|
FACING CHALLENGES IN THE MUSIC SCENARIO OF NAGALAND:
HOW MARKETABLE IS OUR MUSIC?
- Susan Waten Naga
Talent is
cheap and readily available, but dedication is rare and downright costly.
Talented people come and go, but only the truly dedicated have the power to
stay and flourish. In general, countless of Naga youths can strum the guitar
and hum a popular tune or two. Many have made their way to music studios
within and outside the state to record albums in cassette or CD form. Many
more have appeared on radio or television broadcasts. Regular concerts, rock
shows, musical extravaganzas and festivals are held in every corner of the
state. These events are patronized not only by the government, but also by
the church and the local populace at large.
Two
distinct genres of music exist in Nagaland – 1) the rock/pop genre commonly
known as secular music and 2) the choral/church/Christian type commonly
known as gospel music. Both types have their own distinct platforms, but
their audience is by and large the same. In Nagaland, the platform for
choral music is created by the church during conferences and crusades
(special numbers, praise and worship etc.). Exclusive gospel concerts are
also initiated by local churches, theological institutions or concerned
individuals. Naga choirs travel not only to places outside the state but
also to foreign countries in order to perform for various world audiences.
Many Naga musicians adopt traditional and folk tunes to lend a distinctive
individuality to their music. Quite a handful of them are trained in church
and classical music in prestigious schools abroad, i.e. The US, Philippines,
and Singapore etc.
As for the
rock/pop genre, platforms in terms of concerts and rock festivals are
created generally by the concerned music fraternity themselves. The Music
Task Force of Nagaland is only a recent phenomenon. The government, and most
specifically with the initiative of the CM, Mr. Neipheu Rio, the HornBill
Rock Festival 2006 was fashioned as a treat for the youth. This genre of
music is able to pull in more audience response than the choral genre. For
instance, the HornBill Rock Festival attracted close to 30,000 people as
compared to the recent Margaret Shishak concert held at the exclusive State
Academy Hall which had only a little over a thousand people in attendance.
However,
when it comes to market significance, it has been observed that sales of
gospel music are comparatively higher than the rock/pop counterparts. The
sales are even higher when the albums (irrespective of choral or rock/pop
genre) are produced in local tribal dialects. Even if an album in a
particular dialect, say Sumi or Mao, may be limited to listeners of their
specific tribe only, the sales of local music in the all-encompassing
English language is abysmally low. In contrast, the buyership in Nagamese,
the other language linking all Naga tribes in a common linguistic platform
is comparatively higher than in English. This explains why Methanielie can
single-handedly fill the Kohima local ground to capacity and also emerge as
the hottest selling Nagamese (and Angami) artiste.
Temjenmongba, a member of the gospel band named Power Faith and also an
artiste producing a solo album explained, “If I sing in the Ao dialect, even
my mum would buy the CD. In fact many Ao’s all over the state would likely
buy it too. But people hardly buy the music produced by locals in the
English language. They would prefer to buy from a wide variety of western
musicians who are far better in contrast.”
Many
Nagas, especially the youth, are not comfortable in singing in their own
dialects, although we imagine that the mother tongue is always closer to the
heart than any foreign language. According to Theja Meru, Musician and owner
of Dream Café, “One reason why we are not comfortable singing in our own
dialects is because of the English speaking educational system we’ve been
introduced to since early childhood. We tend to lose touch with the richness
and purity of our own languages, and that’s sad.”
What about
the inculcation of traditional folk tunes in order to produce a good blend,
a distinctive fusion of the modern and the traditional? We have the tati
and the log drum which may appear very rudimentary when compared to the
sophistication of a sitar or a bag piper. Our folk melodies too appear
monotonous and wanting in diversity. Perhaps a....
1
| 2 |
3
|
4
Next
Page
>>
|
