Bombay Jayashri and Ronu Majumdar, on the magic of music

A common interest in musical genres made Pandit Ronu Majumdar and Bombay Jayashri Ramnath friends from childhood.

BOMBAY JAYASHRI

"Want to learn this traditional lori (lullaby) sung by mothers and grandmothers in my family" the boy would ask. "Of course," the girl would reply, and learn it with joy. Then she would launch into a kriti in Kapinarayani. "Why, this is our raga Jhinjoti!" the boy would exclaim and join in with his flute. The jam session would go on for hours.

That is how their common interest made Pandit Ronu Majumdar and Bombay Jayashri Ramnath friends from childhood. Initially trained in Hindustani music by father Dr.Bhanu Majumdar, young Ronu honed skills with Pandit Laxmanprasad Jaipurwale and Pandit Vijayraghav Rao. Jayashri's parents Sita and Subrahmaniam sang Carnatic music and nurtured its growth in their offspring. Guru T.R.Balamani laid a solid foundation in Mumbai for the girl who was to gain guidance later from guru Lalgudi Jayaraman in Chennai.

Hearing Jayashri at an inter-collegiate festival, Pandit Jaipurwale asked her if she would learn geet and bhajan from him and perform chamber recitals. Jayashri's induction into Hindustani music also had her finding much in common with gurubhai Ronu. Their musical interactions led to the his equipping her from his arsenal, and becoming familiar with the southern system of music. Their collaborations led to recordings too. Recalls Majumdar, "Jayashri cut her first album of ghazals with the music I composed."

Jayashri's shift to Chennai did not end their friendship. Whenever she went to Mumbai she made it a point to meet Majumdar, even if it was between his busy recordings for films, under the baton of alltime greats, particularly R.D.Burman. He was also into Indi pop and fusion, whether with Remo Fernandes, touring with Ravi Shankar, a maestro of Majumdar's Maihar gharana, playing with international celebrities from Ry Cooder to Jon Hassell. He was composing music for films and albums. These sidestream sailings did not affect his voyage with the classical bansuri.

The Carnatic vocalist too was growing into a frontline classical musician, with occasional forays into other kinds of ventures, from singing for the dance, composing music for the ballet Silappadikaram, to film song. She developed a style which accented raga bhava, maintained the melody even in swara prastara, increased her repertoire, fine-tuned her voice, concentration and pitch-alignment. Her purity of sruti is accented by the two tamburas flanking her on the stage. Jayashri also became known for her post-pallavi pieces, ranging from javali to viruttham and bhajan. Her handling of the Hindustani ragas came in for special appreciation.

So sensitive is her occasional singing for the dance that you wonder why Jayashri gave up Bharatanatyam, trained as she had been by doyen Mahalingam Pillai. "One day my guru asked me sit down beside him and sing for the other students who were dancing. Now I realise it was because he thought I sang well, but at that time I was deeply hurt, thinking that he did not want me to dance." The young girl came home and refused to go back to the dance class. But surely that dance training gave her a feel for bhava and rasa that she could carry into her music.

Exposure to fields beyond one's own has been an enrichment beyond the commercial for Majumdar as well. Teamwork brings discipline, and sharpens alertness, enhances inventiveness. Fusion experiments with topnotchers taught him to hold his own and develop confidence in his art. No surprise to learn then that his albums like "Heart to Heart", "Water Lily Acoustics", "Etheral Rhythms" and "Mysticism on Woodwind" have a global appeal. Majumdar has also composed music for other artistes, as in "Koi Akela Kahan", sung by Kavita Krisnamurthy.

Steeped in their own traditions, Pandit Ronu Majumdar and Bombay Jayashri Ramnath are also well-acquainted with each other's genres. More, their first meeting is not on the Chennai stage but goes back to youthful exchanges. With their maturity and mutual rapport, their voice-wind blend at the inaugural concert of the Friday Music Festival raises great expectations.

Gowri Ramnarayan

An interview with BOMBAY JAYASHRI RAMNATH

How did you become friends with Ronu Majumdar from your school days?

We met in Pandit Jaipurwale's music class. Even in those days he composed a lot. He'd make me sing those pieces too! I sang them in small chamber recitals, say for Ganesh Chaturthi or Dussera. We also did a few recordings for a very local circulation.

How did you respond to his music?

My whole family became Ronu's fans.You could listen to his Abhogi forever. He'd play when I sang Carnatic kritis, exploring Khamas, Andolika or Mohanakalyani in his own way. He loved Sahana, and urge me to sing "E Vasudha" again and again.My mother provided endless cups of tea to sustain us as we got lost in music for hours!

Isn't it rare to find a Hindustani artiste responding so much to Carnatic music?

Not just musicians. I have a lot of friends who can't understand Carnatic music. But Ronu was comfortable with our kinds of gamakas and valued the rakti in those graces.

Why did you not do a jugalbandi until this year?

I was sceptical. It's one thing to jam at home, another to do it formally on the stage. We did come together in the 1980s for a small audience in Bombay. This year when The Friday Festival asked if I could do something other than a regular concert I thought it was time to try again.

With a hit like "Vasikara", why did you not plunge more into filmsong?

I've learnt a lot by singing for films - breathing before a mike, emphasising pronunciation, creating an emotional effect. The process of learning and recording there and then is a singular challenge. But singing for films requires a different mindset. I'd hate to do a lot of it.

How do you feel about singing for the Friday Music Festival?

I feel honoured. After all, The Hindu is such a prestigious publication. It has done so much for our music.

Gowri Ramnarayan

An interview with Ronu Majumdar

Do you enjoy Carnatic music? And playing with Carnatic musicians?

I’ve enjoyed exchanges with violinist Mysore Manjunath. Of course, it’s a privilege to have played with Dr.Balamuralikrishna.I’ve a more than ’normal’ knowledge of Carnatic music. My guru Pandit Vijayraghav Rao was from the south. He taught me the the melakartas, the difference in approach to north and south Indian ragas. I’ve spent a month with my friend Kadri Gopalnath, and learnt a lot by playing a lot with him.

Whether Pandit Ravi Shankar and Ustad Vilayat Khan or Hariprasad Chaurasia and Shivkumar Sharma, jugalbandis are common between intrumentalists. But voice and intrument?

I’ve played with vocalists - Veena Sahasrabuddhe, Padma Talwalkar, Aarti Anklekar... It’s difficult, but challenging. I always rehearse the words in the lyric along with the music itself.

Indian music rates the instrument below the human voice. How confident do you feel with a vocalist?

The trick is to have that chemistry between artistes. Competitiveness must be replaced with understanding. Not virtuosity, but care and mutual affection are essential.

Affection?

Vocalists are used to being supported by intruments. So their general tendency is to treat the intrument as an accompaniment, even in a jugalbandi. That’s what happened once between Hariji (Chaurasia) and Kishoriji (Amonkar). So I explain to my vocal partners that this is a dialogue between two minds. I know that Jayashri and I will have this balance, we’ve been interacting from childhood.

Is this balance more difficult with the delicate flute than with a stronger sitar or sarangi?

No. Violin and sarangi are closest to the human voice in continuity. But the flute matches the voice most closely in sound. It can touch hearts just as much.

Any special plans for the Friday Music Festival?

I’m happy to participate in this festival conducted by a newspaper which has covered the real art and culture of India so consistently. As to what we’re going to do - should I disclose it...?

Gowri Ramnarayan