India, Tagore, Dartington and me, what's the connection?

India 

My father was born in the Indian hill station of Kodaikanal in the state of Tamil Nadu, and lived in India until the age of 6. His father, in other words my grandfather had joined the Indian Civil Service and was posted first to Madras in 1908 and later to Bangalore. My grandmother trained as a teacher in Ambleside and travelled out to India with Lord Pentland in 1912 to be Governess to his two children, meeting my grandfather there. They were married in 1915 and their lives were then bound up in India until 1944.

Tagore

Rabindranath Tagore was born in 1861 in Calcutta, India, at a time of an Indian cultural renaissance, a fertile time for developments in the arts, philosophy, religion and society. His parents were editors & publishers of magazines, translators to and from Bengali, composers and performers, and encouraged the writings of the young Rabindranath, schooling him at home. Absorbing all of this rich cultural background he was seen as something of a prodigy by the time he reached adolescence. His parents sent him to Britain to study law, however he failed after two attempts and returned to India settling down to writing music and literature in 1881. He started writing short stories and poems drawing on his intimate knowledge of the daily rural life of small communities, and these writings are seen as universal in their human relevance.

In 1986 the Barbican Art Gallery
held an exhibition of Tagore's paintings
and drawings

Three years later and with a young family of his own he undertook his childrens' education. This gave birth to a desire to start his own school which he did at Santiniketan in Bengal, the ideas for which had grown from his own experience and his poems. His belief was that "education should be a creative process controlled by the individual's own rhythm of growth, using the natural world as a source of knowledge." His school was not easily accepted as it was unorthodox and did not measure success by exam results.

Briefly, Tagore travelled to London in 1912 and met Sir William Rothenstein, a leading member of the New English Art Club and later the Principal of the Royal College of Art from 1920-35. He was already aware that Tagore was the leading man of letters in Bengal, and in 1910 had instigated the founding of the India Society, aiming to introduce the British public to the arts and literature of India. Tagore's poetry had impressed him so much that he called upon W.B.Yeats to read it, which led to the publication of a private edition. "Gitanjali" (song offerings) was immediately popular and in 1913 Tagore won the Nobel Prize for Literature. At the time this was a sensational achievement for a
non-European and it brought Indian literature to world-wide importance. Having now become an international figure he was knighted in 1915, although renounced the honour four years later in protest at the Amritsar massacre. His school had grown to some importance and by this time he had announced his intention to establish the University of Visva-Bharati, which was inaugurated in 1921 welcoming students and teachers from around the world. 

The Dartington link

Leonard Elmhirst is the link that connects Tagore with Dartington, in fact Dartington college wouldn't have existed without him. Elmhirst worked with Tagore in India in 1921 establishing the Institute of Rural Reconstruction as a part of Tagore's university of Visva-Bharate. He and his wife Dorothy returned to England in 1925 to found Dartington Hall as a centre for experiment in rural reconstruction, education and the arts, drawing heavily on his experience in West Bengal. 

Dartington was opened in 1926 and for its 50th anniversary in 1976, when I was studying there, it held a Festival to honour Tagore.

Rabindranath Tagore with Leonard Elmhirst at Dartington

We were treated to performances by Indian musicians including Imrat Khan, famous sitar and surbahar player, Latif Ahmed Khan, a leading tabla player and Durga Lal, a leading exponent of Kathaka Dance, all three of them working with us as College students.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KCtjrsu4dFk

In addition there were lectures by representatives of Tagore's University of Visva-Bharati, other notable singers, dancers and a leading Indian sculptor attending the week of celebrations.

The India-Tagore family connection

We believe that my grandparents met Tagore himself and below is the programme of a meeting of 'The Poetry Society' which I understand was founded by my grandmother, dated November 1st 1941 which was the year of Tagore's death. The meeting was to commemorate his songs and poems.

By coincidence I became a music student at Dartington, and by good fortune was there at the time of the Tagore Festival. My grandparents decided to give me one or two of their mementos from India including an Indian edition of Tagore's book "Gitanjali" as well as another book of his poetry, the  Poetry Society programme and this original painting.  

"Dr Tagore" by Sudhir Khaslgir

Lost in Translation: A,B,C or Doh, Re, Mi?

Music is an international language. Or is it? From the point of view of reading the notes and playing what you see it doesn't matter what language you speak, but In case you are not aware of the English/French systems and are thinking about learning a musical instrument in one language or the other it could be useful to take on board some of the musical vocabulary you will come across.

To begin with , the names of the notes:

English:           C     D     E     F    G     A     B    C
French:         Doh  Re   Mi    Fa   Sol   La   Si   Doh


Here are some note values and other commonly used terms (English then French):

Crotchet = Noir, Minim = Blanc, quaver = croche, semi-quaver = double-croche, flat = bémol, sharp = diese, bar = mesure, repeat = bis, up-beat = levée, 1st-time bar = premier portail, 2nd-time bar = deuxieme portail and so on.

Particularly confusing are crotchet and croche, which are NOT the same thing but terribly muddling if you are thinking in English and taking part in a French orchestra. Of course the french word 'crochet' means hook, and the note in question has a hook on its stem, so the French do have logic on their side.
Say to yourself 'C' then 'Si', then imagine the mental gymnastics when you are asked to play 'Si bémol a l'oreille' (B flat to the ear, in other words C if you play a transposing instrument which is in B flat). Your Conductor is the Chef, and if you want to know which bar he's instructing you to start from you had better know your chiffres, otherwise when he lifts his baton to start from bar "deux-cent quatre-vingt seize" or "soixante dix-huit, le levée" you may find yourself still scratching your head while all your French compatriots have pretty well reached the end of the work.

If you sing in a chorale you must listen very carefully, if not you could find that you are the only one who stands up while everyone else is simply about to start from the beginning. Or vice versa. The two expressions are: debut (beginning) and debout (stand-up). At least if you hear "debut debout" you know you''re safe to do both. Let's not digress too far into my confusion when I hear dessus or dessous because it sends my children into a state of despair. The young growing up in both languages have a great advantage over some of their parents whose ears, whether musical or not, may never become accustomed to some of these subtleties.

The good news is, however, that the majority of tempo and dynamic markings are Italian so speakers of either French or English who have had any musical training will understand 'allegro', 'andante', 'forte' and 'piano' etc. Bon courage.

Comparing Music teaching in France and the UK

When I first came to France it never occured to me that the concept of teaching music could be so different from that in the UK. I was used to exams, grade 5 theory and music lessons at school. I wasn't disappointed, however, to discover that most French villages have their own music school and make an important contribution to the local community, bringing families together and giving opportunities to all, to learn, perform, share and enjoy music together. The staff are employed by the local authorities, however each École de Musique is managed by its own Director and professional staff who all teach their own instrument. Lessons mostly take place after school and all day Wednesdays and an hour of theory, or solfege, is compulsory for any child learning an instrument, from the very start. 

In the UK lessons are given by a private teacher either at your home or theirs, or you can have lessons at school given by a travelling or ‘peripatetic’ teacher, usually during lunchtime or a free period. Learning is very exam-based through exam boards such as the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music. (ABRSM). Exams generally include three set pieces which you can choose from different lists, sight-reading, scales, arpeggios and aural tests and you can progress from Grade 1 through to Grade 8, although you don’t have to take every grade, for example you could take just grades 4, 5 and 8 if you like. You can get a straight pass, or pass with merit or distinction. Nowadays the ABRSM covers a jazz as well as a classical syllabus.

Theory is taught separately or within the instrument lessons. Here there is a sticking point. Once you reach grade 5 on your instrument, you are not allowed to take any higher grades until you have passed grade 5 theory. If you have never had any theory training you then have a huge amount of work to do to catch up, and the exam board has raised the level considerably over the years. It has now become quite challenging, even for the teachers to keep ahead, so increasingly students are working through the theory as well as practical grades.

It is possible to learn without exams if you choose but you will not gain any qualifications. As always, it looks better to have qualifications and they give an indication of your level. If you have any ambition to make music your career you will not get into any Music College or University without the grades and you also have to pass an interview and audition.

The style of solfege teaching in France varies according to the individual teacher and can be very practical including singing and percussion within a group. It’s not as bad as many people imagine if you can forget the label 'compulsory' and children do grow up with an understanding of what they are doing, therefore instrument lessons can be spent concentrating on the instrument and not on how to read music.

There is no pressure of exams but at the end of each term there are “auditions”, in other words concerts at the music school where every pupil is expected to showcase their achievements and experience playing in front of an audience. This gives an opportunity for solo or group performances. Piano, violin, flute etc are performed individually but for many others it means they can get together and form groups with friends & co-students and play any style they choose. There can be a lot of guitarists, saxophonists, drummers and vocalists etc who like to play together, and at the end of the year, here in the South of France, concerts are held outside in the Provencal sunshine and feel as much like a musical celebration as a demonstration of achievement.

Adults students are also welcome at music schools and take part along with everyone else, so it’s even possible to have family members working together. Sometimes different music schools within a region will get together to form concert bands or take part in carnival processions. On 21st June every year is the Fete de la Musique, where all musicians, amateur and professional get out and perform in all the towns and villages across the country. Here are two examples of keeping music live in Fuveau:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6KuUKXdtfjM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fjrh3qj9AT

If you want a career in music though, you need to study at a Conservatoire from quite early on, where the training is more rigorous and demanding. The more difficult the instrument the earlier you should start. Dedication and high standards are required and after leaving school in France, at least 5 years of further musical training is needed if your ambition is to be a performer or teacher.