KARISHMA D'MELLO
TAKING MUSIC
TO THE STREETS
If you’ve ever gone traipsing across the streets
of Europe, you’ve definitely come across
street musicians - around street corners, the
metro station or a “square” of some sort. Of
course it isn’t ALWAYS the most pleasant site.
Sometimes they’ve got posters marked in bold
black ink, describing a tragedy of some sort
or how they’re struggling to make ends meet.
But, some, if not most of these buskers put on a
pretty good show for the random passer-by. Rock/ metal bands - Zygnema, Cashish, Blakc
began busking on a larger scale to promote
their music before concerts. This began all
the way back in 2010 with the aim of bringing
newer faces to their concerts and getting a
larger audience at their upcoming gigs. “The
busking man”, or Debojyoti Nath sings song
about peace and love, travelling across all
states to spread the cheer – a journey that
began way back in 2015.
While street performances are a celebrated art,
and chancing upon some talented musicians
are something to look forward to for travelers
and residents alike in western continents,
down here in India street music is more likely
to be criminalized than romanticized. More
often than not, your best shot at street music
might have to be that some guy yelling the
wrong lyrics, as he attempts to serenade that
random girl who happened to walk by. The
kind that makes you think that if cats could
sing – well, they wouldn’t like it either! NSPA – “Natural Streets for Performing Arts”
is a non-governmental organization whose
main goal (as described by them) is to “make
art accessible to all”. And how do they go about
this? By getting fresh, new talent to perform in
public spaces. Currently, it isn’t as widespread
as one might like it to be – featuring just Goa
and Mumbai, but despite this, it spawns across
twenty four locations within these areas.
If you’re ever around you may spot these
buskers occasionally give performances at
the Panaji bus stand, the mall, the Churchgate
station (you can check out their website for
more information), where you’ll find them
strumming guitars, singing and occasionally
beat-boxing.
Street music used to be pretty popular back
in the day – before we transitioned into the
digital age. Our history is rich with performing
street artists whose ideas of thinking outside
the box reflected in thinking out on the street.
Sometimes to make ends meet, other times for
the sheer joy of spreading the music. But while
it is definitely not as common now in India, you
can still spot a street musician or two if you
know where to look!
The “World Street Music” website where you’ll
find a bunch of videos of musicians dotted
across the world (with a special feature on
India), filling random outdoor spaces with
music that spans across various genres. Their
edition on India features musicians with
a tendency towards Indian classical from
Jaisalmer and other parts in Rajasthan; so if
you’re ever around, keep an eye out for them!
Perhaps, “The Pick of Destiny” isn’t the most
inspirational of movies, but it does make a
pretty good point about how you could come
across talented musicians (and fellow band-
mates). Street artists deserve more credit than
they receive, because it’s often more than just
an attempt to get by. It’s about music moving
beyond concert halls, extending indefinitely
across to anyone who may need a bit of song to
filter through the everyday humdrum of city
life. Perhaps, that’s romanticizing it a bit too
much? Well, either way, the next time you step
outside to smell the roses, don’t forget to keep
an ear out for buskers too.
The
Score Magazine
highonscore.com
31