Sound Of Music

Singing and I share a very intimate relationship.I have been associated with music for more than 3/4ths of my life.The decision to learn classical music was made when I was 7 years old.At that time I never realised the repercussions of it.

My first music teacher was a Bhagavadar(music maestro) in my colcony.With all due respect I just hated him.Sincerely.Ofcourse I learned the basics of classical singing from him.Not that I got far.Every evening after school I would give him my attendence.We would sit on a mat .He opposite me and he would go."Varaveenaaaa mrithu paaaniiiiii".I was supposed to repeat after him.I would do the same in front of him as many times as he thought it necessary for me to get it right.Now that was not all."Now you can repeat that 100 times so that it gets embedded into your grey cells".He would say as he went out of the room for some entertainment .Grrr..I knew what he was upto.He would be getting his evening tea while I would let my stomach do all the singing.

I studied 'trying to sing' further for 7 years under him and one more Bhagavadar.By and by I began to hate displays of singing talents.Yet I was dragged into it on innumerable occasions.For me it was always horrendous.Why did God ever create audience??It was either in front of a visiting distant relative, during power cuts when no one had anything better to do,to earn an extra house point on the order of house captain, inside the excursion bus,for a college function.And that was not all.I had to listen to template comments.

I can never forget the first hoot I got .It was when I sang for my colony day.It came even before I finished the first line.It felt great.At least people were being honest.I did not have to listen to plastic comments.Like my bro once said if the ransom that had been invested in sharpening my singing skills had been utilised in planting a few coconut trees around the house it would have given us coconuts by now.