We can see that Nepali music always has had some influence by some of the great literary works, such as Laxmi Prasad Devkota, Siddhicharan Shrestha, and Lekhnath Poudyal – to name a few.[break]
Poems and musical dramas of these prominent literary writers have been composed into beautiful songs by music maestros like Amber Gurung (Kunjini and Muna Madan, which are musical dramas by Devkota), Ranjit Gajmer (Yatri, a poem by Devkota), Chandra Raj Sharma (Muna Madan), and Narayan Gopal (Mero Pyaro Okhaldhunga, a poem by Siddhicharan Shrestha, and Ishwar Tainlay Rachera – a stanza from Muna Madan by Devkota.)
However, today, it’s a different scenario altogether. The trend of literary works being reflected in music is slowly diminishing. Although we do see some contemporary artistes, like 1974 AD (Pinjarako Suga by Lekhnath Poudyal), Robin Sharma (Yatri by Devkota), and Yogeshwar Amatya (Kya Ru by Siddhicharan Shrestha) who have taken the initiative to sing songs with words written by these literary figures, the compositions are very different in terms of modern melodic structures, innovative rhythms and contemporary arrangements.
With passing time, Nepali music has undergone numerous changes. In the past two decades, Nepali music has seen the popularity of different types of music. There was a time when modern songs of Narayan Gopal, Aruna Lama, and Tara Devi reached their peak, followed by the pop and rock songs by Om Bikram Bista, Kumar Basnet, and bands like Prism, Cats, and Brotherhood. Today, we have many new genres, like hip hop, R&B and heavy metal appearing in the music scene.
Looking at the changes, our music has undergone a phases of change; and with time, it’s natural for one trend to come and go.
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With globalization taking a strong grip on everything, and music industry being no exception, the audience are very much influenced by international trends. The type of music our industry is producing today has been to a great extent influenced by international trends. Having been used to a certain genres of lyrics that suit the international tastes, the audience, unknowingly unaware of the lyrical compositions of the great poets of the past, are unable to connect to it.
However, whether Nepali contemporary music has been successful in setting a certain standard is a question to ponder.
“Setting standardization for music is, to an extent, greatly influenced by lyrics,” said Mandira Dhungel, chief program coordinator, who has been associated with Nepal’s pioneering FM station, Hits FM 91.2 MHz, for 15 years.
“Over the years, I’ve felt that there were many songs that had excellent music and vocals. But due to the lack of poignancy and feelings in the lyrics, the songs were forgotten. But when the artiste understands the true spirit of the lyrics, the song becomes eternal,” added Dhungel.
Haushala Thapa, 23, a youth activist and a fan of modern songs, said, “We’ve heard songs of Narayan Gopal, Prem Dhoj Pradhan, Aruna Lama, which are so distinctive that even today they are so close to our hearts because their lyrics have an in-depth feeling and the songs portray the standards of music back then.”
She further said that anyone, regardless of any age group, can relate to them. But today’s music doesn’t have that kind of impact on us.
We have noticed that songs of Narayan Gopal, Aruna Lama, and Prem Dhoj Pradhan are evergreen, and in spite of the changing trends in music, they are still appreciated and heard even today. But there are a few contemporary songs that top the music charts at one point of time but are short-lived.
Amber Gurung said, “Today’s songs lack seriousness and are generally represented by body gestures and movements; their words don’t express emotions with in-depth feelings and meanings. But that doesn’t mean that they lack talent; it’s just their way of expressing music (that goes begging).”
“When I composed my music – and even Narayan Gopal and Aruna Lama, for that matter – we did it without expectations of benefiting from it. We created our music simply out of love and passion for it,” added Gurung.
He also pointed out that when an artiste creates music, he should do so from his heart, not keeping in mind whether others are going to appreciate it or not. Any form of art created from one’s heart is creativity, and anything born out of creativity is bound to be eternal.
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With close scrutiny, when we generalize Nepali music lyrics these days, we often find words of love, life, relationships and alienation being expressed in very shallow and casual manners which generally attract the youth.
Conversely, prominent lyricist Rajendra Thapa is of the opinion that music is an indivisible part of society, which changes according to the change in time and space: both musically and lyrically.
Thapa explained, “I’ve written songs for Aruna Lama, and I wrote them judging the time and situation in that period. Today, when I write songs for contemporary artistes like Rajesh Payal Rai and Shiva Pariyar, I need to make sure that my words suit today’s preferences in terms of language and style.”
A few singers and lyricists pointed out that commercialization is a crucial factor that influences lyrics of today. Music has always had some commercial involvement; however, these days, money, big business and commercialization have taken away its essence.
Adrian Pradhan of 1974 AD fame said, “By the end of the day, everything eventually boils down to money. So I have to keep in mind what sells in the market and have to arrange my music accordingly.”
He strongly believes that lyrics are more about simplicity, creating awareness and connecting to the masses.
Award winning singer Sugam Pokharel agreed to the fact that words written for songs in yesteryears were meaningful and symbolic in terms of expression.
“The songs really used to be metaphorical, and only who had interest in literature would get them easily. The audiences today have no time to stand and stare. Therefore, they rather prefer to go with easy lines than sitting to evaluate emotions in the words,” Pokharel explained.
Although the trend of singing poems and works of well-known literary artistes are slowly becoming conventional in Nepal because of the change in generation and commercialization, a few efforts are still made by a handful of organizations to preserve Nepali literature in music. The recent concert held at Paleti’s monthly “r” sala paid tributes to the verses of Laxmi Prasad Devkota’s where his songs were sung by contemporary singers like Suraj Thapa, Angela and Meena.
“The event was held to remind the audience that apart from being a great poet, one could also recognize Devkota as a powerful lyricist, and that his works could also be sung by today’s singers with a touch of the present melodic patterns,” explained Aavas, coordinator of the monthly Paleti event.
Veteran lyricist Ratna Shumsher Thapa and singer Prem Dhoj Pradhan both agreed that contemporary singers should compose their music based on our old literature as it would take us through that wonderful passage of time.
“But it’s very important for singers to understand that even if they choose to compose the literary works in different genres of music, the real essence of those works should be maintained,” Thapa and Pradhan said together.
All in all, as William Shakespeare said, “If music be a food of love, play on.”
As of now, Nepal is producing different kinds of music which are being appreciated and loved by many. But it’s still difficult to predict if all is going well.
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