In the grand gallery of the immortal
Mando composers of the golden era, three names stand out as major composers,
Arnaldo de Menezes (1863-1917), Gizelino Rebelo (1875-1931) and Torquato de
Figueredo (1876-1948). As the basic themes of the Mando, we have 4 types of
Mando, the ‘Utrike’ (yearning for union), ‘Ekvott’ (union attained), ‘Villap’
(lamentation out of despair for the union) and ‘Khobro’ (narratives of event,
political, social, satire etc). Romantic love has two dimensional aspects. In
one aspect it is joy and beauty and the other, infinite pain and despair. There
is singing of the victory of love fulfilled as well as expressions of
unrequited love. These sentiments are expressed as ‘Villap’ (lament,
desolation, personal guilt, despair for the union) in Mando composition and
singing.
MANDO AND DULPODS
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Mando was nostalgically sung and danced
in Goan families and was a central attraction at Goan weddings and happy
ceremonial functions etc. Mando, which is essentially a love song, has in its
gradual evolution combined the best elements in romantic poetry, music and
sentiments, musical expressions of Goan souls, longings for love and affection
(utrike). The Dulpods that follow the main theme of the Mando, serve as instant
diversion from the love scene, whether joyful or tragic, depicting an enjoyable
event from typical Goan life.
Despite the fact that the Mando and the
Dulpods that follow are sung as sequence, the western influence is discernible
in the sweetly sung melody of Mando while it is negligible or absent in the
Dulpods. Mando is basically Indian in rhythm and western in its melody. In its
history, Mando is a product of the educated landed gentry of Goa with western
influences on their way of living. The Dulpods, give a kaleidoscopic view of the
Goan life in general, is homespun, rustic songs of the masses, less influenced
by western cultural influences. Mandos and Dulpods are like inseparable sides
of a coin. Mando sung without Dulpods is incomplete and the Dulpod sung without
Mando is imperfect. The violin and the gumott are the two basic traditional
instruments, a representative combination of western and eastern musical
instruments.
MANDO TODAY
In the history of human civilization, no
art survived without the patronage of the Kings. The 48th series of the Mando
Festival at State level in Goa organised by Goa Cultural and Social Centre will
take place on December 11 and 12, 2014 at Kala Academy, Panjim. But the Goa
Cultural and Social Centre is still in need of its own office premises as it still
has a number of projects on hold. These include initiation of a bibliography of
Mando books and related publications, transcription of Mandos and Dulpods from
age old gramophone records, cassettes and library of CD records on traditional
and original Mandos, collection and preservation of manuscripts, and much more.
While the golden age of the Mando may
have passed, Mando itself still lives as a thing of the glorious past. The
Mando, with its slow motion and rich resonance, registered truthfully the spaciousness
of the bygone days and ways in Goa.
