have made exemplary contribution to music - how do you feel about it ?
A: If I want to list my feelings just after hearing that I will be receiving the Allaudin Memorial award, they would look like - firstly - It must be a fake news or somebody must have heard it wrong, second - surprise ! Although current literature, art, film etc may get acknowledged contemporary composers till now have been rewarded with uncomplimentary words and insults. It is really beyond belief that a composer like me who can not even play classical instruments like Sitar, Sarod, or Sarengi or can not even sing Dhrupad or Kheyal and one who has only been trying to express the current culture and the current time using lyrics, melody and different musical instruments is being recognised as a creative musician ? This is beyond imagination ! It was a beginning of new thinking and consciousness when Timir Baran was awarded for the first time. He was unique and original in introducing orchestration using Indian instruments. However, he was primarily interested in preserving the Indian classical tradition. Although he was the first composer introducing Ballet music in the Indian tradition we can not ignore the valuable contribution made by Udayshankar.It is like if Bolshoy Ballet would not be there Tchaikovsky would never have thought of composing Swan Lake or Sleeping Beauty or if Sergei Diaghilev was not there we wouldn’t have Stravinsky’s “Rites of Spring” or Petroushka. There is always a reason to create some new art form including music. The West Bengal Rajya Sangeet Academy (West Bengal Music Academy) and the West Bengal Govt recognised and acknowledged this new ballet art form by honouring Timir Baran. My third feeling is If the news of my award is true then it makes me wonder even I never had any opportunity to really analyse and evaluate my own work in contemporary music. I walked thru various disciplines of Indian music depending on what my needs were, what I was looking for and my conscious or subconscious needs. In composing mass songs I have used western choral techniques for the first time in Indian music, experimented in singing in different types of harmony, experimented in orchestration with large orchestra,experimented in new forms of songwriting and melody. I have experimented with new kinds of lyrics relating to our modern urban democratic society with bourgeois and socialist values .
I don’t know which particular area the judges evaluated or looked into. May be they have made a global evaluation of my work in modern Indian music in Bengali and other Indian languages.
My fourth feeling is - will I be able to carry the heavy burden of this award named after the late and respected Allauddin Khan given to me by the West Bengal Govt ? In the past I had received several awards, mostly commercial which have given me some happiness but never made me nervous. They did not create a sense of responsibility just after the award. So, this award is not just for what I have given so far but also for what I have not been able to give yet.This is why in one hand I am overwhelmed and in the other hand I am nervous and feel indebted. It reminds me of a few lines of one of my songs :
“I just could not understand
Why I did not lose
Carrying the heavy burden
of the garland of my victory”
While analysing all this I suddenly had my fifth sense - just because the West Bengal Govt gave me, Salil Chowdhury, this award, they really recognised and accepted the importance of contemporary Indian music and my contribution to highlight that.contemporary Indian music and my contribution to highlight that. Contemporary Indian music wasn’t born yesterday. For the last one and half century just like the development of our national, political and social consciousness and various other art forms, our music has also gone thru many changes and influences to give birth to contemporary modern Indian music. In fact one can see this influence in our more traditional classical or folk music. Music is not really something from outer space or devoid of any social responsibility. The contemporary music has been continually evolving by absorbing all our past cultural heritage and the new ideas and fulfilling its modern social responsibilities.Just like the contemporary Indian people the modern music is colourful and complex. It can become very rich, beautiful and expressive. It can also become unique by being democratic and secular. Only then it can express the multicultural and the democratic modern India. Although that has been happening for some time, its progress has been often weakened due to blatant commercialism and decadence. Still, the contemporary Indian music which has inherited and absorbed the original Indian culture will survive and keep on enriching our musical heritage.
Q: Usually such awards are given to quite senior artists reaching retirement age who have always been very creative and talented all their life. You are clearly an exception. What are your thoughts ?
A: I agree that in our country Govt awards are often compared with the offering a sumptuous dinner to the Vedic Brahmin (Priest) as a departing gift after the funeral. Although it smells more like the funeral than respect. However,it is also correct to say that it is better late than never. I have already told you that in my case it is perhaps not just an acceptance of my talent but expectation for the future.
Q: It is quite unusual to reward a contemporary artist for his or her creative work. Usually, the next generation does it. Any comments ?
A: Except a few exceptions, it is quite unusual to see the acceptance of the contemporary creative artists. All around the world there are many examples of artists who received criticisms and rejection during their lifetime. Mozart was buried as a beggar. Goethe commented on Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony “Their productions (newest composer’s) are no longer music…”. You may know that the Fifth Symphony is one of the very best compositions in the world. So, the acceptance of a contemporary artist's work has not been very common. I am not sure if by giving this award to a composer of modern music like me the West Bengal Govt would get embarrassed. Only the future can tell us.
Q: You are not only a leading composer, you are also a poet, playwright, lyricist and a writer. So, why did you choose music to express your feelings ?
A: Although there are many ways one can express their feeling and I do have some knowledge and experience in them it is not really possible to communicate or express your feelings in all the mediums. What Rabindranath could express in his drawings he could not have expressed it in his music or writings. Although In my case music is my first love, when music is not sufficient or the right media I try using other medium.
Q: Do you think your current fame and recognition is a result of certain connecting events or did it happen because of conscious, serious studies and hard work ?
A: Music was never a flash of light to me. From my childhood till now whatever I have learned is due to serious study, practice, listening and analysis. One can not reach far in any field without attaining the professional standard.
Q: During those golden days of Mass Songs (Ganasangeet) you were a leading figure and a pathfinder . Do you think music can be a training medium for the masses ?
A: The role of mass songs during the ‘40s and ‘50s in our country was quite promising in spreading the mass consciousness which would be a more accurate description than mass education.The class struggle has been going thru a rapid change. In the international arena the peace loving people believing in a humane society are struggling to unite to fight against a possible third world war. In our country a unified and democratic movement by the working population against the separatism, regionalism and terrorism is becoming the main struggle. Of course Mass songs can be used to spread and encourage the mass consciousness. Example
Q: We do not feel very hopeful about the current state of Bengali or Indian music. If you could give us your comments on this.
A: Currently the contemporary or the modern Indian music is going thru a seriously critical period. In one hand the commercial film songs and the non-film music is shamelessly copying the tasteless western disco music and on the other hand our more traditional music like Gazal or Bhajan is quite happy using modern instruments.The older generation and the intellectuals are listening to songs from yester years like “Nidhubabur Tappa” or songs of Lalchand Baral. People are quite disappointed with the poor standard of current Bengali songs and the lyrics. To find out why we have reached such low standards, we need to analyse our social and political background. Our social, political and moral values have been continually deteriorating, decaying and dying. The national media refuse to share the protests or comments by our intelligentsia - so who is going to encourage a creative poet, lyricist or a composer ? Where is our national cultural leadership ?
Q: What about the state-sponsored and private media ? Have they taken any responsibility in this regard so far ?
A: The number of responsible and socially minded TV and radio stations and publications are very few. Most of them are busy maximising their profit or busy doing Government propaganda. Using regionalism, divisiveness and narrow mindedness,we are suppressing or silencing the mass consciousness which could have encouraged the demand and create pressure for more creativity. During the ‘40s and ‘50s in spite of all those profit minded and state organisations we were able to ignite the mass consciousness using the mass songs. Without the conscious, efficient and well-structured cultural leadership this would not have been possible.
Q: Many people have commented on using western music in out Indian popular music.However, besides the excessive use of electronic music there is too much influence of western pop music. What is your reaction ?
A: There are many possibilities in combining the western music with Indian music.The West Bengal Music Academy has been studying the these possibilities. The main point is how can we enrich the Indian music by using the western music ? It is not really a crime to use electronic music - what we need to consider is how much use ? We must use the modern techniques and make them acceptable to the people.
Q: In the past, you have quite successfully created wonderful songs from your poems - most of them are like long episodes. They really influenced people. Why your current compositions have not been as popular ?
A: It is possible to transfer some poems to successful songs . One does not have to make it like an episode. In my case - consider “Abaak Prithibi” or “Thikana” by Sukanta or “Ujjal ak jhank paayraa” by Bimal Chandra Ghosh, “Rekho maa daasere mone” by Michael Madhusudan Datta or “Oginikoner koner tallaat juDe” by Subhas Mukhopadhyay. These are real poems. I think the current cultural environment free from formalism could be the ideal environment primarily for lyrical compositions and create new waves in Bengali music.
A: It seems that arrangement has now attained an universal acceptance in the modern music. Since in India we do not have any institution to teach composition or orchestration no scientific method has yet been established. However, may talented instrumentalists are very much interested in this. It would be new-page.php wonderful if we can bring these people together to discuss and exchange ideas at a place like our Academy.
Q: How have you used the Indian classical music or the folk music in your compositions ?
A: I had to acquire a reasonable knowledge and expertise in Indian classical music - although I never had any proper training. I had to break its melodic structure repeatedly - and due to this I had to learn what exactly I am breaking ? You may know that “one who doesn’t know the grammar can not break the grammar”. The main point is it is not the purity or the structure of a Raag or a folk song - if one can understand their pattern or the melodic style then one can create something original. Example
Q: You have also composed many background music for films, ballet and plays. Can you please comment on that ?
A: Whenever you need to interpret a scene thru music, make the scene more effective or powerful one needs the background music. In our country there is an increasing interest in this but believe me around 80% of the film background music covers basically a fighting scene or a chasing scene or a chasing scene. To get their background music,the film editors are working with such labels. The producers consider the whole thing about background music a waste of money. Usually at the end of a film shooting the budget is depleted so they need to complete the recording of the whole films background music in one or two shifts. So, one can see that this way you can not be very creative or can get much satisfaction. Composing the background music is a big challenge to a composer but what I have seen in the past was kind of mechanical transformation - like someone turns his head and you hear a crash or someone slapped you and you hear cymbals.
Now of course we look at it objectively and also with subjective feeling. Consider for example Hanns Eisler (Austrian composer). He composed the background music for a film based on the second world war. There was a scene - where someone from the enemy camp (the Nazi army) has been captured and is mortally wounded. They are trying to revive him by giving him blood transfusion in a dilapidated building. In this scene Hanns Eisler has used the melody of the victory march. Although visually it doesn’t appear to have any relation with the scene, the composer really understood the inherent meaning of people's victory and that is why he could use such music. These are subjective interpretations. THese days we are also seeing mixed interpretations. This is an extremely creative side of composition - but no one is really trying to nurture it. Pune Film Institute in fact had designed a course on this subject and I have given lectures there a few times - sadly that course has now been discontinued.
Q: West Bengal and the rest of India still expect a lot from you. What is your future plans ?
A: I did have many plans and they are still there. However I keep thinking that all the things I wanted to achieve have not been achieved. There is so much to do. Indian symphony orchestra, new kind of opera, modern orchestration of folk music, choir for our classical music, composing ballet music for various types of Indian dances etc. In order to do all this I am building a recording studio. Initially I would probably rent it out to support my family and then I would start experimenting. I would also love to make new kinds of films and would like to start writing again. I keep losing all those new melodies floating by. All the years are passing by just worrying about the things like the family and the will to survive - all in search of that ultimate confluence. Still I am following the current - don’t know for how long though.
This interview of Salil Chowdhury was conducted in Bengali by Chandan Chakraborty and Manas Mukhopadhyay in the early ‘80s. Sadly the exact date is not known. This has been reprinted from SangeetBartaa. Translated from Bengali by Gautam Choudhury©