Transcending Poverty with Classical Music

"Music has to be recognized as an ... agent of social development in the highest sense, because it transmits the highest values -- solidarity, harmony, mutual compassion. And it has the ability to unite an entire community and to express sublime feelings." José Antonio Abreu. Jose Antonio Abreu founded El Sistema ("the system") in 1975 to help poor Venezuelan kids learn to play a musical instrument and be part of an orchestra. 30 years on, El Sistema has seeded 102 youth orchestras -- and many happy lives.

I believe this is true for all classical art forms that emphasize discipline, dedication and persistence. Classical arts integrate the mind, body and soul and is a holistic educational discipline that has often not been given the kind of stature in traditional educational curriculum that it truly deserves.

The idea is that the families join with pride and joy in the activities of the orchestras and the choirs their children belong to. The huge spiritual world that music produces in itself, which also lies within itself, ends up overcoming material poverty. From the minute a child's taught how to play an instrument, he's no longer poor. He becomes a child in progress heading for a professional level, who'll later become a full citizen. Needless to say that music is the number one prevention against prostitution, violence, bad habits, and everything degrading in the life of a child. Jose Abreu.

Planting the Dance Princess Seed

We all need someone who will fire our imagination and inspire our desire to be great dancers. As kids we need to see strong role models and concrete examples of dancers who inspire us with their beauty, technical mastery and spiritual values. As a little girl I knew that person for me was Suba - my mom's colleague's daughter. I had gone to her full solo recital or Arangetram when I was about 8 years old. By this time I had been learning Dasi Dance for about 4 years. And it was a boring and painfully uninspiring experience. Why? I had teachers who were crap. Simple. But my parents had no choice - there were no other teachers in the market. So we figured a crap teacher is better than no teacher. Just learn the vocabulary and keep searching for a outlet to express my artistry and divinity. So when I went to see Suba at her first solo show I was blown away. She transformed on stage from being an ordinary Indian gal and my "akka" (big sister) to someone who was a dance princess. I was sold. I remember going backstage to see her after the show. It was glamorous. The smell of the backstage, the sound, lights and the dressing room - wow with its huge mirrors and light bulbs around the mirror - the costumes and make up lying around. It was a major sensory experience. I felt like I was on a set of a movie star with an exclusive backstage pass. So, when my fans and especially kids come backstage to take pictures with me and ask for my autograph I always oblige. I know how critical a smile and a pat on the back can be to a little child in getting to commit to her artistic journey. No matter how tired I am after the show I try and make sure I do this for the kids.

From L-R: My mom, me (in orange), Suba (in costume) and Viji (my dance classmate and her sister).

Navigating Chennai's Dance Community

Many foreign students of arts and culture come to Chennai to learn indian dance, music etc. Typically most of them experience a culture shock. Many go home frustrated and not having met their goals. Why? There are a couple of reasons for this:

1. Chennai is still a developing country with poor roads, limited long-term housing and cafe culture. Single artists with romantic notions of spending an art sabbatical in Chennai are in for a rude shock at many levels. Housing and transportation are the two primary obstacles. Stay at a hotel and pay thru your nose for a month or rent a room in a host family's house. Needless to say both are fraught with serious problems. Privacy and cultural disconnect for the latter and cost for the former. Without a proper living arrangement the stress related to living in an alien culture and city can often translate into a less focussed study trip. Private car and auto rentals are expensive if you are staying long term. Also if you are a foreigner expect to pay a "foreign rate" on everything.

2. Choosing a good teacher who can meet your expectations and is committed to your progress is an intensely difficult affair. There is no open and reliable system of accreditation for dance/music teachers. How does one evaluate the quality of their teacher and if the teacher is equipped the requisite knowledge? In India there are many levels and teaching standards - from a Master (like the famous names) and their disciplines and then a string of freelancing teachers/performers who are available.

3. There are different lineage or bhanis or schools of Bharata Natyam styles. There is intense rivalry between these styles with each claiming superiority. Don't waste your time in this misguided debate. The bottom line is this - the newest school is Kalashetra. It is the most methodical and has a nice campus. There is a set curriculum and grading systems. However, they do not produce award-winning solo artists. That honor belongs to the older and more established styles such as Valuvoor & Pandanalur. The older styles are dominated by a few famous Masters who have not sought it fit to establish a formal campus like Kalashetra. So expect a less methodical process with exams. These styles are more closely aligned with the guru-shishi style and less of a dance school/dance studio style.

4. Pricing is also a very opaque affair. With the masters you pay their price. Period. No negotiations. You are lucky if they take you in as their student. But after they do - don't expect to learn directly from them. Expect to learn only from their senior students. The masters are too busy with international tours and high-profile show and engagements. They are not going to baby-sit a low-profile artist/amateur from a foreign country.

5. Indian dancers and gurus immediately distinguish between a professional dancer and a serious hobbyist. If you have taken one month vacation to do this seriously - be prepared to learn very little unless you choose the right teacher. India moves at its own pace and rhythm. I have been to many classes where teachers have spent the ENTIRE class chatting to students and reviewing performances. No movement or choreography. If you have a wider approach - this kind of interaction can be incredibly valuable but if you have a more physical approach to learning - u want to get in there -sweat for an hour and get out - you will be in for a rude shock.

6. Discard the gym/fitness studio model from your head when in Chennai. The Chennai dance scene is in transition - caught between the guru-shishi model and the Bikram Yoga franchise model. Many old Masters in their 70s still teach within the guru-shishi model. They are mono-lingual and do not use technology and are not comfortable with foreign camera/video trotting students. They fear that their teaching would be taken out of context and misrepresented in foreign lands. But yet they resist running formal teaching training classes and disseminating their teachings via a franchise educational model.

7. In addition to fees the old gurus teach at their pace and expect gifts and favors done for them as a sign of gratitude. No transactional attitude. Knowledge is a privilege - not a right. Needless to say the problem with this approach is that has been abused by many. Many dancers who are NOT at the master's level use arbitrary practices and demand complete devotion. There is no sense of accountability and transparency. Instead the entire system becomes tainted with favoritism and complex caste and economic dynamics. Put simply the rich Brahmin Indian kids coming from the US gets the BEST treatment. Their parents can fly the guru and her team to US for lavish performances and raise their profile. More marketing and more students. So they make the best customers and receive the most attention given their revenue potential. This is regardless of their talent and their dance ability. The kids that get the least attention are the poor kids from Chennai and from humble families or from the lower castes. They are the worst customers as they do not have money for lavish gifts, political power in terms of Brahmin backing, extensive distribution networks or media contacts to raise the profile of the schools or their gurus. But often these kids are the ones with the greatest potential and are the most sincere artists. I see them battle the deeply flawed system with great tenacity. A few succeed. Many become broken.

So essentially if you evaluate the entire dance scene in Chennai using the corporate model it will start to make good sense to you. Product - Dance. Power Broker/Marketing Agent - Dance Teacher. Distributors - Rich Kids with international networks. The teachers are brokers between the ultimate customer (audience) and other distribution channels (musicians, stylists, critics, funders/art patrons). So if you are not a star with deep pockets it may be better for you to identify a teacher who is able to blend passion and profits in an intelligent way. I have met some wonderful artists who are committed to teaching and disseminating his or her craft while commanding a market rate commensurate with their expertise. This person may not be a famous brand name but could end up being a great resource as well as a artist-friend and potential collaborator.

The great mistake I have seen many students make is going to Chennai to pursue a spiritual arts while not understanding its underlying economic model. Spirituality is one of today's greatest commodity. And the Bharata Natyam dance scene in Chennai is a fine illustration of this ethos.