Inside Soulfest’s experiment with mic-less Carnatic performance

In a concert ecosystem increasingly shaped by microphones, mixers and monitor speakers, Soulfest 2025 arrives with a radical proposition: just turn everything off. Hosted at MS Subbulakshmi Arangam, the festival leans into the auditorium’s most defining feature — a space architecturally designed for natural acoustics, where every performance is completely mic-less.

Soulfest 2025 foregrounds microtones, silence and sonic restraint

Curated by Gowri Ramnarayan, Soulfest’s theme this year is deceptively simple: the magic of pure sound. The festival brings together a wide spectrum of Carnatic musicians, from senior vocalists like TM Krishna, N Vijay Siva, Sikkil Gurucharan and RK Shriramkumar to artistes such as Vignesh Ishwar, Amritha Murali, Nisha Rajagopalan, Bharat Sundar, and sisters Archana and Aarathi.

What makes Soulfest distinct is not just its line-up, but the conditions under which that line-up must perform. In the absence of amplification, the onus shifts back to voice, breath and space — and to an audience willing to listen closely.

That demand for attentiveness resonates strongly with Sikkil Gurucharan, whose special concert is one of the festival’s anchors. Performing without amplification, he says, sharpens everything. “This being completely mic-less, I think it’s going to be interesting, because not only do we have to be mindful of how we present our voice, but the audience also… they have to look out for those minute details in the presentation.”

He adds that silence becomes an active participant. “There is a lot of silence in between the notes, silence in between the songs, and silence in between every idea that you present.”

Gowri places the idea in a larger historical context. “In the '50s and '60s, sabhas did provide mikes, but they were hardly sophisticated,” she reflects. “Musicians had to depend on full-throated singing and strength in playing instruments.” In that sense, mic-less performance is not a nostalgic throwback but a genuine artistic challenge.

“Mic-less concerts can be a tremendous challenge,” she says, especially in a listening culture accustomed to volume. “What makes it worse is that we have become used to over-loud amplification. The high volume turns music into an assault.” She continues, “Performers must learn to reclaim their full-throatedness and learn to modulate their music in new ways so that microtones and soft glides remain audible.”

Another participating artiste, Archana Bharadwaj, whose concert theme Bhasha explores language as musical expression, echoes this sentiment. “Microphones are mandatory in any place, but we are sure it’s going to be deep and connecting with the soul while we sing, with no distractions of any kind from technology,” she says.

Soulfest’s decision to make all concerts free stems from a desire to widen access. “The idea to make all 11 concerts free came about when we decided to share our pride and joy at the venue,” Gowri says. While she is measured about outcomes, she hopes it will “open doors to more young people, particularly students.”

Free entry. On till 28. At Asian College of Journalism, Tharamani.

Email: shivani@newindianexpress.com
X: @ShivaniIllakiya

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