About this episode

T.M. Krishna discusses the evolution of Carnatic music and the complex inter-caste dynamics between mrdangam makers and players.

This episode features a conversation with Carnatic vocalist, T.M. Krishna, who is also the author of two books on this musical tradition. We began with his first book’s account of the modernization of Carnatic music through a set of social, technical, and spatial processes that transformed it from a more socially diverse practice into a predominantly Brahmin performative genre. We moved on to discuss a figure who is at the heart of his second book: the maker of the Carnatic percussion instrument, the mrdangam. This took us into an extended discussion of the changing relationship between mrdangam makers, who are predominantly Dalit, and mrdangam players, who are predominantly Brahmin, and what the complex mix of inequality, stigma, artistry, and pride suggests about the specificity of this inter-caste relationship. The episode ended with Krishna fleshing out his distinction between classical music and art music and the reasons why he rejects the former in favor of the latter. Read the transcript Guest T.M. Krishna is a vocalist in the Carnatic tradition and the author of two books and numerous articles. References T.M. Krishna, A Southern Music: The Karnatik Story (Harper Collins…

People in this episode

Guest: T.M. Krishna

Topics covered

• Carnatic music
• inter-caste relationships
• mrdangam
• social inequality
• art music

Keywords

• Carnatic music
• mrdangam
• T.M. Krishna
• social diversity
• Brahmin
• Dalit
• classical music
• art music

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: A Southern Music: The Karnatik Story, Sebastian and Sons: A Brief History of Mrdangam Makers

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