So far we have attempted in these columns to interest people into the love of music by way of the various methods suggested thr ough these musings. It is, of course, necessary to document the various Parsis who have championed the cause of the great Western Classical Music, either in their capacities as teachers […]
. I am afraid my friend, Anil Dharker, stole my thunder, when he argued brilliantly for support of the great classics against the fashion for only licensing to contemporary music (refer to NCPA’s in-house magazine ON STAGE October issue). I remember a particular incident at Albless Baug, where the venerable violinist, Sebastian Vaz, who taught […]
I have mentioned in a previous article that I would recommend a few performances of music which you could actually start listening to, in your homes, without your children frowning to watch television. But even if you do not face that situation, here is some music that is absolutely wonderful for people who are starters […]
The Creators: Of course, there have been Parsi artists who have left their mark on the canvas of Indian contemporary art and who are a part of the celebrated Sir JJ School of Art alumni, the most prominent amongst them being Jehangir Sabavala. He could be credited with bringing the cubist style of painting into […]
When you are part of an audience for any type of performance of Western Classical Music, it is likely that it consists of a fairly large number of senior members of our community. I have often argued that Western Classical Music has withstood all forms of competition from regional music and in the words of that fine music […]
When Parsi Times’ Asst. Editor, Delaveen, requested me to key in my thoughts on Charity and Philanthropy in the Zoroastrian community for publication in this Special Navroze issue, I thought it would be appropriate to expand on the very enlightened editorial, ‘This Toxic Sense of Entitlement’, published in Parsi Times issue of April 22, 2017, […]
In the last sixty years, the Parsi population in India reduced from 1,14,000 (1941) to 57,264 (2011), according to the Census Reports. This means our population has nearly halved! Until mid of the last century, most families had four to ten children! They stayed together, ate together, prayed together and supported each other in times of […]
Be it New Year or birthdays, the accompaniment to dhan-daar is usually macchi no patio or tareli macchi. You go to Udwada on a pilgrimage and it would not be deemed complete if you were not served the boi for lunch or dinner. At weddings or Navjotes, there are the saas ni macchi enthusiasts and […]
Parsis landed in India about 1200 years ago. The exact date of landing differs amongst scholars but that is not important. After the sugar and spice, and all that’s nice sort of episodes, we were allowed to stay in the kingdom of Sanjan, but with a rider, rather four riders – one of which was, […]
In my last article I wrote about the pleasures of camaraderie and lifelong friendships that are built around record collectors. Sometimes, many beginners get a bit intimidated by what they feel is the cost of acquiring sufficiently good equipment to play their precious records. In this article, I would like to allay any such anxiety and share with you how […]
Last month I spoke about how joy of music, when shared with likeminded companions, heightens its enjoyment, just as a gourmet meal eaten by yourself is not half as enjoyable as when imbibed with sympathetic gourmands. Some of the oldest friendships, that I was privileged to share, were with record collectors and music loving friends. We spent […]