Mandolin U Srinivas - premature death of a genius..
The advancement of culture happens not by mass movements; but through the conduit of a minority; nay, a very few select individuals – into whom, an inexorable life force pours everything that she was; far too much, far too soon; mercilessly propelling them into achieving her selfish ends; then, casting them away like flotsam in an ocean: psychologically tortured, physically weak and lost – yet, making sure that the cultural landscape they trod upon will irrevocably remain transformed with their indelible imprint for generations - who would admire with awe over such an achievement made singularly possible in a brief life time of a person. Such is the destiny of a genius.
Mandolin U Srinivas will not play the Mandolin anymore: those nimble fingers, graceful hands, delectable artistry, ripened talent will never grace the instrument again. It is an instrument that found its way into a little boy’s untrained hands when he was six years old, an instrument that gave itself up to him, like a lover in her beloved’s arms; an instrument whose pitch and tone had to be tamed by its indefatigable owner to meet the strict demands of Carnatic notes; an instrument that yielded and flowered into multiple streams of consuming music under the rich, natural and creative genius of Srinivas; an instrument, under his masterly usage, began to rival the violin in its acceptance in the conservative world of Classic music; an instrument that enabled the young humble boy to cross boundaries of Musical genres , reaching out to wider world of harmony and universality - all this , and more is the legacy of Mandolin U Srinivas, who left us yesterday, with unfinished notes and an incomplete life..
About a month back, I accidentally tuned into one of Srinivas’s formative albums, “ecstasy” - one that he recorded in 1983, when he was barely thirteen years old. A look at the discography cover would make one smile; the mandolin is as big and tall as the young boy holding it; his larger black eyes looking hesitantly, perhaps with a tinge of shyness, into the camera; and a whiff of a smile on that innocent face. The seven tracks in the album are not representative of the kind of music that later played through him, but it definitely gives us a glimpse of an enormous talent, almost prodigious, bubbling and effervescing in that little body. The high notes that a Mandolin naturally produces cools down under the touch of this young man. Like a wild racing horse that know the tug and pull of its jockey, one could hear the gentle persuasion of those young fingers on the taut dual strings of the instrument, humbling it to play the Hasmanandi and kambodhi with a precision that is unbelievable. Interestingly, I later learnt that George Harrison (Beatles) rated this album as one of his favorites, and kept it close to him, always.
The world of music will miss him, but as a student of civilization, I draw solace in the fact that he played his part well. His music was his life. Though his personal life was a roller coaster ride, he did not allow it to impact his work, his temperament or character. Perhaps, the end came a bit too soon. Greater and deeper musical realms needed to be explored and expressed, and we would have loved to have a Srinivas unravel it for us; but in the end, it will now fall upon the newer artists to pick up the threads and carry this marvelous legacy forward. That is a big ask!.
I can only end this tribute by paraphrasing a tribute to Mozart by an aging Neimetschek, a close friend and biographer of Mozart, when he said “… if I dared to pray for one more earthly joy it would be that I might hear Mozart improvise..”. Many will agree; listening to Srinivas was as ethereal and ambrosic an experience…
God bless….
Mandolin U Srinivas will not play the Mandolin anymore: those nimble fingers, graceful hands, delectable artistry, ripened talent will never grace the instrument again. It is an instrument that found its way into a little boy’s untrained hands when he was six years old, an instrument that gave itself up to him, like a lover in her beloved’s arms; an instrument whose pitch and tone had to be tamed by its indefatigable owner to meet the strict demands of Carnatic notes; an instrument that yielded and flowered into multiple streams of consuming music under the rich, natural and creative genius of Srinivas; an instrument, under his masterly usage, began to rival the violin in its acceptance in the conservative world of Classic music; an instrument that enabled the young humble boy to cross boundaries of Musical genres , reaching out to wider world of harmony and universality - all this , and more is the legacy of Mandolin U Srinivas, who left us yesterday, with unfinished notes and an incomplete life..
About a month back, I accidentally tuned into one of Srinivas’s formative albums, “ecstasy” - one that he recorded in 1983, when he was barely thirteen years old. A look at the discography cover would make one smile; the mandolin is as big and tall as the young boy holding it; his larger black eyes looking hesitantly, perhaps with a tinge of shyness, into the camera; and a whiff of a smile on that innocent face. The seven tracks in the album are not representative of the kind of music that later played through him, but it definitely gives us a glimpse of an enormous talent, almost prodigious, bubbling and effervescing in that little body. The high notes that a Mandolin naturally produces cools down under the touch of this young man. Like a wild racing horse that know the tug and pull of its jockey, one could hear the gentle persuasion of those young fingers on the taut dual strings of the instrument, humbling it to play the Hasmanandi and kambodhi with a precision that is unbelievable. Interestingly, I later learnt that George Harrison (Beatles) rated this album as one of his favorites, and kept it close to him, always.
The world of music will miss him, but as a student of civilization, I draw solace in the fact that he played his part well. His music was his life. Though his personal life was a roller coaster ride, he did not allow it to impact his work, his temperament or character. Perhaps, the end came a bit too soon. Greater and deeper musical realms needed to be explored and expressed, and we would have loved to have a Srinivas unravel it for us; but in the end, it will now fall upon the newer artists to pick up the threads and carry this marvelous legacy forward. That is a big ask!.
I can only end this tribute by paraphrasing a tribute to Mozart by an aging Neimetschek, a close friend and biographer of Mozart, when he said “… if I dared to pray for one more earthly joy it would be that I might hear Mozart improvise..”. Many will agree; listening to Srinivas was as ethereal and ambrosic an experience…
God bless….
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