Young's composition is made up entirely of solkattu syllables, which speaks to its South Indian influence. However, the piece bears little resemblance to traditional South Indian carnatic music, and Young herself admits that there is no strict criteria for pitch if performing konnakol (Young, 2013a, p. 2). With these ideas in mind, the question arises: is Tha Thin Tha a quote-on-quote authentic performance of konnakol or is it something new altogether?
Dr. Lisa Koops (2010) discusses four lenses through which to look at the concept of authenticity when it comes to the performance of world music. One such viewpoint she offers is that of Swanick, who offers the concepts of reproduction, reality, and relevance as key components to authentic world music experiences (p. 25). As Koops explains, reproduction refers to historical accuracy, reality refers to whether the musical experience is reflective of an actual musical practice, and relevance refers to the ability to relate the musical activity to one's own personal outlook or experience (p. 25). Certainly, Tha Thin Tha could be considered under Swanick's criteria. The use of solkattu is reflective of the language of the mridangam drum sounds (a language that has been passed down for centuries) (Young, 2013b), which fulfills an aspect of historical criteria and a true musical practice. One could also argue that the melodic recitation of these in this arrangement allows konnakol, an art form that is studied for years in silence even before performance is allowed (Young, 2013a, p. 2), to become more easily attainable and relatable to the performers.
One could equally argue that Tha Thin Tha goes beyond the concept of authenticity altogether. Koops (2010) summarizes this viewpoint that is shared amongst groups of teachers and scholars, noting that the question is not about reproducing a historically accurate performance, but asking questions such as who wrote/performed the piece, in what context, how is it performed, for what purpose, what influenced it, etc., and using the answers to those questions to improve classroom learning experiences (p. 26). In this sense, Tha Thin Tha seems to take the art form of intoned percussive speech and provides a musically satisfying and attainable music experience. After all, the only additional component added is melody, since konnokol has been spoken as an art form for centuries (Young, 2013b).
Still, I see the argument for both philosophies of authenticity. One could fixate on the concept that solkattu is a language that reflects drum sounds and are therefore unsuited for true pitched melody, though one could easily counter with the reality that the different tones attainable on a drum are a melody in and of itself. Additionally, one could argue that adding melody to this ancient art form is a great way to make it accessible for classroom experience, but the other side of that claim is that it loses its historical authenticity in favor of a more melodic, aesthetically pleasing performance piece.
Regardless of opinion, it's clear that Tha Thin Tha is a performance experience that explores the musical practices of South India. Even so, the question of its authenticity to the true nature of South Indian konnakol, and whether its treatment signifies a world music experience or an entirely new style of music altogether, is worthy of debate.
References
Koops, L. H. (2010). “Can’t we just change the words?”: The role of authenticity in culturally informed music education. Music Educators Journal, 97(1), 23-28.
Young, L. (2013a). Learning the art of konnakol. Retrieved from http://lisayoungmusic.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Learning-the-Art-of-Konnakol-by-Lisa-Young.pdf
Young, L. (2013b, July 12). The art of konnakol [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OG-AdpfWDkc
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