Last weekend I had a very enjoyable weekend in Chennai (India's fourth largest city), staying at Ed and Ujjayinee DeGenaro’s house – they are great hosts and really fun to hang with! Ed is the German-born guitar instructor at SAM. Friday we went to a gig of SAM students at the Savera Hotel. Saturday I went to a huge fabric store (a dangerous thing to do – so much to buy – and yes, I did buy a lot of pieces!). We then had a marvelous and relaxing lunch at a beautiful casual restaurant. It reminded me of a restaurant near the Utrechtstraat in Amsterdam – near that old white church - spacious and good food! After that off to a music store “Saptaswara” – means seven notes (the amount of notes in most Carnatic (or most any) scale. I bought a shruti box, so Rocky and I now can accompany ourselves with an Indian drone. We then visited a beautiful temple right nearby – a huge and famous one in Chennai called Kapaleeshwarar Temple (7th century), a temple to Lord Shiva. Then back to the apartment to rest, and get ready for a sushi dinner at a very good restaurant. We were joined by Ujjayinee and Ed’s friend named Anjana, who was really delightful. After dinner we met up with the drum faculty, Phil, and two of his students for a drink. Sunday was a lazy day when we treated ourselves to a trip to the salon. I had a pedicure and nail painting -- all for $10!
Finals week! This was our last week of school, and it has been a great summer session. I have enjoyed the students so much -- they are so polite and interested in learning. Not all of them, however. Some of the students have dropped out for various reasons – I had the highest percentage – three out of four! Two due to illness and the third, maybe, lovesickness. My favorite finals were the presentations by my world music class. The students presented reports on various styles of music from many different countries and genres. They did really well and presented so many interesting types of music, that I was really impressed. One gave a talk on the Swiss-created Hang instrument – somewhat like a steel drum, but much more sophisticated, with a magical sound. Two students presented music from their region in India – the music of Punjab, and Tamil “koothu” music (they almost do a sort of break dance to this) – both really interesting. So I was able to learn a lot from the class, too! With the tests being over, there was only the final concert Thursday night at a club in Chennai. We all traveled back to the Savera Hotel, some by car, but seven of us by bus. Driving up the East Coast Road is pleasurable, watching the activity of the farmers and local people. I saw farmers sowing rice by hand – tossing out the seeds before them, and watched the beautiful bulls -- always so enchanting and many with painted horns.
But once in the city it’s just congestion. It never ceases to amaze me how congested the city is, and how long you have to drive in traffic to get somewhere. The average four-lane street (two on each side) has 3 cars, 4 to 5 tuk-tuks (auto rickshaws) and about 10 motorbikes and an ambling cow. The concept of lanes is of course non-existent -- drivers weave wherever they can and sound the horns when they intend to pass or if someone hesitates for a second. Without a horn, driving is probably impossible. The trucks and tuk-tuks have SOUND HORN written on the back. Elastic traffic. Our concert Thursday night was rich in musical styles. We had everything from African song (Denko for those of you who know that song), to Brazilian, to Allman Brothers, to fusion Hindi and rock, to metal, jazz and Connakol – the Indian vocal percussion (ta ta ti ki ta thom, etc.). My first group performed “Vocussion” which is a piece from Yo Yo Ma's Silk Road Ensemble, and it was really a kick to do that with Indian students -- two of them drummers, one of which has a lot of experience in Connokol. The highlight of the night was a guest who is an expert in Connokol, Uma Shankar. He was amazing! He joined Ed’s groups for two numbers, and those pieces were so exciting! Fusion of rock and Hindi music, Shankar’s energy and vocal and rhythmic skills were astounding. Ujjayinee’s singing of Hindi music was also so beautiful!
The concert was a good way to end the summer session. I will really miss all of the students, faculty and staff. They have become good friends over the seven weeks here. They are so considerate, generous and warm, and we have had a lot of laughs! What a wonderful teaching experience this has been. We have had some fun late night parties (haven’t done that much partying since my Amsterdam days!) – going to the sea at 2 in the morning – the men jumping in and swimming past the breakers! I just waded in, but the waves still managed to get me completely wet! I am so happy that the school is in the countryside – it was quiet with clean air, and so nice to experience rural Indian life. The security and cleaning staff have always been so friendly too – they work hard, cleaning our apartments daily. What a luxury! The Indians may be used to it, but I found it a real treat. Here are some photos of the security and other help around SAM and our apartments. “Nandri” to all of them (Tamil for thank you – one of my two words in that language).
Well, I am off next to the state of Kerala for a little vacation within a vacation. I am looking forward to spoiling myself with massage, wild animal parks and a night on a houseboat on the backwaters of Kerala. And THEN looking forward to coming HOME! — Peggy
