TM Krishna: Art must move to unconventional venues

Tm Krishna is not your conventional musician Through the decades his work has been geared towards expanding the very horizons of classical music he is rooted in His identity as a public intellectual writer and social activist flows from his identity as a Carnatic vocalist and he minces no words when he has an opinion to share A recipient of the 2016 Ramon Magsaysay Award for his advocacy of the power of art to heal Indias social divisions he was also recently conferred with the Indira Gandhi Award for National IntegrationThe Chennaibased artiste returns to Mumbai with the second edition of the Karnatic Modern series spread over two weekends and several venues An amalgam of concerts conversations and lecture demonstrations the series also features many firsts mdash a collaboration of Carnatic classical musicians with the Kattaikkuttu Sangam a group that presents the traditional movement and musical theatre form from Tamil Nadu and making music with Grammywinning ghatam player Padma Bhushan Vikku Vinayakram in MumbaiThe finale will be held inside the iconic Afghan ChurchEdited excerpts from an interviewHow does your music inform your work in other fieldsI am a singer The aesthetic experience of music is my pathway to understanding life Therefore everything I say in word and note is the same only the medium changesYour books on Carnatic music speak of a bias towards higher castes Are things changing It will take many years even a few generations for this to change We have just begun the conversation and I hope that the next generation takes it forward We have to first accept that there is a problem That will be the first step to finding ways to address itIs Indias growing indie music scene impacting classical traditions I dont think the indie scene has any direct impact on classical music But I want indie musicians to find their own aesthetic voice Barring a few serious and exciting bands a lot of indie work still seems patchy to me We need new genres of music emerging from India and indie can be a place where this can happenTell us about your upcoming performance at NH7 WeekenderI am looking forward to performing at NH7 Weekender It is possibly the first time that a Carnatic concert is going to happen there It happened very simply they asked and I said yes A fascinating place to take Carnatic music to isnt itHow was the upcoming concert series curatedFirst Edition Arts a Mumbaibased arts company that has produced and curated the series has always been open to presenting ideas that are serious questioning and fresh When we began the conversation on the second edition of the Karnatic Modern the first thing that we decided on was the Kattaikuttu collaboration It is enriching to allow art forms that belong to different sociocultural worlds to come together I have had the honour of performing twice with Vidvan Vikku Vinayakaram andnow Mumbai will witness the sound of the ghatam and the voice intermingle sans any mediationYou are performing across venues in Mumbai including the Afghan Church How important is a venue to a performance Curator Devina Dutt looks to situate art forms in spaces that are not traditionally associated with them The Afghan Church is one such move Space and context can change the texture of art and its experience Hence it is important that we keep moving art to unconventional even uncomfortable venues This will help in its evolution and keep it connected with the real worldWhat would be an ideal music scene in India Thats like asking what an ideal social scene in India would look like We know the ideal is not going to happen But an active reflective music scene is one where there are many musical counter movements to constantly challenge the status quo A musical environment where different kinds of music contest each other without fear hierarchy or suppressionOn December 9 630 pm and 10 1030 am to 630 pm At G5A MahalaxmiOn December 15 16 and 17 multiple venues Log on to bookmyshowcom Call 9820091771 Entry Rs960 December 9Catch up on all the latest Mumbai news current affairs from Mumbai local news crime news and breaking headlines hereDownload the new midday Android and iOS apps to get updates on all the latest and trending stories on the go