SPIC MACAY

How to organize a program

Guide for
Volunteers,
Institutes
& Chapters

Society for the Promotion of Indian Classical
Music And Culture Amongst Youth
SPIC MACAY is a non-profit, non-political, voluntary movement formed in
1977 by Dr Kiran Seth, Prof Emeritus, IIT, Delhi. Its objective is to increase
awareness about traditional Indian values amongst students through direct
exposure to the rich cultural heritage and to make education more holistic.
SPICMACAY has a tradition of service of over four decades, having witnessed
performances by Late Ustad Dagar brothers, Late Ustad Bismillah Khan, Late
Pt. Shiv Kumar Sharma, Late Pt. Bhimsen Joshi, Late Pt. Birju Maharaj, Late Dr.
Balamurali Krishna, Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia, Ustad Zakir Hussain, to name a
few. Every year there are thousands of performances in schools and colleges
across the country and abroad. It is all due to devotion, hard work and
dedication of our volunteers.
Every year SPIC MACAY organizes a number of programs in Educational
Institutes with some formats as given below.
1. LEC-DEMS (Lecture Demonstrations, upto two hours)
2. Workshops (multiple sessions with a group of students)
3. Intensives (Craft and folk with activities)
4. Rural School Intensives (A mission to reach the remotest places)
5. Gurukul Anubhav Scholarships (An opportunity to learn from a Guru)
6. Yamini (Overnight concerts)
7. Virasat and Annual series (a number of artists in a sequence of programs)
8. International, national and state/regional conventions (To review, discuss,
plan, and invite ideas for way forward)
Come join us and experience the spirit of volunteerism!
The SPIC MACAY Spirit
1. Pay respect to the artists, accompanists and all guests.
2. management, punctuality and perfection are key to success.
3. Standards and quality are part of habit, develop in you.
To help our volunteers and chapters, here are a few tips to be adhered to
Travel and stay of the artists
1. Please ensure that the artist and accompanists have appropriate travel
arrangement with confirm tickets. They should also be informed details.
2. The place of stay should be hygienic, comfortable, adequate, proper and
air-conditioned. Institute guest houses (not hostels) may be considered, if
they are well maintained and properly equipped.
3. Volunteers should be there to attend at arrival, local movements,
departure and at meal time.
Days before the program
1. Publicize the program in media.
2. Take a session with volunteers and students about the artist, the art and
distribute duties. Ensure the venue meets the requirements.
a. For dance: the stage should be smooth, even and level. Min. area
should be 150 sq. feet for solo performer, 200 sq. feet for two to
three. (Min. 300 sq. feet for a group performance).
3. The institution must ensure that a green room is arranged for the artists. It
should preferably have an attached toilet.
4. This green room should be located close to the stage.
5. Ensure the local travel and stay to be safe, comfortable and trouble-free.
6. Clear signages should be put from the entry gate to the venue of the
program to guide visitors.
On the day of the program (before the program)
1. Ensure that all artists arrive at the venue at least one hour before the
scheduled time of the program.
2. All local travels (to & fro) should be in well-conditioned vehicles.
3. The artists must be escorted by senior students and/or faculty.
At the Venue: The Green Room
1. The green room windows must have curtains to give artists sufficient
privacy.
2. It should be cleaned thoroughly before the day of the program. All other
furniture and other items stored in the room should be removed.
3. It can be beautifully decorated with welcome posters/cards made by
students, flowers, diyas, rangoli. SPIC MACAY Eye may also be placed.
4. Mineral Water bottles and glasses with coasters should be placed.
5. Typically, a seating arrangement will be required on the floor. Durée or
carpets can be spread on the floor and covered with white sheets. 3-4
chairs and a table covered with a table cloth can be kept on the side.
6. The green room should be lockable from the outside so that artists can
leave behind any instruments or objects of value when needed.
At the Venue: Stage
1. For vocal/instrumental performance, Takhats should to be placed on the
stage. There should be adequate space for all the accompanists. For
comfort, soft carpet/duree/bedsheets should be placed on takhats,
completely covered by clean white sheets.
2. The stage can be aesthetically decorated with flowers, rangoli, diyas, etc.
Candles & matchbox for lamp lighting should be placed near lamp.
3. After decoration, the stage should be cleaned and mopped at least one
hour prior to arrival of the artist. No traces of dust, petals, pins, tapes,
decoration material etc. on the stage & close by.
How to organize a program, (What to do on the day of the program)
4. The institution must provide good quality sound system. The specifics
regarding the technical details are given below –
a. Four to five mikes with small and medium stands, for artist and
accompanists.
b. One standing mike for compere/explanations. And one Cordless mike
for interaction with students
c. Two stage monitors on either side of the stage for good sound on
stage to enable feedback to the artists properly.
d. Artists always check the sound and so they may need a few minutes
time too. Afterwards no change in the settings to be done.
5. Mineral water bottles, glasses and coasters should also be placed in
proximity to the artists.
6. Only the SPIC MACAY logo (Third Eye) should be displayed on the
backdrop. No banner or poster should be displayed on the stage or inside
the auditorium/venue.
7. Sponsors banners/desks (if any) should be put up outside the venue.
Sponsors can be acknowledged in the welcome speech.
8. The program should preferably be held in a closed venue in the baithak
style arrangement with chairs placed on the sides and at the back. The
students must be seated close to the artists to derive maximum benefit.
9. Preferably, a footwear counter with tokens and volunteers to manage can
be established at the entrance of the auditorium, if the concert is held in
the baithak style, else two/three volunteers should ensure proper line up
of footwear near the entrance/designated place.
10. The institution must encourage maximum student participation for the
program. For this, posters must be made and put up in vantage points,
announcements should be made in assembly and classrooms.
11. The institute must ensure these requirements well before the program. The
volunteers should also ensure the same before the program.
During/After the program
1. Institution must ensure the concert begins on time. This is very crucial.
2. The compere must have the bio data of all artists and accompanying
artists. This must be re-confirmed with the artists before the program
begins. All the names/awards/titles must be spelt fittingly.
3. The compere must also check with the main artist the right sequence of
introducing/felicitating the artist. For example, in a Carnatic vocal concert,
the correct sequence of addressing the artists would be the vocalist, the
violinist, the mridangam and finally the nattuvangam.
4. A SPICMACAY volunteer should introduce SPIC MACAY and its activities in
few sentences, followed by artiste’s introduction & lighting the lamp.
5. The concert can begin with the auspicious lamp lighting by the guest of
honor+ artiste+ head of the institution.
6. An interactive question-answer session for 15 minutes should be held at
the end of the program. This often delights the artists.
7. All artists and accompanists to be felicitated at the end of the program
followed by a short & humble vote of thanks. Gifts for the artists should be
carefully selected and should preferably be of some utility value.
8. Media reports and media coverage should be ensured.
Announcements
1. All cell phones must be switched off (no silent mode) during the program.
2. There must be NO movement/disturbance during the program. Those who
have to move in/out can do so in-between two pieces or at the end, and
NOT during Aalap or performance or address by the artists.
3. Flash photography is strictly prohibited during the program. Any
photography/video must be taken with the consent of the artists taken
before the program.
4. No audio/video recording without the consent of the artists.
How to organize a program, (What to do on the day of the program)
Hospitality (Before/After the concert)
1. Institution to arrange for light refreshments such as good
tea/coffee/snacks before the program. Only Vegetarian/Satvik food is to
be served. The student volunteers to take initiative and serve the artists
themselves. This also gives them a sense of contribution to keep up their
voluntary spirit.
2. Bottled mineral water and glasses to be kept in the proximity of artists,
even after the program.
3. The institution may make arrangements for dinner/lunch for the artists
before/after the program, if the schedule demands.
4. The students seeking autograph should be lined up and well behaved.
5. Crowding should be avoided at the entry and exit of the artists.
Acknowledgement
1. The venue institute should provide written acknowledgement for holding
a program to the SPIC MACAY local chapter. This must be printed on the
Institution letter head and duly signed by the Head of the institution.
2. The letter should contain
a. The name of the artist(s)
b. The date/time of the program
c. Number of students, who attended the program
d. Contact details of the faculty in charge of the program.
3. The acknowledgement letters may be treasured in a file by the local
chapter for future reference. A copy of it, by mail, may be sent for
compilation at SPIC MACAY headquarter.
There cannot be a bigger joy than a perfectly organized program.
With best wishes…