Enthralling the audience by the melodious sound of flute, Soham datey from Indore, won Gold Medal at State level Competition consecutively in 2015-16 and 2016-17. Recently his concert at Rohtak, Haryana for a national level Competition has also gained a lot of appreciation.
He is pursuing Engineering from IET-DAVV from Indore and has carved a niche for his excellent abilities of playing flute.
Excerpts from conversation with Soham-
1. Tell us something about how you grew up learning flute?
I belong to a musical family and have been brought up listening and learning classical music. My father Salil Datey himself a great flautist, never left a stone unturned to mould me into what I am and honed my skills to a great extent.
2. Who is your Guru and how did he become a source of inspiration for you?
My father is my teacher in every field and then I became disciple of Violinist Pandit Ramesh Tagde. He is a blessing for me. Both guide me in every step of my life whether it is music or any other life event. They are infinite universe of knowledge and I still think I have just taken a spoon or two.
3. How was your first experience on stage, how it has changed over the years?
I had my first show when I was about 9 year old, the first experience I remember so far. I was full of stage fear, but slowly I started loving it, and now being on stage is the most beautiful feeling I can have .
4. Which genre your flute like to play most which you find more refreshing and appealing?
I play both Indian classical music and light Indian music professionally but more soothing and near to heart is the former one. Classical music gives opportunity to explore it deeper and deeper and still barely crossing the surface, thus infinite combinations of beautiful notes is something which fascinates me.
Also Know “Kavya Kriti : One of the Rising Cover Artists on Youtube”
5. How you see being a flautist as a career opportunity as nowadays technology has driven music into foreign horizons?
Flute stands apart from the technology and still the technology is far away from creating the flute like tone. Yes, the use of flute at industry level is reduced , but not vanished and classical music is still above any other form has retained its beauty as it is. Now other countries are also getting attracted to bamboo flutes instead of metal one, as only bamboo flute can play classical music and is more near to vocal.
6. In your opinion, what constitutes a good performance and what should be the approach to achieve same?
A good performance includes the choice of Raga or song as per the time of performance and audience. It must have a presentable form, and more targeted at audience rather than the player itself. After all a good performance is good because it is understood and appreciated by audience.
To achieve it, there is no short cut. The more number of performances, more he gets idea of ideal performance. I would suggest being ready for uncertainties of stage and properly handling the situation makes it beautiful because the stage is never as how we project in mind while practicing.
7. How do you strike a balance between academics and practicing flute?
That’s a good question, My mom wants me to be good at academics and dad wants me to be good at music and I just want them to be happy. Regularity in practice is must whether it is for 15 minutes or 15 hours. 15 hours is not possible daily practically but a regular effort is what counts for both studies and music.
Also Read “Story of a Guinness World Record Holder for playing Tabla at age of 3”
8. Any message for the aspiring flautists.
Yes before learning flute, learn singing because flute is just muscle practice the real music plays inside the mind , which only develops when one has idea of how it should be sung.
