It?s the beginning of the month and the rain is coming down in sheets. But that hasn?t deterred the spirit of music enthusiasts who have lined up outside the ?Meccademy? (The Music Academy Madras) to buy tickets for the forthcoming season. The love for swaras runs as deep as the love for sambar and Kanjeevaram silks here.

?The season provides a huge platform for upcoming artists,? says Lalitha Ramakrishna, who has done her Phd in music from Delhi University and is the author of Musical Heritage of India. Come December, sabhas, rasikas (audience) and maestros gear up for exciting days ahead. Peak time here is between December 15 and January 1. The action is mostly in and around central Chennai, home to numerous sabhas like The Music Academy Madras, Narada Gana Sabha, Sri Krishna Gana Sabha and Mylapore Fine Arts to name a few. Narada Gana Sabha will be completing 50 years of its existence next February. ?The good thing is the emergence of young artists on the scene. Even though many of these artists have degrees in other subjects, they are extremely passionate about music,? notes R Krishnaswami, secretary, Narada Gana Sabha.

Acclaimed violinist Lalgudi GJR Krishnan couldn?t agree more. A qualified Company Secretary and cost accountant, Krishnan found his true calling in music. ?One of my forefathers was the direct disciple of Saint Thyagaraja,? he says. Similarly, leading vocalist Aruna Sairam is also looking forward to the season. ? There is a lot of excitement in the air. The frenzy is now online too, with many sites and FAQs on the music season,? she says.

Meccademy has a series of devotional music, lecture demonstrations and instrumental and vocal performances by upcoming and established artists. The music festival will be followed by a dance festival at The Music Academy. Leading Bharatanatyam dancer Priyadarshini Govind says she rehearses throughout the year for the season. ?I love the sense of expectation amongst artists,? she says.

Sri Krishna Gana Sabha has always been famous for innovations and disciplined audiences. ?People throng to our sabhas to listen to various combinations by artists. In the past, our sabha has hosted some scintillating jugalbandis. Moreover, our rasikas are known to wait for the opportune moment, and then break into thunderous applause,? says Y Prabhu, general secretary, Sri Krishna Gana Sabha.

Hindustani music too is also rising in the popularity charts. Musician Mala Ramadorai (wife of TCS chief, S Ramadorai) is giving two performances in Hindustani music this year. ?There is a lot of awareness about Hindustani music amongst the audience out here. I always look forward to my performances here,? says Ramadorai.

Over the years, artists across India have performed in Chennai during the music season. ?A couple of years back, sarod maestro Amjad Ali Khan won the hearts of the Chennai audience with a heady mix of speech and music,? recollects S Janaki, executive editor, Sruti, a music and dance magazine.

At the other end of town, Kalakshetra Foundation is also gearing up for the music season in a big way. The institution will be showcasing Masquerade-Man in the Iron Mask, a dance theatre narrative. Other highlights include dance dramas Kuttrala Kuravanji and Shyama. ?We have revived Kuttrala Kuravanji this year. It was first performed by our founder Rukmini Devi Arundale,? says Leela Samson, director, Kalakshetra.

The concept of alternate festivals is also gaining ground and corporates are playing a big role in promoting them. The Sundaram Finance Mylapore festival was held in January. Highlights included music and dance performances, folk shows and puppetry.

The Park?s festival, which ended last week, focused on new and emerging work in dance and theatre. Conceived and curated by the Prakriti Foundation, the festival showcased a dance and spoken word presentation by Mallika and Mrinalini Sarabhai and Jazz, a play by Stagesmith, Mumbai.

In the last couple of years, heritage walks and tours during December-January have also become popular with music lovers. They are normally taken on a guided tour to houses, institutes and sabhas in the city where famous musical maestros lived and gave enthralling performances. Sundaram Finance took connoisseurs on a cycle rickshaw tour to some of the heritage monuments and famous old streets of Mylapore during its festival in January this year. The company also organised a kolam (rangoli) concert on Mada Street near Kapaleeswarar temple. ?Today, Chennai is identified more with BPOs and IT. Our idea is to recreate the flavour of old Madras at least once a year,? says TT Srinivasaraghavan, MD, Sundaram Finance

It?s not only the middle-aged and seniors who will enjoy the musical season this year. Kids too can be expected to have some fun. Kalakshetra Foundation, in association with Aseema Trust, is dedicating Christmas to kids. ?Kids will get to learn various arts and crafts that day. Along with music and dance, crafts also need to go mainstream,? declares Samson.

Musical numbers

The number of sabhas as well as music and dance performances have gone up in the last few years. The duration of the season, which was from November1 to February 5, has got extended to cover the whole of February by 1996-97.

The number of sabhas went up to 74 in 2004-05 and 85 in 2005-06.

The number of dance programmes increased from 503 in 2004-05 to 632 in 2005-06.

Source: Sruti magazine

Corporate notes

Increasingly, corporate houses are making their presence felt in sabhas. Indian Oil is the major sponsor for The Music Academy Madras and the Sri Parthasarathy Swami Sabha this year. It is also the co-sponsor for over 10 sabhas during the December season. ?Indian Oil looks at the sponsorship of these December concerts as part of its CSR and an opportunity to contribute to the growth and sustenance of the popularity of the classical musical format,? say company officials. HCL Infosystems is also sponsoring one-day concerts in four sabhas. The company has earmarked Rs 1 lakh for this year?s music season. Last year, the HCL tied up with The Music Academy to promote performances under the banner of the ?HCL Concert Series,? where upcoming artists are given a platform and concerts are held every month. ?HCL is proud of our Indian heritage and has actively sought to promote Indian classical music,? says George Paul, executive VP, HCL Infosystems. Textile major Nalli is also a big contributor during the music season.