When it all began
From childhood, I have enjoyed listening to good music. Initially, Tamil film songs and patriotic numbers sung by DKP, MS and GNB were the staple fare. Moving to Bangalore in my tenth year, I was gradually drawn to Hindi film music. As I was finishing school, I discovered the world of Pankaj Mullick and K L Saigal on the one side and the ocean of Carnatic music on the other. During my college days, I became a member of Malleswaram Sangeetha Sabha where my parents were already enrolled. I joined friends at school and college to enjoy good films with great music. By the time I became a member of the IAS in 1969, I had so much music of various genres buzzing in my head and heart that it was a constant companion wherever I was posted – initially through a Bush portable radio, then a Sony cassette player and now through the ubiquitous iPhone/iPad.
It was this rich legacy that I was able to tap into during 2020 when I was forced to be home-bound due to Covid-19. This first blog is essentially about the various aspects of music appreciation, analysis and sharing that I have discovered during this period.
Online Radio Stations
In the months before the pandemic, I would go for walks in the boulevard park near our home. Four to six ‘chakkars’ of the oval inside the park was my quota for the morning or evening. The lockdown forced me to discover our terrace as a good to place to walk, particularly in the mornings. During these walks on the terrace, I felt the need to listen to music and to keep track of the number of steps walked or distance covered. I was already using my iPhone for the latter purpose. So, it was a no-brainer to switch on to Vividh Bharati and listen to old Hindi songs or Carnatic music as I walked.
This is when I stumbled upon ‘Radio Garden’ (RG) [http://radio.garden]. RG started as a means to access radio stations all over the world by locating them on a rotating globe. Now iOS and Android Apps are also available. Over the months, many stations streaming old Hindi film songs 24X7 have sprung up. All of them just stream Hindi film music without announcements, commercial breaks or advertisements. I still don’t quite comprehend the business model based on which these stations operate. But you have them in clusters around tier-2 or tier-3 cities like Kalburgi (Bollywood Retro or Bollywood Gaane Purane), Surat (Madhur Sangeet, Hits of Bollywood, Hits of Rafi/Kishore Kumar) or Jaipur (Radio Taj). I find that the fare in regional languages like Tamil and Kannada is not as good. Offerings in Carnatic or Hindustani music are also poor.
The Choice Gets Better
In May 2020, ‘sangeetapremis’ came together in Chennai to launch the portal ‘Arangam Online’ (AO). AO features recordings of live concerts of two or three artists every day in a 24X7 continuum from 7 AM to 7 AM the next day. As far as I can tell, the recordings have been contributed by willing donors and with financial support from philanthropists, AO has been able to keep the show going for over a year now. The recordings go back to 1950s and 60s and the audio quality is surprisingly good. There are celebratory concerts on the birth or death anniversary of well-known artists and special concerts to commemorate certain land marks. In the last one year, I have been privileged to listen to a 1950s concert of Madurai Mani Iyer from Dindigul, a 1960s concert of Thanjavaur S Kalyanaraman in Bombay where the Mayor S K Patil was the Chief Guest and a rare Lalgudi-Doraiswamy Iyengar jugalbandhi, to mention just a few.
Sharing One’s Joy and Insights
Thus, I have listened to more memorable Hindi film songs and Carnatic music in the last twelve months than perhaps in the previous twelve years. Listening to such good music in the early morning hours led me to share my joy with others. In the case of AO, it was easy to identify fellow-rasikas and introduce them to the pleasure of live concerts from the past. I left it to them to tune in and enjoy the fare at their leisure.
In the case of Hindi songs, I began by sharing some lovely songs with my family and friends. At times a song would trigger memories of an interesting episode around it – or about the raga it is based on, the singer, the lyrics, etc. I was not even aware that there was so much hidden away in my memory. Also, the more I mined online resources, the better and richer was the information I got. Soon, my friends started sharing their favorite songs and appreciation of the lyrics and the music. Believe me I was in seventh heaven – my heart felt light and joyful every time I posted a music related message or received one.
Rather than post comments on WhatsApp, based on the chance listening of a song or concert, I thought I would do this more systematically and come up with a regular blog based on any worthwhile music I have heard in the last few days. Here goes!
— Krishna Kumar
Talk the Walk 