Report on Steve
Young's tour of India, sponsored by the Cultural Affairs Office of the
American Embassy in India
Date: March 1. 2004
SUBJECT: Evaluation of North India Program of American music expert,
Steve Young
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1. Steve Young, singer, songwriter and guitarist
from the American south, toured North India, January 15-26, 2004.
Young mesmerized Delhi and Jaipur audiences with five concerts and one
workshop. He also held one fusion interaction with folk musicians of
Rajasthan, which became the highlight of his North India tour.
A. DELHI: Young began his India tour in New Delhi with a highly
interactive music workshop with 50 classical and popular Indian
musicians, music lovers, and music students, many of them Muslim and
Christian minority students from northeastern India (studying in
Delhi) who have an intense interest in Western music. Young gave three
performances in the capital, which included a concert at the PAO
residence to more than 100 enthusiastic high-level contacts and
third-country music lovers. His explanations during concerts and
workshops about the roots of American music and the social and
cultural context allowed audiences and participants to enter into the
world of Appalachia and the south. His public concert at Delhi's
premium cultural venue saw a full house of 400 intensely appreciative
Indian professionals and young people, including many minority
university students from the Northeast, tapping their feet to the
rhythm of the music and asking for encore after encore. Young's Delhi
visit ended with a special performance dedicated to the "fight against
alcohol and drug abuse" for 300 university students at Delhi's Guru
Gobind Singh Indraprastha University. Young, through the lyrics of his
songs and in discussion afterwards, talked about the need for young
people to be aware of the suffering and destruction that drug and
alcohol abuse brings to the users and their families. Although the
problem is not so widespread in India as in the U.S., the potential
for its increase among young people is great, with society's
increasing urbanization and sophistication. Young emphasized the
importance of dealing with the problem candidly at its infancy.
B. JAIPUR: Young continued his North India tour with two concerts and
an interaction with Rajasthani folk musicians in Jaipur. As part of
the second annual Jaipur International Virasat (heritage) Festival,
Young performed in a soul-baring fusion interaction with Rajasthani
folk musicians for an audience of 150. The outdoor amphitheater of
Jaipur's premier cultural center echoed with the amalgamated sound of
the American south and traditional Indian folk music. The
intermingling of the strings of the guitar and the North Indian
traditional bowed instrument of the sarangi to the beats of the nagara
(drums) made the morning mystical. In the evening, Young gave an
hour-long performance to about 250 key Embassy contacts and other
leading citizens of Jaipur, in co-sponsorship with the Jaipur
Festival, leaving audiences mesmerized and asking for more. Young also
performed for 300 adoring women students at the largest women's
college in Asia, Maharani's College, Jaipur, where his music was
described by the college principal as "eternal."
C. MEDIA COVERAGE: Young's programs received excellent press coverage
both in Delhi and Jaipur, including three segments broadcast by
Doordarshan (India's government-owned television network) -- two on
the regional news and one on the national network -- and a four-minute
segment by NDTV 24-7. (A copy of the interview on Doordarshan is being
sent separately by pouch.) Other TV networks like Sahara, Aaj Tak, and
Bhaskar TV also covered Young's fusion performance with Rajasthani
folk musicians. Times of India, Hindustan Times (both Hindi and
English), Financial Times, Indian Express, Dainik Bhaskar (Hindi) and
Rajasthan Patrika (Hindi) all carried stories of Young's performances
between January 16 and 23, 2004. All-India Radio's External Services
-- heard in 90 countries including the U.S. -- recorded a half-hour
interview with Young, which was broadcast on Delhi B stations and over
its External Services between January 20 and 23. Post-produced Span
Magazine, which appears in English, Hindi, and Urdu, will run an
in-depth interview and photos in its March/April issue. Young's Indian
cultural programs will be featured in a new book-length publication
being produced by post on the Transforming Relationship between India
and the U.S., as an example of increasing cultural interaction.
2. PROGRAM EVALUATION AND IMPACT: Young's unassuming and modest
personality, his intelligence and wit, and his appreciation of Indian
music and culture, when coupled with his extraordinary voice,
songwriting, and guitar-playing skills, make him an ideal cultural
ambassador. It is no wonder that he has been called "A Living American
Treasure," by the likes of Van Dyke Parks, that Billboard called him
"a singer of major stature, and that Dolly Parton recently remarked
that "all Steve Young's songs are great songs." Despite his virtuosity
as a guitarist (playing, picking and frailing in numerous acoustic
styles); his sensitivity, humor, and maturity as a songwriter; and his
warmth and richness as a singer, in his demeanor both on-stage and
off, he always remained authentic and true to his roots, demonstrating
an innate respect for others and other cultures. In his Doordarshan
interview, Young was asked what Indian musicians could learn from him.
He responded that he didn't know what they could learn from him, but
that he felt Indian music was the most advanced in the world and he
hoped to learn from it. The response from viewers was tremendous,
according to the network, which received an unusually high number of
positive call-ins to the interview. This comment was repeated in
numerous interactions and media interviews.
Young's humility allowed him to establish a deep rapport with his
audiences, of whatever status and economic level. Young cherished his
interactions and encounters with local musicians and audience members.
He repeatedly remarked on the depth of the response and appreciation
of his listeners, and observed that music seems to play an integral
role in Indian life. The universality of the message of many of his
songs, which concern the human condition, human love and the spiritual
quest, resonated with the Indian audiences. He was curious about, and
sensitive to, many social issues affecting India, such as the status
of women and children, governance, and religious tolerance. Expressing
his compassion on a practical level, Young inquired about worthwhile
charities where he could send part of his earnings as a donation. By
the end of his tour in India, Young was galvanized and electrified by
his experience, commenting that this had been the most wonderful tour
of his life.
During his workshop, he demonstrated his accessibility by permitting a
young guitar student to play his guitar, and he played the student's
guitar. Several teachers and students at Indraprastha University
remarked that his candid discussion of drug and alcohol abuse, based
on his personal experiences, had greater credibility and made a deeper
impression on the students' minds than days of lectures, meetings and
workshops conducted by 'experts' and social workers would have had.
This program was a first for Post in combining performance with
workshop in the area of Americana roots and we consider it an
overwhelming success in reaching all levels of our audiences,
especially the youth. Several audience members and cultural figures in
both cities complimented post on "finally" doing the kind of cultural
programs that everyone could appreciate, and which demonstrated the
authentic, non-commercial "soul" of American culture. Post cannot
stress enough the importance of exposing Indian audiences to American
performers and artists such as Steve Young and others of this genre,
if we want to create a positive mindset towards the U.S. and its
values among Indian youth.
According to the 2001 Government of India census, India's population
exceeds one billion people, making it home to roughly one sixth of
humanity. Just as striking is the fact that 54 per cent of the Indian
population is now below 25 years of age, representing some 555 million
youth. Of these, approximately 12 per cent are Muslim, representing
some 67 million Muslim youth below the age of 25. This is a population
we need to target in programs such as these.
Young's participation in the Jaipur International Virasat (Heritage)
Festival marked the Embassy's initial participation in this
high-profile festival, which has just received confirmation of Prince
Charles' patronage for the next 5 years. The festival director and
public were highly appreciative of U.S. support for their efforts in
highlighting the importance of preserving cultural traditions.
FOLLOW-ON PROGRAMS: Commenting to the ACAO several times on the
interest he encountered among Indian audiences in his style of music,
Young expressed his desire to return to India to teach guitar and
song-writing, and to study Indian stringed instruments. Post intends
to identify possibilities for such continued cultural exchange. Post
also expects to receive in the next couple of months a DVD of a
documentary film on Young made by graduate film students at the
University of Florida, which we can use as with more young audiences.
In addition, the director of the Jaipur International Heritage
Festival proposed that Young return for four days next year, in order
to rehearse with the tribal musicians and create an even more intense
musical fusion.
Post would welcome Young back again either in a teaching capacity or
as a performer to reach more of this receptive and enthusiastic
audience.
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