THE SOUND OF MUSIC
When one sits sipping one's coffee at Alliance Françoise's Café Veranda or reads the various books and magazines, one gets piped music, but there is often the playing of the piano in the background. One can't help but notice the young but serious – although of a pleasant disposition– Sirajus Salekin who has played the piano for eight years for Sheraton, and is a guest player at Westin and the Sonargaon Hotel. He also teaches at the Alliance Française, Goethe Institut and the Russian Culture Centre.
He comes from a musical background as is the case of most musicians. His father composed and taught music, first in Akashvani, Kolkata, and then played for Bangladesh Betar. Mir Mohammed Shahjehan was not prominent on TV being preoccupied with his family life, while his elder brother is a music director there. He did his Masters in English before taking up the challenge of the musical career, with students and listeners galore. He studied at the Royal School of Music, London. He also did a year-long Diploma from West London University.
Salekin personally loves playing Mozart and Chopin, the Baroque and Classical period of Heydon and Bach. He likes Mozart as he tends to stir up the core of the heart. He gives his students written homework. Having finished playing the basic course, his students go on to the advance level. As for Beethoven, he says he has bridged the Classical and Romantic period in his stride. Litz is another of his favourite composers. Mozart's “Turkish March” is s light and fantastic; so do “Moonlight Sonata” and the “Ninth Symphony” of Beethoven. Meanwhile, he says Chopin and Litz had larger finger span, so that this enabled them to have command over the playing of the notes.
At first he learnt at the Dhaka International Music School (DIMS) which had Korean teachers. For him and his close friends like Christer Gomes, who also instructed at the Alliance later on, the place was like a home.
He had many private students. At some of the places he was treated like a member of the retinue of the rich and famous – and this didn't quite appeal to him, as so he packed up and departed at times. Thus his lessons ceased despite the quick buck at that place of the elite.
As for listeners at some of the hotel, these well to do clientele were often associated more with the bar and the disco. No doubt they had some idea and training in western music. But he did not care for those who liked aggressive disco music. He belonged to the mild genteel, sophisticated group—not the Johnny-come-lately of the Bollywood kind. He didn't quite approve of the trend. He had no wish to be trendy and “in”. He has no wish to ape someone. He wants to be himself. Whatever that is—but he is not dour. He loves being jovial with his students.
As he taught at the Goethe Institut for 13 years, he dealt with serious minded students.
There were the exams. There were the text books on which the exams were based. The books like “Step by Step” progressed from the simple tunes to the difficult pieces. The players had to perform before the guardians and the students. This was a formal occasion. This helped them to get over the initial shyness and nervousness. The texts were basically based on the rhymes. The musicians included rhymes by musicians who were unknown to the generation. Meanwhile he has been a teacher at the Alliance Française for two years and at the Russian Culture Centre for three years.
Salekin says that he takes 35 students in each batch there being hundred in all. There are three players per group, each playing for an hour, paying Tk 3,000 per month.
He says that he enjoys the ambiance of the Café Veranda, the mentality of the people who come here, according to him, is genteel and sophisticated.
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