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MADRAS MUSIC MELA 2001

The Mylapore Fine Arts Club with a huge membership celebrated its Golden Jubilee this season. Pushkala Ramakrishnan in a chat with K S Venkataraman, Secretary of MFAC.

• When was Mylapore Fine Arts Club started?

It was started in April 1951 and was conducting programmes in Vivekananda Auditorium. In 1958, Maharaja Jayachamarajendra Wodeyar inaugurated the present venue of our Sabha. So from 10th February 1959 we have been conducting programmes in our own premises.

• Who are the founders of the Sabha?

A handful of people interested in music started this Sabha. At that time R Rajagopal and M R Krishnamurti were the Secretaries. From 1974 till today I have been the Secretary. I am proud to be the only person associated with this Sabha for 23 years continuously.

• Any particular reason for starting the Sabha?

There was no particular reason to start the Sabha. A group of like-minded people simply desired to promote music. It was a wonderful time to encourage and patronize music as there were many great musicians in the field.

• What are the general objectives of MFAC?

The most important objective of our Sabha is to promote music. We also have talent promotion schemes by way of competitions for students.  Our festival is based on membership and has been conducted from 1974 for about 35 days every year.

• How are you different from other Sabhas?

I have heard that apart from the membership fees, some Sabhas are charging some extra amount for the music festival. We do not charge anything extra for the season or for our monthly programmes.  We have recognised and honoured artistes like M D Ramanathan and T S Balakrishna Sastrigal even before other Sabhas recognised them.

• What is the award that you give and what does the prize comprise?

We give the title of Sangeeta Kala Nipuna. So far we have honoured 25 musicians including M D Ramanathan, M L Vasantakumari, T K Murthy, T M Tyagarajan, Mandolin Srinivas, Lalgudi Jayaraman, Sheik Chinna Moulana, Flute Ramani, Sikkil Sisters, C S Murugabhoopati, Padma Subramanyam, Sudharani Raghupathy, T H Vinayakram and so on. The award consists of a cash prize of Rs. 5,000, a citation and a gold medal.

• What is the criterion on which the artistes have been chosen for award?

We choose artistes on the basis of seniority and popularity. We discuss our opinions in the board meeting, but the final decision is unanimous.

Posted on January 7, 2002

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