Can you talk about the future of Ghatam and Ghatam artists ?
Ghatam used to be an instrument that struggled in the earlier days . It had to go through hardships to come to where it is now , in the main spot . Earlier , very few people had Ghatam and it wasn ’ t a main instrument . In that situation only I took this instrument . My dad wanted me to come to a position with the Ghatam like how Ravi Shankar Ji had with the Sitar . I fulfilled his wish .
I used to work at All India Radio . Many years of my career were with M . S Subbulakshmi . She is the person who opened the opportunity for Ghatam abroad . We played at the UN concert in 1966 . I can never forget her ! From the beginning , Ghatam was mainly supported by female artists . The kutcheri wouldn ’ t happen without Ghatam for artists like M . S Subbulakshmi , M . L Vasanthakumari , D . K Pattamal . In fact , only ladies made the instrument .
It used to be a side instrument . I got a big chance to play Ghatam with Shakti , that plays western Jazz music , during my stint at All India Radio . Ghatam replaced Mridhangam at that point . I left my radio job and was with them for few years . My son , Selva Ganesh plays for Remember Shakti now .
I played for Planet Drum , an album by Mickey Hart , which also won a Grammy Award . I was the first person from South India to have won a Grammy . Seven countries drummers played together and that ’ s what won me this award .
Slowly , Ghatam came to the main spot over the years . I then realized that this should be showcased as a main instrument and be played as a fully fledged kutcheri . That ’ s how I started playing four together .
Right now , Ghatam is one of the most important instruments and there are a lot of solo artist performances . One of my female students Sukkanya Ramgopal , plays kirthana with Ghatam along with accompaniments .
The future of Ghatam looks very bright according to me !
How do you combine spirituality and music ?
God is in music , according to me . Before a concert I always pray . I believe it ’ s like an exam and results come from the audience . In those couple of hours , we don ’ t think about anything else apart from the music itself . We dwell in the music and get submerged in it . Music helps bring rain , cure diseases and more .
I used to be very home sick during my travels abroad . I would simply play music and feel better .
Concert formats have changed a lot since the time you first started . How have you adapted to the change ?
During earlier times , the concerts used to be for four hours . It would start at about 4:30pm and go on till 8:30pm . The audience used to listen carefully . In fact , there never used to be mics .
There was no tape recorder or CD or mic , everything was done live . Ghatam never had a mic .
Now we can keep mics inside the Ghatam itself to be able to take videos . We can play concerts at home itself and don ’ t even need to go out to watch a concert .
Right now , there is so much development . Audiences these days are more focused on the food ( Laughs ) and this is more like an entertainment . Sincerity lacks in this generation and time unlike older times .
Vikku Vinayakram ji is the recipient of prestigious awards . Some of the awards received by him include :
Padma Bhushan in 2014 Padma Shri in 2002
Sangeet Natak Akademi award for Carnatic music in 1988 .
There is so much opportunity now and young talents are given a chance to showcase their talent .
Earlier , very few students used to learn music in the form of a Gurukul if they did not show interest in studies . In the current scene , more people are interested to come forward and learn music . There are so many colleges for music and also learning through Skype , etc .
I am still not comfortable with internet for music . When someone asks me to teach via Skype , I say I ’ d rather come and teach in person . ( Laughs )
You have collaborated with many artists from the North and also International . Tell us about your experience .
I started out playing for MS Subbulakshmi ji , then later Shakti Group and left there abruptly due to family issues . Later , I started working with North Indian artists like Amjad Ali Khan , Shiv Kumar Sharma , Hariprasad Chaurasia , Zakir Hussain , Pandit Jasraj and many more since I played for the Western Jazz Music .
I would like to quote an instance here . I traveled with Hariprasad Chaurasia for a concert in Germany . We landed in Frankfurt and had to go to a place 3-4 hours away . At the airport , I wasn ’ t sure how to use the bag trolley and hence it went rolling down a slope and my Ghatam broke completely . I was really upset and was clueless how I ’ d play the evening concert . Hari Ji asked me not to worry and to just speak Konnakol during the concert . I was still very upset without my Ghatam . The concert was in the late evening and we reached the place at 5pm . Hari ji was nice enough to tell me that they will go ahead with the concert for one and a half hours and I can just sit on the stage with the Konnakol . But with the grace of lord , I got super glue and some threads and somehow fixed it and played the concert . I just want to highlight Hari Ji ’ s beautiful gesture which we don ’ t usually experience down south unfortunately . Similarly , Zakir Hussain Ji has done a lot for me too .
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