SWINGING BETWEEN THE CULTURAL PENDULUM

by Vishal Venkatesh

“I just knew that I wanted to get out there and perform”.

Today, Ganathipan Aruneswaran (known as ‘Gana’) is sitting on the cusp of mainstream stardom and has a long line of musical achievements. 

With 2 Associate Diplomas (in guitar and piano) to his name and having the Robert Menzies College Creative Award named after him, Gana is proactive about taking his enduring passion for music to greater heights.

Photo Credit: Film Drop

Gana’s childhood was one that focused on musical consumption rather than exploration. 

In a recent interview, Gana claimed that he has no regrets for his conscious choice. 

Coming from a Sri-Lankan-Australian origin, Gana’s musical diet comprised of classic Australian hits like ‘When the War is Over’ to the iconic songs in Gana’s all-time favourite Indian film, ‘Padayappa’. 

Having lived in regional towns like Orange, Rockhampton and Young further added a strong sense of perspective on the way music thrived, evolved and connected them as a community.

Gana had truly embraced this.

“I can remember watching Madeline as a kid” recalls Gana, among listing a range of other ethnically focused mainstream material.

Gana believes that his musical expression is not simply a product of being exposed to various streamlines of music and entertainment, but rather an internal realisation that ‘global music’ is not one that mixes and matches. 

Some of Ganathipan's eclectic instrument collection

Following the consumption phase, Gana decided that he wanted to compose something original and fresh to the ear which strikes an unique ‘relatability’ chord with a broad cross section of audiences. 

Regardless of aiming to appeal to the masses, Gana wished to maintain his sense of exploration.

Though such experimental pieces at the time were often composed in isolation, they inevitably formed the backbone of his first album. 

It particularly inspired, ‘Ecstasy’ – an upbeat extravaganza that showcases Gana’s mastery  of the Bul-bul Tarang (an under-recognised North Indian instrument) and his ‘out-of-the-box’ thinking.

Bul-Bul Tarang

“Even in my HSC performance, I did ok, but I just remember that the curriculum pulled me down.” , said Gana with slight discontent. 

Typically, the HSC is a tumultuous phase for most 17 year old teenagers. 

Adding to this stress, Gana felt that the rigid syllabus requirements (at the time) and the old-school assessment strategies limited the scope for his creative voice to fully emerge. 

He expresses that the subject’s mandatory compositions requirements were caged inside niche genres and there was practically little to no opportunity to experiment in a hybrid fashion.

“I felt that I was using techniques arbitrarily, just to satisfy a marker.”

“It was the only time I’ve composed and not enjoyed a single bit of it.”

Nevertheless, till this day, Gana treasures the deep insight provided by his music teachers in Orange. 

They immensely contributed to his work ethos and his fire-like passion to explore larger and more expansive musical platforms.

For example, Gana recalls valuable lessons taught by Marlene Jones OAM and Anne Stevens and the imprint that it has on his music even today. 

“They opened me up to different styles and I enjoyed that.”

Different-natured instruments waiting to burst open from their cases...

“I hadn’t really had a sense of how I would place myself in the industry, because of where I grew up” exclaimed Gana, but these uncertainties were overcome by his perseverance, alongside the motivation and encouragement provided by his teachers.

Soon enough, Gana had to confront the stage of his life where the following question was asked – What is your choice of path after school?

Actuarial studies was the professional path that Gana chose.

At the time of making this decision, Gana was very much unclear of how playing music translated in monetary sustainability. 

Today, he is a data analyst and a living anecdote that an individual can pursue more than one path and attain success in both.

But Gana’s confidence was set on the fact that he still had the bulk of his youth to meet the right people and figure out the clockworks of this path. 

But the right people were beside him all along.

Photo Credit: Film Drop

They were his peers from various stages of his life who had musically banded together in a vein of hope and ambition that led them to ‘Gana’s Musical Melange’.

“Everyone wanted to showcase their own work and were also happy to support what everyone else was doing as well”, stated Gana with pride and dignity. 

They were of different cultures and ethnicities, but, like all rivers leading to the ocean, music unarguably is something beyond categorisation and mere labels.

It is this understanding that stands as one of the core pillars of the person Gana is today.