How About A 30 Minute Concert??......

I wont be surprised if that happens in another 20 years time.... Would anyone have thought in 1970, about a cricket match getting over in about 3 hours??... Today people dont have the patience to go through a 50 over match or a thriller movie spanning over about 2 and a half hours..

Gone are the days of 5 hour concerts.... even i would say 3 hour concerts are a rarity outside Chennai. Fast moving world, even faster people. 1.5 to 2 hour concert seems to be the order of the day.

Its quite a challenge for the artist to satisfy all types of audience within this short span of time. But if Rahul Dravid can adjust to T-20, any seasoned artist can rise up to this challenge - but with some compromises.

RTPs would become rare species.. (if its not an RTP concert...).. No place for pieces like Divakara thanujam or Chethasri balakrishnam (as the keertanam itself takes the lion's share of the concert duration)...The Mridangist will have to face the frowned face of the Vocalist, if he chooses to play an extra korvai... No elaborate alapanas... Make shift main pieces... above all the pressure to sing the 'Kuraiyontrum illaisss...'

Kudos to sabhas like Mudhra and Kalarasana who never forget to include atleast one 5 concert every season. But if one asks me which is the tougher challenge... i would answer rendering a mini concert (say one hour or so..) in an effective manner is riskier and hence more challenging. The shorter format never gives you an opportunity to come back.. (be it a cricket match or a concert).

The Music fraternity is also moulding itself to the demands of the 'shorter time span'. RTP Concerts, One Raga Concerts, Thematic Presentations shall be considered to an extent as the forced-brain children of such demands. Though i would be the first person to admit that they never provide the joy of listening to a full fledged concert.