Lessons In Carnatic Music By Overseas Phone Call

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CHENNAI, INDIA, December 14, 2004: A vina artist in the United States calls up Chennai on Vijayadasami Day. She wants to listen to the voice of her guru on the auspicious day and learns a complete song over an international telephone call. Anusha of New Jersey came to Chennai during her holidays two months ago and began to learn Carnatic vocal music from Mangalam Shankar. Today she continues her classes from her New Jersey home. They both set up a time when it is day in Chennai and night at New Jersey and the hour-long class takes place over the phone three times a week. On her new experience in teaching, Ms. Mangalam says, “I am not used to this. But right now she is learning varnam and keertanas. She has learnt three varnams over the phone. though I am not able to see the talam, I am able to hear if the shruti is in tune. The clarity is such that it’s almost hearing from the next room.” The student gets the notation for the songs through e-mail and with few teachers to teach music in the U.S., she is happy to use modern technology to learn music from Chennai.



Ultimately, there is nothing like learning directly from the teacher…but something is better than nothing,” Ms. Managalam says, pointing to a trend where many Indian students are learning music that way. “In our effort to spread Carnatic music, teaching the youth is most important.” Not just with vocal music. For a couple of years now, students of mridangam, flute and gottuvadyam have been learning to play their instruments from their teachers in India. Yet another way of teaching music has been adopted by the University of Madras–Distance Education. The notes for theory and practicals are sent through post and students come to the University for contact classes conducted in two sessions of 15 days a year,” says G. Mohan Ram, director of the Institute of Distance Education. Though the actual teaching of vocal and instrumental music happens in the regular classroom with direct teacher-student interaction, the university may go in for e-learning and the use of other audio-visual equipment for teaching music in future.