Cabaret in the city

Hindustan Times

a day ago

On the evening of November 30, 1919, the premises of the Napier Hotel near Poona Cantonment were thick with anticipation. Men and women dressed in their best attire arrived in horse-drawn carriages and took their seats in the huge dining hall, which was decorated with fancy lamps and flowers. They had booked their seats a month in advance.
At 7 pm sharp, Maurice Bandman, the Anglo-American actor and theatre manager, appeared on the stage and the audience rose to their feet. It was his troupe's first performance in Poona.
Most European hotels in India denied entry to Indians in the nineteenth century. They organised ballroom dances for their patrons. Eating out for pleasure was still a novelty, and the hotels, considered places for business networking and establishing social hierarchy among the Europeans, were probably not confident enough that patrons would visit their establishment for the pleasure of food and made sure there were other attractions like the billiards table and ballroom dancing.
When, in the mid-nineteenth century, hotels converted their private dining rooms into restaurants, 'variety shows' became fashionable. These performances typically comprised magic shows, solo singing, comedy, parody, and acrobatics.
Another restaurant famous for its orchestra was F Cornaglia in Bombay and Poona. The orchestra travelled to Poona twice a month and performed for its patrons. During the race season in Poona, Cornaglia organised a special luncheon and a 'Diner Dansant', the combination of a meal and dancing, often with live music.
Like the Taj Mahal Palace and Green's, Cornaglia hired resident orchestras until the early 1930s when all three establishments formed their troupes for routine performances. At the Bombay branch, Chris Beard and his Cornaglia's Orchestra performed every night and travelled to Poona once every month. These restaurants hosted American and European musicians once in a while on special occasions.
The Poona Hotel was known to invite foreign troupes to the city. It was situated in the former residence of General Valiant near St Mary's Church and was one of the best places to live in the city.
On June 9, 1923, the Poona Hotel organised a 'Carnival and Fancy-Dress Ball' that included illuminations, fancy decorations, and confetti fireworks. The Broadway Boy's Jazz Band from Bombay performed jazzy tunes, and an operatic ballet dancer, Miss Patricia Gorman, performed a Waltz from the ballet 'Coppelia' (1870) composed by Leo Delibes.
At the Napier Hotel, 'variety entertainment' was organised every Wednesday and Friday, while Mondays and Saturdays were reserved for 'dinner dances'.
The practice of live music quickly became popular in smaller restaurants and teashops in the third decade of the twentieth century, as could be seen from advertisements that appeared in Bombay newspapers between 1930 and 1940. Since only the 'lightest kind' was suitable for performance on such occasions, this music was looked down upon by art critics. But restaurants and hotels employed musicians in large numbers, and these performances attracted considerable patronage.
An article titled 'Restaurant Music' published in 'The Musical Times' on June 1, 1919, contended that the public appeared to be satisfied with what was offered musically because the majority paid little or no attention and concentrated only on the food in front of them.
The popularity of cabaret performances in Indian cities in the early twentieth century could be attributed to better transnational transportation facilities and the opening of commercial avenues. India was a significant market for manufactured goods and raw materials and was a major contributor to the empire's profit-making structure. Commerce, and art crossed boundaries when people migrated from their home countries in search of better economic opportunities. The profits made in lucrative business ventures in India enabled foreign artistes to visit the country.
Migrants coming from Europe and America were looking to find a sense of familiarity in this country. They often sought to preserve a sense of British identity overseas, which made the proliferation of Western music easier. Around the same time, there were conscious efforts towards the homogenisation of cultural products that included the programming of Western music.
The end of the Victorian Era signalled new norms of acceptability supported by global commerce and international connections. The audience wholeheartedly welcomed cabaret performances.
The popularity of jazz in Bombay and Poona was hailed by many. But there were detractors, too.
'The musical fare provided for the Indian public is jazz and selections from musical comedy and tinkling music hall tunes', wrote a Bombay newspaper in September 1920. After some complaints, the Taj Mahal Palace and F Cornaglia started organising chamber orchestras a few times a month.
'The musical fare provided for the Indian public is jazz and selections from musical comedy and tinkling music hall tunes', wrote a Bombay newspaper in September 1920.
But there were detractors, too. After some complaints, the Taj Mahal Palace and F Cornaglia started organising chamber orchestras a few times a month.
The 'light music' played in the restaurants often came under fire. That these restaurant performances were not selected from any standpoint of real merit was a complaint made frequently.
A Bombay newspaper columnist grumbled on February 21, 1932, that one did not ask for concert-room pieces: only for pieces which were tuneful, direct in rhythm, and simple in sentiment. He wrote - 'Considering the vast amount of suitable music in existence from which to choose, there can be no excuse for the performance of such trivial and characterless stuff as is now in vogue. It may be said that there is no good light music being written and that the selection is made from current popular pieces. Of course, a Sullivan, Offenbach, J Strauss, Audran, or Waldeteufel are not to be met with in every generation, but the writings of such men are still available, and surely could be drawn upon more frequently'.
However, the cabaret performances remained popular for several decades after they were introduced. The Indian State Broadcasting Service routinely relayed the performances directly from the hotels.
Maurice Bandman was one of the first to introduce jazz music in India. The concert in November 1919 at the Napier Hotel was probably the first jazz concert in the city.
The musical trade routes established by Bandman and the hotels and restaurants in twentieth-century India have long been forgotten. Their contribution to the growth of cabaret and jazz music in India needs to be remembered, at least once in a while.