Mukund Marathe (LITE), Part 2 - 2x Jeopardy! Winner, Tenor, & Teacher
This is part 2 of a two-part episode. If you haven't already, check out last week's for part one.
Lite version - for full, un-cut, ad-free access, visit http://patreon.com/peaceofpersistence.
Mukund Marathe discovered Beethoven at age 8 and the Beatles at age 9, and the resulting pleasant confusion has remained with him all of his musical life, as evidenced by the fact that he has performed almost every kind of music imaginable, from early music to modern jazz. His favorite musical activities include the Evangelist in the Bach Passions, Sportin’ Life in Porgy and Bess, Lyle Lovett songs in church, and being what he calls a utility infielder (meaning he sings tenor or alto in various groups). Mukund was a member of the New York City Opera company for 27 years, toured with the Gregg Smith Singers, and has sung with jazz legend Dave Brubeck, on The Letterman Show, on South African television, and literally all around the world. He spends his free time reading science fiction, practicing calligraphy, dancing, making his garden grow, recently becoming a two-time Jeopardy! champion, and explaining to his two sons why people say such Awful Things about Tenors. He says his wife, Mezzo-soprano Mary Marathe, already knows.
Mukund gets a lot of satisfaction out of performing and from helping his students make breakthroughs. One of his favorite breakthroughs is helping them realize how human emotions haven't really changed much in the hundreds or thousands of years that music has been written.
Passing along his expansive view of the universe, he thinks nothing happens in a vacuum and likes to keep in mind a greater understanding of culture and knowledge for his students.
Being a freelance musician has been Mukund's greatest struggle. "The only reason you become a musician is because there is no choice." Despite his love of music, the financial struggle can make things difficult, and he's grateful that his spouse understands because she goes through it too. His family has always been there for him, and he's at peace with the life he's chosen but knows that he'll miss it when he transitions into mostly teaching.
Mukund defines success as being able to do what he loves. His family is a success, especially his two children who are some of the nicest people he knows, and he believes the world is a better place because they're in it. Jeopardy! and Carnegie are things that happened to him; whereas his family and what he does are who he is, and he considers himself incredibly lucky.
Habits or traits that contribute to Mukund's happiness or success?
Stubbornness! It helps him to keep striving in a tough profession. His ability to look at the world with humor, in a "kind of cockeyed fashion" has helped keep him going too.
Although he carries a high-energy performer persona, he has doubts and struggles just like everyone else. He believes it's more important to be kind than to be right, and he wants people to remember him as a kind person above all else.
If there were one thing you'd like the world to see differently, what would it be?
Mukund wants people to get along and finds humor to be a great peacemaker.
Advice?
Life is too serious to take it so seriously.
Thanks for joining us on The Peace of Persistence Lite! To hear what Alex Trebek said about Mukund's wife, his surrealistic riddles, and how he learns motivation through his students, visit http://www.patreon.com/peaceofpersistence for double the content and zero ads... or just because you love the show and want to support it. See you there!