Crescendo XII 2023 recently concluded at The Calcutta School of Music. The musical competition event went on over July 22-23. The competition saw the participation of 242 students from across categories right at the entry level and culminated in the finals having a total number of 107 talented kids competing for the winner’s title in two main sections — Classical and Non-classical.
“This event provided a big platform for the students to prepare themselves and hone their skills for the big day,” said Jyotishka Dasgupta, president, The Calcutta School of Music. He added: “What was rewarding for us is to come across such new talents, so many of whom have come from outside our school. It is even more lovely to see these kids getting their parents’ support to cultivate their passion, despite the fact today everyone seems to be chasing marks in academics. Overcoming all the tension and nervousness, they have put together such nice performances. And having a full house of attendees, what would have been more rewarding than that.”
The participants in the Classical section were classified under Primary, Junior, Intermediate and Senior levels. In these, competition was held on the violin, the piano and the classical guitar.
The non-classical section too had the same levels and the participants displayed their skills on the keyboard, the guitar, the drumkit and in solo voice.
Although initially it was decided that there would be five finalists for each subcategory, the actual finale often saw the participation of fewer numbers, sometimes even three.
“It wasn’t so difficult to judge them. The performances showed the hard work the students had put in over the years. And they spent so much time, energy and effort on their music. Judging them was not really difficult. It was a win-win situation I would say,” said judge Mewarika Pakyntein from Shillong, an experienced pianist who has 16 years of extensive teaching experience.
Judge Minette Duncan Marbaniang, a music educator in Shillong, had a different approach to judging the performances. She said: “So it was really difficult to see who was better than the other. All of them were equally talented. There is no such thing as who is better than the other, but in a concept like this, I feel that they all enjoyed themselves while performing. And that is what is important. It’s not just about winning or losing. It’s also a lot about enjoying themselves. And you could see every one of them enjoyed themself and it was such a joy to hear them perform. While judging, we had to look at the technical aspect, the accuracy and the fluency of their performances. And lastly, it was about the interpretation and the communication, ‘What did they have to say through the piece?’”
Said judge Khyochano TCK, a celebrated pianist: “I think in some categories, the judging was in terms of one or two points and I had to decide who deserved it in terms of putting them all together in the end. I had to take stock of the whole performance in terms of the technicalities as well. So that was the challenging part. They are a lot of fine musicians at such a young age. A lot of them played with so much expression. That really moved me and so I really enjoyed it. I think the winners are obvious because even the crowd responded and there was such silence at certain points. I had to look at the notational accuracy and the technical abilities, and then the expression part as well. I had to close my eyes and just sense the notes that were evoking something in me. I believe true art has to evoke emotions. It can’t just portray what the teachers taught you. One has to go beyond that. I think Calcutta has really proven that there is such a fine level of teachers and pedagogy surrounding the city.”
“Getting a prize is always secondary,” said Attreyo Bhattacharya, who teaches electronic keyboards at CSM. He went on: “I feel being able to perform is the main thing. Obviously, today I feel proud of my students who have made it big at the finale, and at the same time there are students who prove to be great while they are practising in the classroom. However, a certain tension grips them when they are on stage. It happens to many people. The more one gets to perform on stage, the more confidence one gains. It is important to enjoy the music one is playing.”
And no matter whether they got the winner’s prize or not, that was pretty much true of every participant — as well as the audience.
Debanjoli Nandi Pictures: Biswajit Kundu, Koushik Saha