ZUBIN MEHTA:A MUSICAL JOURNEY
Author: Bakhtiar K Dadabhoy
Publisher: Viking
Pages: 520
Price: Rs 609
More From This Section
Bakhtiar K Dadabhoy is alert to all these possibilities. He is quick to acknowledge that his is a living, growing Goliath, present "almost relentlessly in the spotlight, with much of his life already in the public domain". The equation becomes even more interesting when one realises that Dadabhoy's giant, Zubin Mehta, an Indian conductor of western classical music whose fame has crossed most boundaries and is still on the march, recently released his autobiography, Zubin Mehta: The Score Of My Life.
How, then, did Dadabhoy convince Mehta to not only let him attempt a biography, but also authorise it?
One could credit the author's research, as Mehta himself did at the launch of Zubin Mehta: A Musical Journey, Dadabhoy's 520-page long tribute on the conductor's eightieth birthday. Which is no wonder, given Mr Dadabhoy's experience in writing biographies and keeping time. A bureaucrat in the Indian Railways, he has authored a book of interesting dates and factoids on cricket (Cricket Days), a book on the lives of eminent Parsis (Sugar in Milk) and a biography of JRD Tata ('Jeh': A Life of JRD Tata).
What sets the tone for the rest of the book is how Dadabhoy begins by simplifying things, for those not familiar with technicalities of western classical music. He carefully lays down the role of a conductor, his art and a short partly-anecdotal history highlighting some of the more renowned conductors. Even as he documents the responses, the critiques, the opinions on what a good conductor should be, he refrains from inserting himself or his subject, Mehta, into the discussion.
That does not mean the prologue is wholly disconnected with Mehta's biography. For instance, Dadabhoy while talking about the egoistic tendencies of conductors quotes Leontyn Price saying: 'The great conductors have egos that are indescribable. They have no business being on the podium if that is not the case.' Even as the author agrees in the prologue, his interview with Mehta later on proves that the subject does not accept this view. Across interviews Mehta confirms, "…what I communicate at the moment is what I feel and what my musicians need. Because I am there for them. They also appear in the music. One should never forget that."
And then again, one finds Price's quip about egos rearing its head when you read about the controversy before Mehta's appointment to the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, the Concert in Kashmir or his angry reaction to the Morarji Desai government's withdrawal of permission.
Because this is a biography, the personal is bound to emerge, but as the author points out at the beginning, he focuses more on the musician than the person. Dadabhoy is careful in threading through newspaper articles, Mehta's own memoirs, interviews and anecdotes, as he traces Mehta's journey from Cuffe Parade to Vienna, Los Angeles, New York and Tel Aviv, across Philharmonics, and an entire galaxy of music stars. Between his painstaking research, his experience in writing biographies and the hordes of material available therefore, Dadabhoy's work on Mehta emerges as an interesting mixture of abundance and choice. The author, despite gathering a treasure trove of information about his subject, is fastidious in handpicking only the relevant details.
After 25 chapters, the reader has looked past the magic baton, and found a music lover, a man who has deep sympathies for the Israelis, a passionate Parsi and an Indian abroad. He has looked into the shine and shades, and seen Zubin Mehta grow as a human being and not just the leader of some of the world's greatest orchestras. The 67 photographs on eight colour plates add to the vividness of the picture.
All this time one also keeps in mind the author's admission that he did not have "unrestricted access to documents and papers" and the subject has "read the manuscript, made corrections and given his suggestions".
Nonetheless, Dadabhoy has performed a much-needed service to the Indian music lover, as he brought home the world of the western classical music through the eyes of 'our own man' in that world. His propensity to distil technicalities into simple language and lucid descriptions not only help etch out Zubin Mehta's character, it also gives texture and colour to the world the Maestro inhabits.