For someone who seeks expression through the non-verbal, emotive medium of music, Ambi Subramaniam — the son of violin virtuoso Dr L. Subramaniam — is surprisingly articulate in the verbal form of language as well. Currently preparing for “Violins for Peace”, a concert that is part of the NCPA’s Anubhuti festival, on January 9, Ambi speaks to this newspaper about music, balancing it with academics and walking in the footsteps of his legendary father, punctuating it all with plenty of disarming laughter.
Why the violin
“When I was a kid, there was always a lot of music at home, that was a very important factor. Of course when I saw my father playing all the time at home, I thought ‘Wow, it’s so cool, I want to do that too’. So he used to have his full size violin and I would have a baby violin that they make for children and I would try to imitate him — very badly! I loved South Indian classical music, so that really motivated me to start playing.”
Other places, other concerts
“Whether it was the satellite-link up concert to Carnegie Hall or the Gateway of India concert in 2003, all my concerts are special... it’s the feeling that you have on stage, when things are going right that makes them so. Luckily, I’ve never suffered from any anxiety. But a couple of concerts were truly memorable: One was at the Lincoln Centre in New York, and the other was at Chicago’s Millenium Park. It was the first time my father and I performed together and also the first time they had any Indian musicians there.”
My father, my teacher
“A bunch of things make performing with my father very special: You never know what to expect. And that makes it more fun on stage because you’re always kept interested on stage. Performing with him is great also because you get to play with an artiste of amazing calibre. And performing is one thing, but while doing so, I’m also constantly learning from him. My father has been my teacher ever since I began learning the violin at the age of four. As a teacher, he’s a little strict, but that has helped a lot. The good things is, he’s managed to keep the teacher and father roles separate.”
Practice makes perfect
“A normal day is filled with a lot
of practice. Normally, I prefer to play late at night because the
day is done with and everything is so peaceful. Otherwise I practice early in the morning. Before a
concert, there’s a lot of running around to do, so I prefer to do just 15-20 minutes of a warm up. You tend to get bored on stage if you practice too much before a performance.”
It’s a student’s life
“A lot of my balancing music with academics comes from not attending college much! I’m in the final semester of my BBM course. Some days are harder than others, but I’ve being doing the same since class eight or nine, so it’s gotten easier now. Music is practically most of my day...in different times, different moods, music is the way to express yourself.”
Musical inspiration
“Several musicians have inspired me actually, M.S. Subbalakshmi, and my parents of course. I think it’s amazing that after all these years and having achieved so much, they’re still so humble and down to earth. Even at this stage, they’re always looking at new things to do and how they can do them differently. It’s an inspiration to have them at home and when I look at them, I know how much more there is to achieve.”