Aruna Sairam to perform at the Ojai Festival
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By Chitra Swaminathan
She is the first Carnatic vocalist to perform at the international music event
“Two roads diverged in a wood and I – I took the one less travelled.”
Robert Frost’s lines wonderfully lend themselves to describe Aruna Sairam’s musical journey.
Aruna is a traveller, constantly in search of new venues, collaborations and stylistic interpretations. “There’s one life and I want to enjoy my art in all the many ways that I can,” she says, sounding excited about being the first Carnatic vocalist to perform (on June 11) at the 70th edition of the prestigious Ojai Festival in Ventura County, California. “What’s more heartening is being able to present our traditional repertoire at this global setting,” she says.
About the festival that appoints each year an acclaimed music director to curate four days of international music, Aruna has this to say: “It’s not just about what you could add to such gatherings but also the crucial artistic takeaways. Imagine being part of an event that is inspired by distinguished conductors, composers and performers who are known to push creative limits. They help you acquire fresh perspectives.”
Ojai, sitting on the southern edge of the lush Los Padres National Forest, occupies a significant place in contemporary music history with many celebrated composers such as Lou Harrison, Aaron Copland, Luciano Berio and Pierre Boulez making it their home. This year’s festival has been put together by theatre personality and music director Peter Sellers.
“Over the past few days I have been zealously reading up on artists who have performed at the venue and their works. I realise the festival has struck a balance between the new and classic; come up with a unifying tone. This understanding has made it easy for me to plan my presentation, the highlight of which definitely will be the Ragam Tanam Pallavi,” says Aruna.
The challenge of such performances, points out the senior vocalist, is not just initiating the audience into your art but also offering a slice of your culture and history. In this respect, Aruna is delighted that her appointment as the vice-chairman of the Sangeet Natak Akademi has provided deep insight into Indian art forms.
“Diversity has always been our driving force, but only when you experience it, you realise its true beauty and worth. SNA has opened my eyes to several hidden gems of our country, which include folk forms, martial arts and regional music.”
Along with Chairman Shekhar Sen, Aruna is excited about working towards identifying, nurturing and preserving many of the rare art forms. “Also important is patronage to artists. Without taking care of the practitioners we cannot ensure a safe future for our arts. In fact, we are also looking at providing medical aid,” says Aruna.
“I am always ready for any artistic outing or initiative,” she smiles. “It’s fun to be out of the comfort zone sometimes.”