With short videos and informative sessions, the focus is on raising awareness and strengthening the musical bond
Lord Ganesha will taste more than delicious food this Friday; He also gets a chance to enjoy the creative abundance of devotional music in a short musical series ‘Musicodes’. The videos of 5-6 minutes duration covering various aspects of Indian classical music are part of the ongoing ‘Know Your Music’ campaign by Indian Performing Right Society Limited (IPRS) and Dolby Laboratories. The campaign also includes informative sessions on specific styles of music and panel discussions.
The initiative brings a bouquet of musical genres to IPRS’s YouTube channel, with each month discussing a genre starting with classical music by sitar maestro Purbayan Chatterjee in June, followed by folk music by Kashmiri artist Abha Hanjura in July. And the focus is on devotional music. Bhajan by Anoop Jalota in August. In keeping with the festive spirit, the devotional series continues into September and explores various forms – Bhajan, Kirtan, Qawwali And word
Rakesh Nigam, CEO, IPRS says, “The Know Your Music campaign seeks to change the way audiences engage with music so that listening to music is not just a habit, but a work of art, which gets attention and is liked.”
Contemporary folk pop artist Aabha Hanjura, part of the folk music panel, says, “Folk music is the music of the people and will always be relevant but it needs reinvention to stay fresh.” Pointing out how music has become a therapeutic companion in times of pandemic, Abha adds, “In times like these, more people are turning to music from their roots.”
Sitar player Puryaban’s session highlighted the importance of a ‘gharana’ and its role in shaping the classical guru-shishya tradition, breaking into the mainstream, how the sitar evolved from the veena and Persian instrument, and how a raga could be used Let’s play different styles on Sitar.
Speaking about music digitization, he feels that the music industry has been in a digital mode for the past few years. “The pandemic has ensured that artists push the envelope with digital collaborations. There is more awareness of the revenue structure on streaming platforms and it is a humbling and educative experience,” he explains.
Maestro is busy recording and producing an album limitless (relaxed) with British label Sufiscore. Slated to release on September 10, “the album is an attempt to bring better awareness and diversity of musical genres,” says Pooryaban, who has collaborated with vocalists Kaushiki Chakraborty, Mahesh Kale, Bombay Jayashree and fluteist Rakesh Chaurasia for the artists’ Seva. ‘ has also been launched. ‘, an organization helping artists during the pandemic.
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