Bull's Eye - PEARL-DIVING WITH THE VEENA

When the famous violin-venu-veena concerts were riding the crest of popularity in the South some years ago, a leading vainika bitterly opposed the whole idea on the ground that it was reducing 'the divine instrument' not merely to a second but the third fiddle to violin and flute and amounted to musical sacrilege. Some, of course, felt that this was not intentional (even if true) but had happened because of the vastly superior virtuosity of the violinist and the flutist in the trio. However, many music lovers could not help feeling that in a competition of pure showmanship, the veena, as an instrument, had come off second best.

It would, therefore, be interesting to analyse the relative strengths and weaknesses of the veena as an instrument vis-a-vis wind and bowed stringed instruments. Veena, apart from its inherent merits as an instrument, enjoys a certain psycho-cultural advantage over other instruments in our country because of its association with our religion, mythology, early musical history, ' etc. It is the favourite instrument of several important deities including Saraswati, the goddess of arts and learning. According to the Vedas, even an outcaste is eligible to enter the yagasala (sacrificial hall) if he carries a veena. A veena player is said to be a master of sruti-s. A lot of sentiment surrounds one's attitude towards the veena which, apparently, had no serious competitor in ancient times. Even the human voice was referred to as 'gatra veena'. In the early evolution of our music, a lot of experimentation with individual notes and scales must have taken place. Fretted instruments like the veena are very useful gadgets for this purpose and particularly for teaching and visual demonstration of intervals.

Even today, it is much; easier to explain the seventy-two melakarta scheme or the phenomenon of sruti bheda (shift in sruti) with the aid of a veena, than merely with the help of a chart. It is also easier to explain the concept and the special significance of characteristic gamaka-s with the help of a veena, particularly the vital difference between a swara and a swarastana. In spite of the special sentimental advantage enjoyed by the veena as the instrument par excellence of our system of music, it is interesting to note that any attempt to exploit fully or enlarge its potential has always been considered controversial if not sacrilegious. Carnatic music has somehow acquired a value which measures all instrumental music against the norms of vocal music. This is in sharp contrast to the Hindustani system in which instrumentalists have always had their distinct styles and are not constrained to imitate vocal music. Imagine what a calamity it would be if Ravi Shankar were expected merely to go on imitating Omkarnath Thakur!

This perhaps explains why North Indian instrumentalists as a class acquire a greater mastery over or virtuosity in playing their instruments compared to their South Indian counterparts (with, of course, rare exceptions like M.S. Gopala-krishnan). Any attempt by an instrumentalist to exploit the fiill potential of his instrument for producing new musical effects is at once termed acrobatics or fireworks. The ultimate irony is that even an inspired attempt to match the human voice perfectly on the veena by a gifted player like Balachander meets with the same reception. Everyone admits that the veena is divine but woe to anyone who dares to discover new virtues in this god! An interesting issue which arises in this context is the evolution of instrumental music. Is instrumental music to be evaluated by the same norms as are applied to vocal music or differently?

Is timbre the only distinctive contribution if an instrument or is there such a thing as an instrumental perspective in Carnatic music? Anyone who has listened to the tillana-s and varna-s composed by Lalgudi Jayaraman on the violin will have no hesitation in answering the second half of the question in the affirmative. This, however, is a comment in passing.

Coming back to the inherent strengths and weaknesses of the veena as an instrument, its main advantages are:

a) the ease with which individual notes based on swarastana-s can be played perfectly (assuming, of course, that the fretting has been done correctly);

b) easy visual appreciation of the difference between different modes;

c) the crispness with which kalpana swara-s can be played;

d) the distinctive effect of a tana on  the veena as compared to tana on other instruments;

e) the natural, gradual fading of the volume of notes on the veena which, in other instruments, has to be artificially produced.

These features enable a beginner on the veena to make relatively rapid progress compared even to a vocalist or a violinist beginner. In an instrument like the violin, the most difficult part of the whole technique comes first, namely mastering the swarastana-s after which it is essentially a question of acquiring greater speed and continuity. In veena, the very features which give a beginner an early advantage become obstacles and challenges to be overcome at higher levels of musical subtlety. Frets which help even a beginner to avoid apaswara-s become barriers 10 continuity and enemies of gamaka and tempt many a vainika to convert the veena into a piano! Plucking, which is the heart and soul of swara or tana playing, could sometimes intrude rudely on kaarvai, particularly in alapana and in slow-tempo kriti-s.

The veena, more than any other instrument, compels a variety of styles. By style, I mean not the creativity of the artist in the conception of a raga but the technique of reproducing a given musical idiom. Veena is perhaps the only instrument in which a given idiom can be reproduced in several different ways. In fact, it is essentially this specific preference for a particular method of reproducing a given phrase which distinguishes one vainika's style from another's. For example, the logic behind Balachander's style may perhaps be explained by the following sequential argument:

1 . frets are an obstacle to continuity and expressiveness at higher levels of musical attainment;

2. it is, therefore, necessary to evolve a technique of playing which reduces the player's dependence on frets;

3. it is, therefore, further necessary to be able to produce as many notes as possible from a single 16 swarastana;

4. deflecting the string should, therefore, be developed as an art (if not a feat) in itself with suitable adjustments to the basic sruti and thickness of the string;

5. a plucked sound is audible only for six to seven seconds;

6. if a whole musical phrase is to be played with a single plucking, sound amplification is essential;

7. ordinary mikes are not sensitive enough for this purpose and a contact mike is, therefore an essential part of. the whole 'deflection' technique;

8. it might be asked: why not use a bow on the veena if continuity is required? ... but the plucking effect is a characteristic feature of veena and the whole idea is to  combine the good features of the veena and the violin.

The above approach may not necessarily appeal to all musicians or listeners. In fact, many feel that reasonably frequent meetu or plucking is one of the characteristic effects of veena and that the veena effect is partly spoilt by excessive deflection of the strings. It is also true that, beyond a point, deflection, while producing the desired frequencies, affects the musical quality of the sound. However, it cannot be denied that this technique represents a breakthrough in veena playing capable of producing stunning effects and is, as far as I know, the only instance in our music of sheer physical strength being used to enhance aesthetic appeal.

Emani Sankara Sastri, on the other hand, approaches the question of continuity differently. His secret is to combine the plucking with the movement of the left-hand fingers in a peculiarly characteristic manner so as to drown the plucking sound in gamaka-s without sacrificing crispness. In addition, he relies on subtle srutj-s and special effects like vibrato, staccato and other tonal effects to approach vocal effects closely. It has been said that while Balachander's technique brings out the masculine grandeur of some aspects of our music, Emani's technique emphasises basically feminine graces. Higher veena techniques consist essentially in experiments to enlarge the scope of the instrument and to transcend its inherent limitations. While the two basic limitations of having to play against the tension of the string and the long distance to be covered by the fingers (which affects speed) cannot perhaps be overcome, other barriers to continuity and expressiveness vis-a-vis instruments like the violin or the flute can be overcome only by unconventional approaches such as those adopted by Balachander and Emani, if vocal standards are adopted for judging instrumental music.

It is, of course, not necessary that all instruments should be able to produce the same effects or that some instruments should be considered superior to others. Each instrument has its own strong points and is able to highlight certain aspects of our music better than other instruments. For example, a flute or nagaswaram can produce briga-s better than any stringed instrument and in fact, the nagaswaram has considerably influenced the modern vocal style. A violin can produce a continuity matching and even surpassing that of the human voice. The veena's strong points are in playing tana, basic gamaka-s and chords (which, however, are not relevant in Indian music) and the crispness of its plucked notes.

All these varied instrumental effects are necessary to preserve and enrich the many splendoured mosaic of our musical system. However, virtuosity and innovation must be encouraged if each of these instruments is to be exploited fully and coaxed to contribute new effects fitting into our musical syntax.

The veena is truly the dream of the challenge-seeker in music. One is tempted to say, with apologies to Thomas Gray, that: Full many a gamaka of the purest ray serene The dark unfathomed octaves of veena bear. Musical pearl-diving must, therefore, continue to flourish in the field of veena play.