'Glad that Carnatic Land is Open to Hindustani Music'
Nazim Hussain, one of the sons of Shehnai exponent Bismillah Khan, is among the renowned tabla players in the country. Recently, for a tribute to his father in Chennai organised by Tansen Academy of Music, the tabla artiste visited the city.
Nazim Hussain, who has trained in playing the tabla since his childhood, solely to accompany his father in his performances, has also played the instrument for films, a major one among them being Sanaadi Appanna – a film considered to be a Kannada adaptation of Thillana Mohanambal. He has played in various concerts at Benares, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Chennai as well. The tabla maestro recounts his experiences to City Express.
First Experience
I have visited the city several times. However, I haven’t kept a track of the number of times. The first time I came here was when I was 16 or 17 years old. It was a Sangeet Sammelan – a gathering of artistes of high calibre such as Pandit Bade Ghulam Ali and Vilayat Khan. I had performed alongside my father, who was playing the Shehnai at the concert. It was a rare and different experience.
Go-to places
Since I usually visit only when there are concerts, I barely step out to see places other than sabhas. However, sometimes I make it a point to visit the Saibaba Temple in Saligramam, because that is near my friend S Ballesh’s residence, where I visit each time I come to Chennai. I meditate there; the space gives me serene vibrations. I also visit the Parthasarathy temple in Triplicane sometimes.
Experiences with Tamil film musicians and Chennai audience
I have played some minor bits for Tamil films, but to recount something memorable, I should mention my recording experience in 1976 in Chennai, I think it was Sanaadi Appanna only. We had recorded in Gemini and Prasad studios for nine days in Chennai along with 100 other musicians. The music director was G K Venkatesh. Ilaiyaraaja was on the keyboard then.
One thing I must mention about the city as such, is the openness of people to Hindustani music. Although deep-rooted in Carnatic music, I like the way they appreciate Hindustani artistes as well.
Carnatic music and musicians
I was brought up listening to Hindustani music, so it was quite a shift being exposed to Carnatic music while on my visits to Chennai. Yes, the style gives more importance to structure and calculations, but one cannot help but marvel at the genius of the artistes. I personally admire the work of L Subrahmanyam for his skill. When he plays the violin, the notes produced elevate the spirit of the singer. The other singer I look up to is Balamuralikrishna.
Future visits to Chennai
There is a dearth of classically-trained tabla players here and I would be more than happy to come down and teach.