The Gilded Melodies that Grew on Me
Music is a universal language. There are many songs in
my collection whose lyrics are not always very clear to me though they are in
Malayalam (my mother tongue), English, or Hindi. While I drive, the meaning
doesn’t matter to me; the rhythm does.
All the songs on my pen drive – and there
are a few hundred of them, apart from instrumental albums without any lyrics – have
very gentle, soothing music. No chaotic, noisy genres.
When we listen to reflective,
slow-tempo music, our brain enters the Default Mode Network (DMN). This is the
state for self-reflection and waking dreams. DMN is active when we are relaxed.
It gets deactivated when we are engaged in focused, goal-directed tasks. I usually
listen to music while driving. So, I’m not sure whether my brain enters the DMN.
Driving requires concentration. But the soothing music in the background does
help to keep me cool.
Music must provide me a soothing
feeling. That’s the only rule I follow while adding albums or songs to my pen drive.
Religion has no role here though there are plenty of devotional songs in my
collection, particularly of Christianity and Hinduism, two religions that grew
on me by sheer coincidence.
Christianity was given to
me at my birth: I was baptised exactly a week after my birth as was the custom
in those days. Infant mortality rate was extremely high in India in the middle
of the 20th century: 146-190 deaths per 1000 live births. In my
state of Kerala, which has generally been more advanced than the rest of India,
the rate was 100-120. No one could predict whether a particular infant would
survive its first month on the planet. [Honestly, I wouldn’t have minded…] An unbaptised
child would go to hell – every Christian was sure of that. So, in order to save
my soul from potential perdition, I was baptised – just like all other Christian
infants around me then – when I was still peeing in rags that served as
diapers.
Christian songs ran in my veins more
than my mother’s milk. I learnt, as I grew up, that my mother used to sing
dirges while she rocked me to sleep. No one told me that. I observed that my mother
sang dirges while she rocked my younger siblings. When I grew up further, I
learnt that dirges were my mother’s favourite songs. They do have a very
soothing impact on listeners. As soothing as eternal rest.
Listen to this song, sung by the
inimitable Jim Reeves, and see if you can get what I mean. Of course,
certain religious backgrounds and personal childhood ‘accessories’ do make a huge
difference to one’s taste for music.
My mother sang Malayalam dirges. But
language is no barrier when it comes to music.
Music knows no creed either. One of
my most loved songs is a Hindu devotional addressed to the Goddess of
Mookambika. You can listen to that and feel its impact on your being,
your very soul, with its ethereal melody, rhythm, and harmony. Maybe, my knowledge
of Malayalam does make much difference. Because the lyrics are profoundly
meaningful.
PS. Written for #BlogchatterBlogHop
PPS. The image in
the post is contributed by Gemini AI.
Sorry I lost my long piece in response to your blog, studded with autobiographical musical nuggets, in response to your Musical Meanderings. Sebastian. Kappen, when he visited Yercaud Retreat said, " We, Christians from Kerala are all Hindustan. That is why the Hindu Songs from the Temples, vibrate with our Viscera. They are not strange to us. "
ReplyDeleteSo much of Christian art is derived directly from Hinduism! The chenda melam and processions of our parish festivals, for instance. When I hear both church hymns and temple bhajans in the morning simultaneously, my only thought is why they don't alternate it so that it's audible clearly to those who care to listen. The truth is that the church hymns dominate with their decibel.
DeleteMy grandpa and my Appachan had their own songs, which they used sing in the silence of the night or the quiet of the morning: Thmaburanadinayaka.... And Pambukslkku Maalamundu... Chillumesayilirunnenne Kallerriyalle.. " And my Ammachi's rendering of Anganathaimaavil Nu num of yloppilli and Kaananscholayil Aadumeykkan.. Of Changampuzha are lingering.. In my memory.. And I myself hearing singing, " Aadityaprabhapol... Human beings were dancing, before they walked, singing before they talked and pain ting and drawing on the cave walls, before they ever wrote..
ReplyDeleteI'm familiar with these songs you mention here though they hardly resonated with me. Those drama songs were a bit overdone. Changampuzha and Vailoppily were great, no doubt. My familiarity with them ended with my academic exams and certificates, however.
DeleteVayalar was the one who really made me fall in love with songs. ONV, later, made me think of the meanings of songs. I have an entire album of ONV songs in my collection.
Hari OM
ReplyDeleteOooh Jim Reeves - one of my parents favourites and much heard in my childhood - so I understand what you mean about being part of the fabric of being! Mostly I favour instrumental music, though there are choral and operatic items I enjoy - and of course, hymns and mantras of all types play their part. Music is an essential part of making life balance for us, I believe! YAM xx
Jim Reeves was part of my seminary upbringing. What survived after I quit seminary was Jeeves :)
DeleteAs both you and JDM say, music is fundamental to human life. Much more than politics. I wish BJP made listening to music - Hindustani or Carnatic - compulsory for their chelas.
Hindu devotional song alongside the hymns of Jim Reeves .... a perfect illustration of the inclusive nature of Kerala!
ReplyDeleteI only wish Kerala retains this inclusiveness. I know this isn't easy. There are so many fissiparous elements. Too many now.
DeleteI didn't get baptized until I was 5, largely because my parents didn't care. (Not a religious household. The whole thing is kind of a long story.) It's funny how not into music I am. I learned piano as a kid, played the oboe through high school and college. Almost took a minor in music in college. I've taken the theory classes, did the history classes. I can read music. But... I just don't sit and listen.
ReplyDeleteThat reminds me of my attempt to learn the organ. I started with the pedal harmonium, of course. Never went beyond the first exercise simply because I had no musical ear. But I love to listen to good music.
DeleteMy parents loved Jim Reeves' music. I do as well.
ReplyDeleteI have an entire album of Jeeves in my car.
DeleteBeautifully written So true, music isn’t always about understanding the lyrics, it’s about how it makes you feel. Glad to hear Jim Reeves, Souparnikamrutha songs.
ReplyDeleteIf you ever get a chance to drive with me, you'll love listening to my collection of songs.
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