I caught up with Shubhendra Rao, the prominent disciple of Ravi Shankar, on a Monday afternoon in November 2004, a couple of days
after his performance at the Western Front, in Vancouver. He had played at a really innovative concert that stretched from dusk on
Saturday night to dawn on Sunday morning, along with a host of other musicians, ranging from Gregorian chant to modern jazz.
Kinda cool, especially for Vancouver, when things usually end by 10pm... Shubhendra and tabla player Bilbap Battacharya played a
beautiful Rag Malkauns to usher us into the late night hours. Bilbap played a bass tabla, which I witnessed for the first time - it sounded
almost like a phakawaj. Cool. The following interview was taken a few minutes before Shubhendra and Bilbap gave a free workshop to
budding musicians, a few days later at the Western Front.
T:
What inspires you to play music?
S:
I don't know, music is just the language that I think in; the language that I'm the most comfortable with; where I am able to express
myself best. The bonding we share with each other, the love that you exchange in that moment of music, is something very very special.
That, and of course nature. And then the flow of music within.
T:
In your training you've put in hours and hours of practise. How do you stay motivated? When you hit a low, how do you
find the strength to keep on going?
S:
See, music for me is not just a profession, it's a way of life. I can't think of anything outside of music. So whether I have a concert, whether I don't
have a concert, it so happens that it's my profession. I relate to music at a level where, it's like, I wake up, I eat, I drink, I play music. There is
nothing different from any everyday activity. So, lows and highs are more when you are different from the music, but I am never different from music.
T:
Do you have any words of advice for aspiring young musicians, people like myself, and my friend Ian
(Ian is a local Vancouver sitar player who was with me during the interview) who are just at the beginning of the path?
Ian:
A late start!
S:
It's never too late! (laughs) It's just practice... and it is a self realization process... where one can really identify yourself with the music. And it takes
discipline, of course, because there are many many things with which one can be distracted. But to put in those hours of practice, which in turn gives you
the discipline... You need the discipline to do that, and in turn it gives you discipline, more discipline. I have not even done my college, but music has
taught me everything (laughs). It's taught me self-discipline, it's taught me dedication, devotion. Devotion in every aspect, whether it's to the music or
to (gestures all around him). Become one with your music. You have been learning for a long time, haven't you? Practice in the right way. If you practice
the wrong things, then to unlearn is more difficult. Verma uncle is a great teacher (referring to my teacher, Dr. Narendra Verma). What he has given you,
I'm sure, is wonderful. And then, through your own realization... you know the guru is only 10% of the learning. The teaching is just 10%; the other 90% is
your own discipline. The guru only shows the path, how to walk... People always ask me, you know, your guru was always traveling internationally
(referring to Shubhendra's guru, Pt Ravi Shankar), I didn't need him all the time. Because if he taught me one thing it took me ten days to digest it!
And then, slowly, give it your colour, your expression. Because, eventually, what music comes out should be yours. It's a process, to be able to go through
that and do it. A few years, and then, once the tunnel opens up, it's an endless ocean.
