A great student makes a great teacher
Violinist M Lalitha is the perfect example of a multi-talented professional.
For musician-violinist-teacher-academician M Lalitha, teaching music is a passion by itself. She’s currently a part of the Indian Music Programme (IMP), launched by Swarnabhoomi Academy of Music (SAM). Speaking about the curriculum for the course, which will be starting from August this year, Lalitha says the focus would be on the different aspects of Indian music in both the streams — Hindustani and Carnatic.
“The course structure will have a foundation course programme and a Diploma. Students will be able to learn Carnatic vocal, violin and the percussion instrument, mridangam. Besides these, students will be exposed to forms of sound recording and will interact with overseas faculty,” she adds.
Since Swarnabhoomi has a traditional gurukula system blended with the latest modern equipment, Lalitha believes that the initiative would benefit the student community to a large extent.
“Both teachers and students are on the campus all the time. In the ancient system of gurukula, the guru symbolised the art itself and signified the continuity of the art form to the students. With music being a practical subject, it can only be acquired through direct interaction with the teacher. So, we are expected to teach and involve the students in academic activities in as many hours as possible in a day,” she explains.
Lalitha and her sister Nandini perform violin duets together a lot. In fact, they are called ‘LN Sisters’. When asked how she felt while structuring the syllabus on her own, without Nandini’s contribution, Lalitha smiles and answers, “Though I am working on the syllabus by myself, I always ask for Nandini’s suggestions and inputs. She has great international exposure as she has taught at the University of London and other music institutes world wide.”
Having studied a number of musical world genres, does she bring this eclectic learning to bear on the syllabus? Lalitha says, “There’s no end to learning when it comes to music. But the presence of a methodology for teaching music as an academic subject in Swarnabhoomi caters to students specifically based on their varied interests. Also I have tried to incorporate the suggestions of Vinay Prabhakar, Head of Academics and Robin Richard, associate VP. Apart from the two, Rajini Reddy, Director of SAM, has been a great guiding spirit.”
Lalitha, who recently performed with her mother Subbulakshmi Muthuswamy at the prestigious International Music Festival ‘Counterflows’ in Glasgow, feels that more than anything else, structuring a syllabus is a challenging job.
“Primarily, I am a performer but at the same time I am also a music educator and have been in the academic stream for several decades. We became the first Indian musicians to perform at Counterflows, and it was the first time that South Indian Music was showcased. We got a standing ovation at the end of the recitalm,” she tells us.
Previously, Lalitha had framed the syllabus for the certificate course in ethnomusicology and the certificate course in western classical music, both at the University of Madras. As a Fulbright Fellow and an adjunct professor of music at the University of Iowa, she had structured the syllabus to teach Indian Music.
“So this is not new to me, I really enjoy doing it,” she concludes.