Music- be it singing or playing instruments, I feel, is a talent that everybody cannot possess. It is a gift of God and has to come from within. This is a form of art, which one cannot learn. Of course, it involves practice to improve and sharpen the musical skills too. Those who are aware of my vocal talents must be thinking.. what does this lady want to write about music? what does she know anything about 'sur' and 'taal' ? and I would agree with them.. when it comes to the vocal abilities of combining sur and taal, i definitely lag any such talent and even if i try to hum the most popular numbers, it becomes difficult to recognise which one am i trying to sing.. This, i know, coz even as i sing, i know that the tune in my mind and that coming out of my throat are a complete mismatch and am singing completely out of track..
Musical abilities, for sure, is one gift of God, that I don't have. And years ago, I had realised this and stopped traumatizing those around me, restraining myself to listening to music. Be it ghazals, bhajans, hard rock, maestro's instrumental or the film numbers, i would listen to all forms, at times going deep into their meanings and at times just to reflect my current mood or routine or occasion. There would be times though, when the power of music would take over and influence my mood and lift my spirits up. There were times, when I had started listening to tamil and telugu songs as well. After all, music is the only language which needs no translation. It is first and foremost an individual experience, as we experience the pleasure of expressing feelings and emotions, the satisfaction that we feel when we listen to cerain pieces, as a result of our affinity for certain musical genres and styles.
Lately, I have come out of my inhibitions and have started humming songs(thanks to my darling hubby, who would lovingly bear all my atrocities despite of knowing the fact that i am not even fit to be a bathroom singer). Humming songs, I have discovered, is another way of taking my mind off a zillion of things...and who knows this humming might lead my dormant vocal talent to shape in something very interesting...so just wait and watch!!
