KOCHI: "To arrange a perfect fusion musical piece is to be well-versed in both Western and Eastern music," says flautist Umesh Sudhakar. He performed at Lokadharmi Nadakaveedu at Nayarambalam recently, as part of the theatre group's monthly cultural activities.
Fusion, Umesh continues, contemporarily means the blend of Western and Eastern music. "Only if you understand and respect both will we be able to create music in perfect sync. Laying out all instruments and playing tunes from a film may look impressive. But that does not make it fusion," he says.
However, endless possibilities have opened up as young artists with calibre are entering the music field. "A lot of Western artists are coming forward to understand and learn our music.
Which clearly points to the direction that Indian music has that appeal among the younger and global audience," says Umesh.
While there are a few people who choose to believe Indian instruments - such as the flute, tabla, sitar and so on - have lost their charm with the advent and popularity of Western instruments, Umesh is fiercely loyal. "I have never felt the popularity of our instruments has gone down to any level. In fact, thanks to maestros such as Pandit Ravi Shankar, Hariprasad Chaurasia, Shivkumar Sharma, Zakir Hussain and U Srinivas, our instruments and Indian classical music were taken to the centre stage on a global level," Umesh.
The flute was Umesh's first love. "Since a very young age, I was fascinated with the instrument. A few of my friends even played the flute, so I was inspired to learn," he says. Thus, at the age of 15, he started learning under the tutelage of M S Unnikrishnan. After that, he began learning Carnatic flute under P N Krishnan and Hindustani under Pandit Prakash Narayan Saxena and Kailash Chandra Sharma at Gandharva Mahavidyalaya, an institute in New Delhi to popularise Indian classical music and dance, from 2004 to 2013. The 40-year-old artist is now a familiar face at Hindustani concerts across the state. He is also known for accompanying and providing background for dances and plays.
Having associated with Lokadharmi for many years, Umesh has worked for the theatre group's latest project 'Shakuntalam' for which Bijibal was the music director. "I am also planning to launch an audio CD in the near future," he says.
On April 13, the Kottayam-based artist played Hindustani ragas at the Lokadharmi Nadakaveedu, accompanied by Sanu S Jeevan on tabla.