Healing sounds of the universe

Panchamoorthy Kumaran on the Nadaswaram

Pic by Rahal Wimalasiri

In Kumaran’s hands the Nadaswaram, a South Indian music instrument, looked grand. Looks matched the music he produced with the Nadaswaram that everyone gathered at the Jaffna Municipal Ground were impressed. It wasYaalKiramiyaSangamam’s(Jaffna Village Committee) Carnatic music which marked the inauguration of the Jaffna Music Festival held two weeks ago.

“For more than 30 years we were kept apart and it’s not only the brotherhood we lost during this crucial period. We lost touch with our culture and traditions,” said YaalKiramiyaSangamam lead performer, PanchamoorthyKumaran speaking to The Nation at the Jaffna Municipal Grounds. “Now it’s time to come together again, share our cultures and art with each other. There is a lot to be shared and be glad about,” he added.  He is glad that the armed conflict is over, that he can now perform freely anywhere in the country.  He strongly believes that music can bring back lost harmony; music can heal unseen wounds. He further said that arts and cultural festivals like the music festival can help people to come together and this is the best period to conduct such programs.

Kumaran

Kumaran, a native from Kondavil, Jaffna who is considered as one of the most skillful South Indian musicians in the country, belongs to a family of traditional Carnatic musicians. All his musical skills, as told to this writer, were learned from his father who began teaching him when he was six years old. He was skilled enough to perform as a Carnatic musician on stage when he was just ten years old. Now in his early thirties, he says that having to perform on stage is the most precious thing he gets to do in his life. In the last couple of years, he has been invited to play in Europe, Singapore, Australia, Malaysia, Canada and Switzerland. Yet he said, “There is nothing like having to play in my country, in front of my people.”

He has mastered many Carnatic musical instruments. He has a voice which can grab people’s attention at once that he is adored as a vocalist too. However, he is best known for his performances with his pet instrument. The Nadaswaram is one of the most auspicious instruments in South India. He said that it was the most difficult South Indian musical instrument to master. In South Indian culture, awedding is incomplete without the sound of this most popular wind instrument. Counted among the ‘mangalavadhyam’, or auspicious instruments, the Nadaswaram is the world’s loudest non-brass acoustic instrument according to Wikipedia.

Traditionally the Nadaswaram is played in various rituals and ceremonies in the temples and during special events like marriages. A person familiar with South Indian music can easily identify the ritual or the ceremony taking place just by hearing the raga played on the Nadaswaram. There are ragas specifically played during the different times of the day for the different rituals at temples or the different occasions.  

As Kumaran explained, the Nadaswaram is considered to be a Rajavadyam (A royal instrument) and the instrument’s different parts are supposed to represent the different forms of God. The Nadaswaram was traditionally made from Aachatree wood, although nowadays bamboo, sandalwood, copper, brass and ivory are also used.

It is an extremely powerful double reed instrument. Due to its intense volume and strength it is basically an outdoor instrument. “Fingering is similar to that of the Indian flute, but the pitch can also be altered by changing the pressure of lips,” he explained. Playing the Nadaswaram is a hard-skill, since it requires good breath control, added Kumaran. Most of his outstanding performances are available on his Youtube channel.

He also emphasized the importance of the artisan skills, passed from generation to generation in protecting arts and culture. Traditional Carnatic Music is often passed on from generation to generation, like how Kumaran learned his music from his father. 

“Music is said to have begun from the sounds of the Universe. Carnatic itself can be traced back to a time when Hinduism emerged,” he iterated. “Since then, the traditions of this have been passed on from generation to generation and preserved until today,” he said adding that the future of the traditional Carnatic music will depend on the enthusiasm shown for it by the generations to come. He said that this theory applied to any other line of work.

However he said that he was never forced to learn music. “I have been compassionate about music since I was very young. I started learning to play instruments out of the adoration that grew while observing my father play,” he recalled. “My son too, will never be forced to learn this. To become a musician or not, or to play the Nadaswaram or not, will solely be his choice,” he said adding that compassion towards music cannot be forced on a person.

(Special thanks to Jaffna Music Festival Program Coordinator, G Krishanthan from Sevalanka Foundation)

On a mission to save our music

Båliphonics

Sri Lankan born Dr. Sumudi Suraweera, from the University of Canterbury, New Zealand talks to The Nation about his research on Sri Lankan Low-Country traditional drumming

Baliphonics at JMF Pic by Sakuna M Gamage 

Sri Lanka is one of the few countries with a very vast and rich cultural diversity. The culture is itself very unique and thereby contributes to the Sri Lankan identity. Ancient customs, traditions and rituals hold great significance. Among these Bali, Thovil, and Shanthi Karma have been integral parts of Sri Lankan culture from pre-Buddhist era, which nurtured dark arts for thousands of years. Although, even if the remains of such rituals are practiced in almost all parts of the country, its survival is not guaranteed. 

  

These rituals are believed to serve specific purposes. Based on this point, one may argue whether it’s righteous to practice these rituals without a specific cause. “In fact this is one of the major criticisms we get,” says the founder of the Båliphonics group Dr. Sumudi Suraweera. Båliphonics presents the music of the low-country Båli ritual tradition of Sri Lanka in a sublime collaboration with contemporary jazz and improvisation. Båliphonics group is a part of Musicmatters collective. Established in 2010, Musicmatters introduced an alternative model for Western music education in Sri Lanka.

Dr. Suraweera Pic by Ravindra Dharmathilake

“I’m not sure how practical it is to watch these rituals and the rich music components which come along with it being forgotten. Our attempts are not to reenact these rituals, but to attempt to save the components we can save.  This is not to degrade the values of these rituals,” he said. “If the rituals die, music in it will die with it,” he emphasized.   

Fusion between Sri Lankan traditional music and Western Jazz music, as Sumudi said, is the way he is trying to find his identity. Young Sumudi moved to New Zealand with his parents when he was 13 years old. While he was in Sri Lanka he was a student of Colombo D.S Senanayake College.  Even though they moved to a foreign country, Sumudi said that his family always embraced the Sri Lankan culture. As a child he always adored music, and this was the reason behind why he chose music as his field of study following his strong passion towards music in high school and university.

He said that he adored jazz music and recognized that he expressed himself at best with jazz drumming. Suraweera obtained his PhD in the discipline of ethnomusicology in 2010 from the University of Canterbury, New Zealand focusing his research on Sri Lankan Low-Country traditional drumming.

Speaking about the research he carried out he paid his respects to his main consultant for the research, late Sandoris Jayantha Gurunnanse. He also remembered maestro Piyasara Shilpadhipathi who supported him throughout his research work. As he said, limited resources were one of the main challenges he faced in collecting information. ‘It was not a simple process,’ he said pointing out that this is also a reason why these rituals should be preserved without waiting.  

Båliphonics was also initiated with Sumudi’s research studies.  As a Sri Lankan who grew up in New Zealand, he believes that he has adapted to the diversities of both cultures. Although he grew up among New Zealanders, his passion for his mother country didn’t die. He reiterated that what he does now, is a reflection of his identity nurtured by two countries. Båliphonics group itself is a representation of this fusion. Two brothers, Susantha and Prashantha Rupathilake voice traditional chanting for the music provided by Isaac Smith and Dr. Sumudi Suraweera with double bass and the drum kit respectively.

Sumudi fondly remembered Eshantha Pieris, cofounder of Musicmatters who is currently abroad studying for his doctorate, who used to play the piano for Båliphonics. Smith, who has volunteered at Musicmatters as an instructor since 2010, is Sumudi’s colleague from New Zealand. He said that, Smith too is now well adapted to the Sri Lankan culture that he is quite absorbed in it.

Båliphonics has also performed outside Sri Lankan context at several occasions. They have toured in Malaysia and Singapore with this novel form of Sri Lankan traditional music and Sumudi is content about the feedback they’ve received. “Båliphonics were very well received and they were mesmerized by our performances,” he said adding that our traditional performances are sometimes seen magical in the foreign context.

Båliphonics, recently performed at the Jaffna Music Festival, succeeded in mesmerizing those gathered at the Jaffna Municipal Grounds too. Although the performance at the Jaffna Music Fest was time bound, he said that a usual performance of Baliphonics takes more than one hour and that it has a nice flow that encapsulates the audience.

Musicmatters’ main responsibility is the music institution located in Borella, where they conduct music programs for children to enhance their individuality and ensemble performances with a touch of theoretical knowledge. Since its inception, Musicmatters has earned a reputation for its enjoyable and practical approach to music providing its students with the opportunity to be creative and innovative. In contrast with the local music curriculum, Sumudi mentioned that students of Musicmatters are assessed for their creativity more than their theoretical knowledge.

“Our method goes beyond the traditional exam-oriented education system,” he explained while explaining how their students are assessed by their performance at the end. Speaking further about the music curriculums in the country, he criticized the local music curriculum for lack the spontaneity and creativity. As he said, “Music offers a lot more than other forms of entertainment and is transferrable to other components of education”. This is why building creativity and spontaneity in children is important.

Other than the music institute and the Baliphonics, Sumudi considers organizing the annual Musicmatters music festival as an important duty of the collective.  This year Musicmatters festival will be held in August for the fourth consecutive time.  Sumudi explaining the goal behind organizing this festival said that it’s done with the aim of promoting Sri Lankan music in the western world as well as to expose the Sri Lankan audience to music that is generally not accessible through mainstream media.  Various artistes from Germany, Australia, Singapore and United States of America will be among the usual participants.

“Our hope is to give Sri Lankans some kind of inspiration through this to be open to what they weren’t open before. And ultimately open up their minds in whatever the field of work they are engaged in, to challenge their accepted notions and to strengthen their thinking,” Sumudi iterated that experiencing various forms of music can inspire an individual to think outside the box.

Singing in praise of God

Pic by Sakuna M Gamage

“Sinhala ithihasa pothe ran akurin liyawuna, Lassana podi punchi puthek lak manita nathiwuna…” He was a Muslim singing in Sinhala. He was from the Eastern part of the country came to sing in the north. Bawa Nasrudeen Kaleefa was one of the performers who grabbed attention at the Jaffna Music Festival. Nasrudeen came all the way from Akkaraipattu to perform at the Jaffna Music Festival. He led a group of eight singers, all Sufi musicians, which represented Islamic Social Heritage Association. 

“Performing at the festival makes me happy. It makes us all happy,” he said in an interview with The Nation at the Jaffna Municipal Grounds. He doesn’t speak Sinhala although he sings fluently in Sinhala. With the support of the coordinator of the Muslim Sufi Group Muszhaaralff in translating his words to English, he said, that performing their music at any event or time gives him immense pleasure.

Nasrudeen had started his journey in music when he was barely 20 years old. Today, he speaks about his 40-year-experience as a Sufi musician with pride. He didn’t attend any music school, but learned the basics about music and singing from his spiritual teacher and practiced what he learned until he became perfect. The purpose of his singing, he said, is to show his passionate love towards God.

According to Nasrudeen, Sufism is not a division of Muslim, rather it is considered a part of Islamic teaching that deals with the purification of inner self.  They believe that focusing on the more spiritual aspects of religion as striving to obtain direct experience of God.

Sufi music is the devotional music of the Sufis, inspired by the works of Sufi poets, like Rumi, Hafiz, Bulleh Shah, Amir Khusrow and Khwaja Ghulam Farid. Sufi communities or orders are found throughout the Muslim world, from South and Central Asia through Turkey, Iran, Kashmir, India, the Levant and northern, eastern and western Africa and also England. Sufi love songs are often performed as Ghazals and Kafi, a solo genre accompanied by percussion and harmonium, using a repertoire of songs by Sufi poets.

With the wide geographical and cultural spread of Sufism itself, Sufi musical practice is itself equally diverse. As Nasrudeen explained, each Sufi order or brotherhood has its own traditions, and forms of Sufi practice which varies greatly from region to region. However he further said that all these different facets of ritual and performance have the same goal in mind. “We use music to remember God and to move closer to the divine,” he said.  

He further defined Sufism as purely based upon the beliefs of Islam and the teachings of Muhammad although ‘ordinary believers’ of God have obligations towards Sufism and their aesthetic performances. He expressed his grief on how some sects of Muslims are reluctant to accept Sufi music.  Some Muslims prohibits any form of music that is not entirely devotional to Allah. A general perception is that Islam bans all music, but Nasrudeen said that this is not true. Islam only prohibits non-devotional music and when it is associated with other sins such as drinking alcohol, which is entirely prohibited. “Music reflects Allah. It creates a path for me to address him,” he said.  

Muslims believe that they will see God in the afterlife. The Sufis devote their lives to seeing God now, in this life, and becoming closer to the divine by following Islamic law. As he mentioned before, Muslims do not always agree with this aspect, but Sufism certainly does provide a spiritual, supreme root for the popular practice of Islam, as it is with most other religions.

Commenting on the music festival, Nasrudeen emphasized that setting effort to introduce different cultures to everyone and make them familiar to each culture in the country is a great way to rebuild harmony. “We lost many things during the thirty years of war. This is essential to bring everyone closer again. Each of our cultures has good things to share, good things we couldn’t share for a long time,” he iterated. “Especially music has components which can bring back harmony,” he said adding that music is understood by everyone although one language is not understood by everyone, taking himself as an example. He said that he enjoys listening to Sinhala songs and singing them although he can’t communicate in Sinhala.

He also expressed his sadness about the disputes between certain Sinhala communities and Muslim communities. He said that nobody who admires the spiritual aspects of a religion would fight each other. “None of the religions teach people to fight each other for materialistic themes. Religions teach people how to love and accept each other,” he stressed. “I believe the problems start when people try to focus more on the rituals rather than the spirituality,” Nasrudeen opined.

“As a Sufi, I have been taught to see everyone as God, every place as God and everything I associate as God.  So, I don’t understand the reasons why we are quarreling with each other. Why fight with our own God?” he raised a question.