“When all words fail…. music like a prayer evokes the spirit of invocation and creates a pleasant harmonic reassurance that all is well with the world”
In a lane full of twists and turns in Somwar Bazaar, malad, last Sunday evening, It was a personal triumph for my classical musician friend , MILIND SHEOREY, The flautist, whose CD got a graceful release through the hands of noted classical musicians Pt. Tulsidas Borkar and Pt. Nityanand Haldipur along with the release of an upcoming classical vocalist Yashaswi sirpotdar’s CD at an audio launch musical function “Sandhi Prakash ” organized by "Sonic octaves" held at the Ram mandir. Later a soul-stirring performance of the two artistes marked the special occasion.
It was raining incessantly and as Milind began his performance in "Raga- miyan ki malhar" in Jhap taal ably accompanied by young Prasad Padhyae on the Tabla , I was drawn into delicious states of relaxed and heightened state of awareness imagining the expectations attached to this Tansen found monsoon Raga where Tansen is believed to have brought rain while singing it , but, drenched in the heavy downpour I was soaked in a sense of gratification instantly in milind’s rendition, like the scattered few who had gathered to hear this talented artiste’s recital whose flute often brought a distinctive meditative quality about it, one that only speaks on a spiritual level , a state where you feel you are in communion with God.
I remember just a few years back at a music academy function, milind had performed raag 'shyam kalyan' and the students after their individual performances were anxiously waiting for the slightest opportunity to disperse and slip through the back door, but, when Milind hit the first hold note, they were silenced , stunned by his imaginative freshness. infact they all stood their ground in awe for almost two hours, mesmerized at what they were hearing as it actually carried them to the gardens of Brindavan , and I could see Krishna's enchanting world coming alive on to their memories. A little kid's description sums up Milind’s performance that day as she recalled seeing her beloved krishna on the stage holding on to a bansuri. A classical musician of the highest caliber creates such metaphors and can create such profound impact on kids.
Like with pursuing any classical art form. You have to unconditionally surrender to music. It demands tremendous dedication and in what is an extremely tough profession. I often draw strength from Milind and the many classical musician's like him, who have braved taking music as a career in the face of all sorts of adversities, insecurities, distractions, constantly swallowing the feeling of hopelessness that largely looms on their heads for lack of opportunities ,and , unfortunately in modern time India there are no patrons like what Tansen had in Badshah Akbar. It’s a dilemma for artistes like milind to survive solely on classical music, on the flip side to opt as a session musician has its own challenges, everything there, is on air the next day or printed on tape forever, if you mess up with your playing no one calls you again, and of course now with so many music styles one should be able to adjust to any style, please everyone or play exactly what the modern pool of composers and producers demand from you. Its a daunting task to ignore practicing the development formation of intricacies of a Raga at home and spent hours in a studio playing a pulsating snappy filmy melody to make a living. I am delighted milind has balanced these two roles very well.
I also applaud the efforts of the young host of the show, Rajendra Vaishampayan, Director of the music label “sonic octaves” who has reinforced faith through his silent mission in his vision to promote such true artistes who rightly deserves to be heard , appreciated and recognized . He has taken this mammoth task to spread classical music from connoisseurs palette to the masses by wiping the perceived notion that all classical and traditional art forms are of esoteric nature,restrictive or understood by the select few or meant for one’s who have special knowledge or interest or have money.
At that instant, I sensed ultimately classical music was again emerging triumphant and truly the rising star at the far horizon...
All is indeed well with the world..!!!
- Ved nair
( Milind played the Recorder in 'One crazy Ride' and 'Khargosh', Indian Bamboo flute themes in the award winning films ' Riding Solo to the top of the world' and " The Man beyond the Bridge ")
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mkb4558ym5w&feature=player_embedded
