Healing touch

BENGALURU : This year, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, many people have lost their lives and livelihoods. Bengaluru-based doctor-turned-musician Dr Jyotsna Srikanth, who has also played the violin for nearly 300 films under music directors like Ilaiyaraaja, will be playing in support of a charity concert for those affected by the infection.  On Saturday, Srikanth, F T Solomon Shadrach (keyboard) and Karthik Mani (drums) will go online to perform a Carnatic instrumental fusion concert, wherein Srikanth will perform a mixture of contemporary Carnatic classical, original fusion music compositions and a few film covers on demand.

“I normally don’t plan the repertoire of my shows but try to cater to the requirements of my audience,” says Srikanth , adding that her audience usually ranges from 10 to 80 years old, which is quite a broad spectrum. “Since I will be performing a more contemporary mix, I am expecting majority of the audience to be between 20 and 50 years of age,” she says.  Being done in support of CAPED, an NGO supporting victims of cervical cancer,  the funds raised from this concert will go towards supporting those affected by Covid-19 and in need of financial support. “Many people,” she adds, “are affected mentally due to the quarantine or lockdown situation and we hope that through these live online concerts we can uplift everyone’s moods and spread positivity.”

While virtual performances have become the norm in the post-Covid world, Srikanth finds it a huge challenge to perform in live online concerts due to the logistics involved and the safety precautions that have to be observed while playing with accompanists. “Studios are small and don’t have adequate ventilation, musicians can’t always wear masks while performing, all of this leads to safety issues,” says Srikanth, who recently performed at a show after which many artistes contracted Covid-19.

However, she does rue the lack of face-to-face interaction with the audience which is the greatest challenge in virtual concerts. “Internet and bandwidth issues also pose problems. Another big issue is one of raising money through these. The majority of virtual concerts are free and the number of ticket buyers is surprisingly less,” says Srikanth who has earlier raised the issue of performing pro bono with many organisations, even refusing to include a digital tip-jar where viewers can contribute as per their wish to the artiste.For details, check outCatamaran Music Festival on Facebook