The Madras Quartet is Back!!!

After so many years of waiting (practically thavamAi thavamirundhu) for his next album the exuberance is finally here :). So fills my heart with bliss! If you are a fan of their first album - 'Resonance', you wouldn't wanna miss this.

rAgA saga is here folks! V S Narasimhan Sir and the Madras Quartet are Back!!!

Visit http://www.stringtemple.com for more information and to listen to music clips. Or search for V S Narasimhan in youtube and you'll find quite a treat incl. sneak peak into this album. More updates later.

My favourite for now is the Lalgudi G.Jayaraman's thillAnA set to dEsh. Brilliant rendition with a western touch! Love it.

Worldspace carnatic music radio station now online!

Now, shruti is no longer limited to places with worldspace coverage :). The whole world can now enjoy carnatic music 24x7 \:d/.

CARVA @ Thiruvaiyaaru 2007

One again this year as part of CARVA tradition we set out to Thiruvaiyaaru to the jeeva samadhi of Saint Thyagaraaja to pay musical homage. It was yet another soul filling experience. All this amidst the scotching heat. On the first day we were out visiting nearby temples until lunch. This time the smaller temples in and around thiruvauyaaru, unlike last year when we went for big ones.

Since we were not blessed by rain god, the afternoon went without any plans. Of course no restrictions on road cricket ;), while others beat the heat staying indoors.


Like we did last year, there was Nadaharam on saturday evening followed by vocal recital for all those who wished to.

Nandu & Deepu (darlings of CARVA) were back again with 3 songs this time. One of them (set to kamaas) was my favourite and turned out to be a treat. Amazingly crisp as they reached high pitch. Nandu's mazhalai voice was an added attraction.

As to how good they were, listen and decide for youself ;). But trust me, you wouldn't be even a wee bit disappointed :).

1. seetApatE nA manasuna (kamaas) powered by ODEO
2. nAradamuni veDalina (pantuvaraaLi) powered by ODEO
3. vandanamu raghunandanA (sahaana) powered by ODEO

Unlike last time we had three groups this year. The junior group played -

1. girirAja suthA (R:bangaaLa) powered by ODEO
2. thelisi rAma (R: poornachandrika) powered by ODEO
3. sarasa sAma dAna (R: kaapi naaraayaNi) powered by ODEO
4. ananda saagara (R: garuDadhvani) powered by ODEO
5. sara sara samarai (R: kuntala varaaLi) powered by ODEO

And then it was turn for the group to which I belonged. Although our guru had apprehensions that most of the songs were quite well paced and we as to whethere we could keep up, the accompanists came to our rescue and it turned out much better than anticipated ;). Here are the songs we played.

1. rama bakthi (R: sudda bangaaLa) powered by ODEO
2. brOva bhAramA (R: bahudaari) powered by ODEO
3. bhavanuta nA hrdayamuna (R: mOhanam) powered by ODEO
4. niravadhi sukhada (R: ravi chandrika) powered by ODEO
5. anaathuDanu gaanu (R: jingala) powered by ODEO

And finally the senior students who played the main section of the event. nagumOmu was the main piece a must listen for carnatic fans. Its a very rare opportunity to listen to our guru play and turned out to be a treat to the ears for one and all. The following were the songs played by the senior students -

1. raghunAyakA (R: hamsadwani) powered by ODEO
2. saadinchanE (R: aarabi) powered by ODEO
3. bAgAyanayya (R: chandrajyOthi) powered by ODEO
4. marugElarA O rAghavA (R: jayanthashree) powered by ODEO
5. manasA shrI (R: eesamanOhari) powered by ODEO
6. nagumOmu ganalEni (R: aabhEri) powered by ODEO
7. nenaruncinAnu (R: maaLavi) powered by ODEO
8. gandhamu puyyarugA (R: puNAgavarALi) powered by ODEO
9. seetha kalyaaNa (R: shankaraabharaNam) powered by ODEO
10. jO jO rAma (R: reeti gowLa) powered by ODEO

It is yet another memorable experience for us all. Had the sun been more relenting we could have visited more temples. Nevertheless it was loads of fun with so many kids around. The best part of this program is how much it motivates us to play much better than we do ;).

Right now I am just totally lost in this phrase from jO jO rAma - N2 S N2 D2 M1 G2 R1 P M1 G2 R2 S (not sure if I deciphered it correctly, of course with help from lil swarna). Its been running in my mind all evening :) and listened to that song countless times today. Simple, yet so mesmerizing. Sometimes I wish I didn't have to earn for a living :D to enjoy such blissful things in life, but thats far from life. Guess i'll cut it down to this for now. Loads of work to catch up. Do listen and enjoy the music (Click on the title link or here for the entire set) . Adios for now.

April music season ends :)

My weekend began with this kutchery on friday evening by Priya Sisters. Quite honestly I wasn't as impressed like last time. Probably coz I've come to like Ranjani & Gayathri duo's voice more since. Their voice is more retro and classy unlike priya sisters contemporary voice. My favourite piece of the program was palukE bangaara maayenaa set to aananda bhairavi. Plenty of new stuff, but some of those I knew were banTu reeti kOlu set to hamsanaadam and aasai mugham marandhu set to jOnpuri, apart from some tukkudas.

The main piece of the evening was pakkala nilabaDi set to kharaharapriya. And then there was this interesting piece with started with the verses sounding like jagala kuchala. Any clues anybody?

One of the hilight of this kutchery was the violinist. Sri M.A.Krishnaswamy whose style is quite along the lines of M.S.G. He is one amongst the violinists whose fingering is a pleasure to watch as much as listening to it. Just watching them one can say how pristine he is with the instrument. Very calm and composed, he never seems like studying the vocalist but nevertheless gives an impeccable followup on the violin.

Such a pleasure to watch his fingers take flight over the fingerboard effortlessly. It would just take somewhere like minimum of 5 hours of practice a day to get close to that ;) says he.

Saturday evening, it was this program titled "Divine Ensemble" - Laya Mudhra. Rather than singing aspect and such, this is more about display of aspect of layam. I am a bit averse to the nadhaswaram instrument given to its loudness. On top of it, the percussionists seem to be on an all time high. They literally banged left, right and centre. My eardrums have up after the thani-aavarthanam. Gladly at least the bhaagyaada lakshmi baaramma set to madyamavathi was at enjoyable levels. I was expecting it to be along the lines of heArtbeat and hence my disappointment. Fortunately they did play a piece which is great when played with the nadhaswaram - ninnu vinA nAmadi endu set to navarasa kannaDa. A piece that will have almost anyone listening tapping to its tune :). I did make it outside without a headache :D. Trust me, a heavy dose of percussionists on adrenaline can give you a headache.

Today evening it was Nithyashree Mahadevan. Close your eyes and listen to her rendition and you'd proly think its a little girl singing ;)). Most of the songs she sung today were quite unknown to me and my kutchery buddies. So there was just some raagam guessing going on, not me of course :D. But after a raagam aalapanai (set to bahudaari, which I realized a little later) I was humming brOva baarama and she sang the same too \:D/. Guess am not all that bad ;) as I thought. And then M.A.K. on the violin, so needless to say it was a wonderful treat.

I also ended up making some good friends this season. Somehow I don't seem to catch people of my age #-o. It was old folks last time and this time little ones :). Although a bit of a distraction given to their restlessness it was a lot of fun. Hapless mocking, leg-pullings, situation comedies and plenty of ROTFL's, requests and raagam guessing for every song. Drawing cartoons (not me of course) and putting each others names on them with funny descriptions, cooking up crazy descriptions for each letter of our names. Gosh! I am not gonna list the titles they gave me and end up damaging the little dignity I have left ;)), but they really got wacky and gave me some hearty smiles and giggles. Sure am gonna miss them all until next summer.

Overall the event was fantastic. One of its shortfalls was the limited time given to artists :(. Two and half to three hours at a sabha is fair enough but not at a free-for-all kutchery in mambalam. This place has a history of people listening to artists from dusk until dawn, believe me or not. I guess that's not practical these days. But scheduling other programs immediately after a kutchery, esp. when its an artists who can sing for long is disastrous to both the artist and the rasikaas alike. I am not sure if this new trend will change. I do hope that aspect improves next year.

No more kutcheries on the horizon for a while now :(. Which means I am against stuck with bloggers-block :).

Cheerios.

A dab of deepika's kutchery followed by G.J.R.Krishnan & Vijayalakshmi

I finally managed to catch the voice of this amature artists yesterday, about whome my mom acclaimed quite a bit from some reviews she'd read. I can't say about the quality but her voice sounds blunt (not sharp like her guru: sudha), as if air is blown along with the voice. Took me a while to get used to it as it muffles le clear pronounciation. Guess there are somethings that cannot be taught ;). The content of her renditions in terms of the sangadhi's were pretty much same as what sudha does. I noticed this as she sang brOcEvarevarura set to kaamas. I was able to recollect the sangadhies sudha sang for the song in one of he records :D. Her voice is quite timid which I notice as she could not hold on a swara for a long time. Her rendition of chinnan chiru kiLiyE was however quite different and very very mellow.

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And then it was the lalgudi siblings! Pristine in their renditions, I was quite surprised to find quite a modest crowd for them. I guess it takes a bit to listen to the violin having been used to vocal renditions. GnK would have drawn in a huge crowd given to their seemingly unorthodox rendition style.

Of all the pieces I enjoyed raama nannu brOvaraa set to harikaambOji, jaanaki ramaNa set to kaapi, mAnasa sanchararE set to sama (a very soothing raga that I like esp. since annapoorNE vishaalaakshi set to the same) which my friend requested. Surprisingly they did play a couple of standard requests from the crowd and quite honestly listenting to the same piece concert after concert leaves me a bit disappointed. And of course their speciality, a thillana composed by their guru LJ set to behaag. Very neat concert :) with nothing flamboyant to impress the crowd. Truly classical it was.

2 more concerts gone by

It was the mambalam sisters on sunday. I wasn't very excited about em, but since I'd never been to their concert before I just did :).

I can't make a judgemental statement as to the quality of the kutchery but quite bluntly, I didn't like their adoptation of bhagyadha lakshmi bharamma tune ditto for some verses beginning "sambandhi saapidave mattar".

I wonder if thats part of trying to be innovative to gain a great name. Writing sahityam for carnatic though an art has a science to it. It almost felt like something written da todays cine composers - pic some rhythmic, rhyming verses. It wasn't entirely in tamil either, tamilsh to be precise. Some section of the crowd may have been glee about it but am not sure if such a funny track is gonna bring some accolades.

Now this was some concert :). Sowmya and Embar Kannan, how could I ever miss it ;). Unfortunately I had to crash mid-way through the kutchery and endure some glares from many.

The 1st piece she sang after I settled was - nenaruncinAnu, she her rendition was brilliant. I was glee to hear such a peppy one from her :D. The next one with kalpanai swaram and tani aavarthanam was splendent too. Esp. embar's pristine followups on the violin were indicative of his shrewdness. Quite honestly, I'd say he is one amonst the best of the artists on the violin, at least on the carnatic front. This photo shows his studying what the vocalist was singing just before he go on to play it out :). The way he studies and followed up almost instantaneously all through (were applicable :D) was gr8.

All righty! Tomorrow two kutcheries back to back. More later. Adios.

Sudha returns to Mambalam after two years

But not with the usual bang :(. Not that the concert was anything less that good, but it was too short. She didn't even do 3.5 hrs and that by no means is a satiating concert from her. This is probably one of the few ocassion where we can listen to her live for like 4-4.5 hours. Organizers could have given her schedule on a day when hers would be the last program.

I remember her concert two years back which still remains as one of the best concerts by her till date. It was a satiating one.

She began with the same dharu varnam she sang two years back - maathE malayadwaja set to khamAs which is one of my all time favourites. I sure must be blessed to listen to that in almost 3-4 concerts of hers till date :). Then she went about singing plenty of favourites - vaataapi gaNapatim set to hamsadwani, nagumOmu ganalEni set to aabhEri, akhilaanDEshwari set to dwijavanthi, alai paayudE set to kaanaDa, banTureeti set to hamsanaadam, tandanaanaa ahi (brahmamokaTE) set to bowLi, kurai ondrum illai in ragamalika, krishna nee beghanE set to yamuna kalyani, chinnan chiru kiliye in ragamalika and kaNDanaaL mudalaay set to madhuvanti.

Vishamakkare kannan which I was told was set to chenchurutti was proly the best pic of the evening. The lyrics were just superb, naughty just like the title ;)). Hats off to sudha for the choice of such a rare song :). Anybody out there who's got that song, plz drop me a msg.

The last pic shows the crowd standing at the gates of Sri Rama Samaj @ 10pm listening to sudha unable to get a place to sit inside. That should give an idea as to why artists love performing here. The experience is very different for both the rasikaas and the performing artist. Such an attendance from the audience, and that too so much women (as sudha acclaimed) is not a common sight towards the end of the concert. Too bad she had to wrap up too early :(.

The isai vizha is just beginning to heat up. Next week is fully loaded :). More on those later.

On the bright and sunny side of life, all thanks to these festivities am temporarily out of the blogger-block syndrome :p.

Maharajapurams kickoff Sri Ramanavami Mahotsavam Isai Vizha

Oh Yes! The festivity is back with a bang. This is the third year in a row that am be attending it :).

Yesterday it was supposed to be T.V.Shankaranarayanan, but given to some mishap in his family he didn't make it. At first I was disappointed but then I was happy when saw Maharajapuram Srinivasan. For those unfamilar with carnatic mavens, his dad Maharajapuram Santhanam is a doyen in the art of carnatic music and is infamous for owning - "Bho Shambo" song ;). No one renders it with the majesty with which he does.

The concert was majestic with Naagai Shri Muralidharan on the violin, Thiruvaroor Bakthavatsalam on the mridangam and Sri.V.Suresh on the ghata. The violinst's fingering seemed so immaculate, his fingers literally thazhuvi'fying (thats a tamil'ish word btw) the instrument. It was such a pleasure watching his fingers. There are very few artists who fingering is so captivating. I know that at the end-of-the-day its all about the sound, but nevertheless this is something you can enjoy only in such a free-for-all tharai ticket kutchery ;)). Needless to say I enjoy the friendly taunts / exchanges between the percussionists. And yesterday it was a crowd pleaser for what the duo played was as majestic as the vocalist's renditions. Very enjoyable it was, and I know thats a subjective statement so just bear with it ;).

The only songs I recognized were Swaminatha Paripalaya in raaga naattai, raguvira raNadira in raaga husEni and of course bhO shambhO in raaga rEvati \:D/. I almost left the concert just before the last one after a ton of phone calls. The moment I heard he start it I ran back to listen to it, switching off my mobile ;)). Gladly it was the last piece and was simply brilliant.

Plenty of good concerts starting this saturday, so I better get back to finishing as much as I can before hand. I don't know about the artists but sitting for 2-3 hours is real physical drain for me. Glad I had enough space to sit in a different posture every 2 mins :p. Otherwise I seem to have somehow lost the flair for blogging lately. Even been considering stopping it for good, but then I decided to keep it. So no bachoo attempts to write review's / song lists this time like I used to :(.

My 1st pick of the season :)

I'll try to keep this as crisp as I can :).

I managed to make it to Sowmya's kutchery for a start. I love her kutchery for her selection of song. She rarely sings more than a couple of crowd favourites. Today was no different.

Another point that I should make. The Sivagami Pethachi Auditorium is an amazing place for listening to kutcheries. I.e. If you look for things such as plush interiors, comfortable leg space and such things. Acoustics are very good as well, though not the best around. With mostly the elite crowd comming there, it will be a very comfortable experience :). They do not have a catering service, probably because of the expected crowd. So make sure you drop by at Narada Gana Sabha's Woodlands or one of those close by before you hit for the kutchery.

• Varnam: karuNimpa (Ragam: sahaana)
• sObhillu saptaswara (Ragam: jaganmOhini)
• raagam + vazhi maraithu (Ragam: naaTTai kurinji, Composer:Gopalakrishna Bharathiyar)
• shree saraswathi namOsthuthE (Ragam: aarabhi)
• enna solli azhaithAl (Ragam: kannaDa)
• Unakkum Enakkum Isaindha Porutham (Ragam: charukEshi)

I couldn't figure out the rest even with the few verses of sahityam I noted :(. Never been soo unlucky.

But it as a very enjoyable evening. Even the violinist played clearly though I can't qualify it any more. As for sowmya, well it wasn't my first time to her concert, so I just enjoyed it. She sang raagam thrice, the last of which I felt was so vibrant. The song "Unakkum Enakkum Isaindha Porutham" sounded quite like "shree chakraraaja" in Chenchurutti #-o. Waaay off mark. In all an enjoyable evening, after having 2 idlis for Rs 8 ;).

December Season Spl

The festival has already begun and I am missing it. I hate being so grounded :(. Anyway, last year I collected all the kutchery information into a planner kinda excel sheet. I wanted to program it to pick concerts by my constraints, but I really couldn't sit at it.

Here is the link to my Dec 2006-2007 planner. I really found it useful in picking the kutchery of the day :)). Besides, it has helped me cover a good number of artists too. Hope some of you will find it useful. Hopefully by next year, the planner will really do more than just group em all by days.

WARNING: It is not an exhaustive list. I still haven't scratched a few good sabahs, so will update them soon :).

Note: The macro's that are part of the excel are to change the colours based on the day of the event. So unless you intend to edit it, you can safely choose to disable them. Its quite rudimentary, so don't bug me over the bugs :D.

Btw for those of you who feel lucky and can manage to catch it - Aruna Sairam is singing today, the 3rd at Narada Gana Sabha @ 4:30pm. In most likelihood the tickets would already be sold as always #-o.

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2:33pm: I am done with my DC'06 planner :) *phew*. I have tried to put in as much information as possible. I couldn't assimilate all the dance programs though. Hope it comes in handy. Do send me suggestions on how this could be improved.

November Fest ends with a bang

I believe I have already given a short introduction about this in a previous post. I was fortunate to make it to two concerts - In Unison and A Meeting of Minds. The compere is worth mentioning - Mr. Ramakrishnan (the one who acts as sandhya's father in the movie 'May Maadham'), former news reader. Such immaculate pronounciation and his deliverance really made us expect the same from the stage.

BMK was absolutely scintillating in the former program on the 18th. It was amazing witnessing his finesse in fleeting across two octaves. Gosh! that is truly amazing voice. Pandit Ajoy had tough time catching up (like I know a thing #-o). And it wasn't just me who felt that way. Some seasoned listeners said Ajoy's part failed to impress them. The program was more inclined to the hindustani genre for which I don't hold the talent to appreciate it as much as carnatic. Somehow I feel hindustani is blander or lacks the vibrancy that I find in carnatic genre. And being little shorter than two hours, it really didn't feel complete. But my objective to witness BMK was fulfilled :). Unfortunately I forgot my camera so had to do with my mobile. The two on stage were so bright and glittering in pearl white and gold that my mobile saw everything in white :D.


Explaining about the mOhana veenai

The finale of the event was a treat. This was the first time I'v heard the chitrai veenai and mOhana veenai (which is adopted from a guitar) at a concert. The highlight of the concerts was the RTP which began in raagam keeravaani for it was absolute bliss, the crowd completely enraptured. Finally the percussionists taunting (friendly of course) one another by singing and challenging the other to play it was fun fun fun to listen. It was innovative for it is quite uncommon these days. All thanks to "Umayalpuram K Sivaraman" initiation on the spur :). And this just came at the moment when I felt the concert wasn't justice to the percussionists. Lasting almost close to 30 mins, I felt quite content. Somehow I am beginning to like longer pieces (not me playing any such :D) and lengthy concerts.

It was a good prelude for the season. And I really hate being tied down at the start of the season grrrr. Will publish the schedule for the season soon :). Clinging on to get there ...

The Musical Extravagenze Begins

Well folks! Chennai - the Music Capital of Carnatic Music is rising again :). The december season mayhem is not here as yet but the atmosphere is already firing up.

This one is sponsored by The Hindu (Check out the schedule here). Goes by the name of November Fest - Let the music begin.

Unfortunately for me, guess I can only make it for BMK. Got to get my shackles off before the season kicks off in a fortnight. Really prowling to get my hands on the season schedule.

Clasical Raaga's with a touch of Mozart

Finalllllly! Herez my 150th post *phew*. Ooh yess, I wan'd to make it a musical one given this blog started on a musical note :). This post has waited for almost a month now :D.

This is the 2nd project by Tamil Maiyam; their 1st being Thiruvasagam in Symphony composed and orchestrated by Ilayaraaja. As they put it, their objective is to take Indian music to a cross-over global audience. I have some reservations about that, but I do agree with the fact that it takes courage to present traditional music in a palatable manner for a global audience. Definitely unlikely to be endorsed by many but at the end of the day music that is appealing to the ears and heart are the one's that last. Besides people only go for a product based on its packaging at first, only to realize later that there is more to the inside that what was evident :).

There are plenty of articles on the web; just search for 'Mozart Meets India'. So I'll be limiting this as to what appealed to me in this album.

adieu autumn - as much as I felt it was a bit too loud for a starter, it did catch on to me. The soft "s r g m p d p m g , r s , r , s r g m p d p m g , r s , g , , , g m d n s , s s s , r s , , , g m d n s , s s g , , , r s" after the 5th minute and esp at the 9th minute was the most apealing part of the track. The western classical side of it didn't appeal to me as much, and to me seemed to have a different motif from the carnatic classical part.

mozart meets india - speckless rendition as ever by Embar Kannan; his speciality and reputation :). The transitions here seemed more cogent and in flux. Based on the sankarabharanam or the western C-Major if am not mistaken. The blend and interweaving of indian and western classical reminded me of "How to name it?". It was almost perfect to my taste, but for the climax when it seemed to divulge. Quite a anticlimax to such a scintillaing piece. I am drooling over this song now-a-days. Absolutely in lurve with it :x. Oh yes, violin galore. The fading and transitions possible in a string instrument are only limited to the artists imagination.

mystic meanderings - I normally don't trip on songs by O.S.Arun probably given to my preconceived notion that his singing is more ghazal / hindustani type. Though the starting was not all that impressive, it caught on withing a few hearings. The songs quite easy on the listener. The m p m p g m g m m n r n r m , , g , , r , , , s sounds soo divine. p d n s , , n r s n d p m g m d sequence is equally blissful.

smile of the lotus - definitely bears the aura of the tracks title, and yet not all too unfamiliar. With a few hearings I guess most people can find what this is just from the initial raagam, given the popularity of the song. "Enna thavan seidhanai yeshodha" with its twists and turns, *phew* glad it didn't become all too meaningless. It has left a smile on most people I'v known. Really lovely piece on the veenai. Classy track on the string's again.

hymn of silence - this was the track that least appealed to me :(, oh yeah it was the hindustani type. Its a nice piece just but not my kind. Feels like being a in durbar everytime I listen to such.

yAthum oore - this is the most peppy track in the album, in most likelihood to be well received by a wide audience. Oh yes :), you can't resist from dancing once the music starts, he he. A blissful beginning quite common from fimly music, yet leaves you tranquil. Don't let Kadri Ji's mellow start make you judge all too soon, wait till the heat builds on. Seemed somewhat familiar at first, aaaahmmmm :-? like something were changed from the famous swarajathi - rAra vEnugOpa baala. Afterall its the same raagam \:D/. The violin interlude (6:20-7:00) in all western style was galore. The vibrato / tremelo which I always enjoy was done in style. As my aunt used to say, at the high octave it does sound like a cat ;)).

Dedicated to late M.S.Subbulakshmi Amma

Today, 16th September is the Birth Anniversary of The Nightingale of Carnatic Music. Time wouldn't suffice for people to express what she means to us. This post was queued to be my 150th post but this occasion called for something special so here it goes.

Thanks to Archana hosting Love Beat @ (Enjoi pannelam everyday, namda city namba life) Radio City 107.8FM, for the information. Also got to know that the diva married the man she loved ;), now how many knew that?

Origin of Maithreem Bhajatha from VVS

This blog started off with a musical note and so did this year, me listening and having got blessings from Lalgudi Ji performing with his son & daughter (guess that is the last of the concert of his I'd get to attend :(). In fact it has been a musically sound year for me :). So after a long while here is a resurrection of my musically inclined posts.


VVS under the aegis of Paramacharya

Today (Jul 29) it was Kutchery by Violin Maestro Sri V.V.Subramaniam as part of the Anusham Chamber Concerts at a marriage hall within two minutes walking distance from home. This can happen in no other place on this planet but chennai - the world capital for Carnatic Music.


VVS in all his majesty

Upon request for an anecdote, Sri VVS choose to tell about his experience with Paramacharya and the origin of the this song. Most people would be aware that Paramacharya (more prevalently quoted as Sri Chandrasekharendra Saraswathi) had composed this song. But here is the context in which it happened as Sri VVS narated it.

It was when MS Amma (that is how our late 'nightingale' voice was addressed by musicians and all) along with Sri VSS and kuzhuvinar were stationed at Kaalahasthi for their concert performance. Coincidentally Maha-Periyeva was there one his tour and happened to listen to it as he went around the place in circles. After fulfilling the sages request for a piece in shankaraabharaNam, they were called upon into a small cave like place. The acharya addressed to MS Amma the following message - "You will be performing at the UN which is a world organization for peace. I shall give you the saahityam (verses) for a song I would like you to sing there". And the great sage had sung this song for this group for them to write it down and render it to the world. This is the greatest blessing any person could get in life. I wonder how it must have felt :-?, like god himself making his request probably :).

This is how the song was born whose title bears the meaning - "O World! Cultivate peace" (more on its meaning here).

You might be perplexed having read some of my previous post as to my reverence for paramacharya. To me he is the epitome of godliness in human form and a personal incident of our family as well. My folks are ardent devotees of the Kanchi Mutt and an annual visit or more was customary. Way before I was born my grandfather had our ancestral house at perumthottam. Our family had sold it and moved to the city when my grandfather got employed. On a later visit the reticent sage who rarely speaks out questioned my grandpa - "did you sell your house to in a moody tone?". Startled my grandpa explaind that it was not direct but eventually it had landed in his hands. And NO, this was not like the 60% match that happens when you go for some form of horoscope. He was spot on and he turned away to his business.

The reason for my reverence is for the purity and exemplarary example he set for millions of his followers. A highly knowledgeable person in scriptures and otherwise, he was known to be a voracious reader too. I have no clue as to why, but everytime I see his real life photo I keep staring at it oblivious to the world around me. No words to explain the feeling, no words to quantify the acharya. I would like to believe that he was god personified in this era.

Needless to say the concert was fantastic though short. Only three of those songs Sri. VVS rendered were ones I knew, though I couldn't recollect the names right away.

GnK - A Scintillating Experience (13th April 2006)

They were simply brilliant :). A concert from which I returned completely satiated ;). This beat their previous concert that I attended during the seasonfor two main reasons - the percussionist and stage chemistry. The concert did start a little late and was over by close to 10pm. Trust me I was tired with a mild headache (thanks to having sat upfront, and that knocking thavil sound just starts hurting after a few hours).

Four hands seemlessly Deft with the Strings :)

The hearts on and off stage were set on fire. To add a little variety to it Ganesh does sing a few songs, and some in parts. This time he sang 'nee dhayachE rAma', tho it may not sound all too brilliant as seasoned vocal singers it would be a nice surprise to the rasikaas.

Ganesh Singing :-"

One of the best things that I like about these people is the creativity that they add to the whole concert. Musicians may not be very appreciative of their off-beat gimicks on the violin, but I enjoy the effects that thy bring about. And the definite advantage of doing it in a pair, being able to layer sounds leaves you in awe.

Kumaresh & Maestro A.K.Palanivel combo

But unmistakeably the best part of the evening was the percussionist. Maestro AKP pathi sollave veendam ;). He was just pushing the limits this evening. The part where I did see people slip was the Ganesh-Sathish & Kumaresh-AKP combo. The violins took the lead and occasionally the percussinist went amiss to follow up. So much so, there was even once when Ganesh took off before Kumaresh finished his part. But the beauty is of course how seemlessly they cover if up, with just smiles and glares exchanged.

Ganesh & Satishkumar taking the lead

And yes, I cannot close this without mentioning the percussionist's interplay. The volleys were like a long rally in a tennis match, each opponent trying to outwit the other. The math and timing they brought out were so innovative that the wah's and bale's comming from waaay back could be heard distinctly. And what else would follow such an enthralling performance? It was just short of a standing ovation to them, the junta just went on with their applause for over a minute. Thats a rarity in the middle of a concert.

Kumaresh appreciating & enjoing the volleys by the percussionists ;)

Apart from all the usual ingredients of calibre, what made this kutcheri a good one was the stage chemistry. No matter how good the artists on stage are, without the sense of appreciation (glances, smiles, "sabash's" etc) between the artists it looks so unalive :-|. GnK's concert during season was a bit such, tho the duo made it up. But this was brilliant =D>.

Briefly said, their rendition of banTu reeti was amazingly grooovy, 4 stars for it :) from the crowd. And the interplay in pairs for 'kaligiyunTEgadaa' was very enticing, for it kept the crowd rapt all through. And then their own composition called 'Modern English' was very interesting, a delight for the makkal. It sounded more along the grooviness of "English Notes", their rendition of which again is quite unique compared to others. And finally the one played just before the mangalam was resplendent. My favourite of them all I should say, and it left me so happy and content.

A briefing on the songs played (and sung)

1. Varnam (R: kalyAni)
2. rAma Nipai tanaku (R: kEdaaram)
3. banTu reeti kOlu (R: hamsaanandam)
4. nee dhayachE rAma (R: yadukula kaambhOji)
5. (R: poorvi kalyAni)
6. maamava paTTaabhiraama (R: maNirangu)
7. En paLLi koNDeerayyaa (R: mOhanam)
8. kaligiyunTEgadaa (R: keeravaaNi)
9. ??
10. manasa sanchararE (R: shyaamaa)
11. chinnan chiru kiliye
12. kurai Onrum illai
13. Modern English (composed by GnK)
14. ??
15. ?? (I am crazy over this one but no one seems to be able to find it out ... help plz? ... can send a clip of the track)
    
16. mangalam
    

this is SamY, reporting from Sri Rama Samaj, West Mambalam, Chennai (11th April 2006)

Priya Sisters on an Impression Spree (April 11th 2006)

It kick started shortly past 7pm and closed shortly before 10:30pm, *P H E W*. I was tired if not them, and yes it was impressive tho it didn't beat the best :D. My first kutchery of them and it did not disappoint me a bit. Nothing facinating and yet it was just sweet.

Fresh in lovely blues with the kuzhuvinar

The one thing that lacked in the kutchery was stage chemistry. Its not like listening to some record, its live and sitting like zombies doesn't look good. For almost an hour and half there was tending to zero share of stare's / appreciation (but among the percussionist). Skanda subramanian is very lively and always has a smile to exchange, only if someone would receive it. After 8:30 tho the stage came alive. That undermined whatever performance the sisters gave.

Engrossed :-"

Their singing is very soft and it not a kind that throws enegry at the crowd. I'v had the opportunity to see Sudha & T.M.K. profusion and energy when they sing. The squeeze the last bit out for the crowd. In the end what gains repute is quality with maximized quantity. T.M.K's concert has been acclaimed as one of the best here, and sudha just beats em all for she is a natural crowd puller. I realized why :).

Vapid as they conjure up the tukkadas

The tukkada's disappointed me the most. Maybe coz I am a bit used to sudha's rendition, but the colour that she adds to em was grossly missing for it seemed so banal. If that was trying to impress the crowd, well then I wasn't impressed (not that I am of any stature to say so). The rest by far was wonderful.

One of the best part is since they are a duo, they sing like a relay race. And the two voices to bring in some overlays (ppl found of A.R.R. would love that) and singing at different octaves at times proved brilliant. With two people to take the share they outlasted most. The little one of the two played quite a bit of the lead, today atleast.

And the other celebrity of the night was this little kid who goes by the name sriram. I'd rather call him Mr.Curious with the camera :)). He just wan'd to click away the evening so I let him have a little tour with all his haphazard photography. Once that stopped he got restless and wan'd to draw on my diary ... and lo he drew lord hanuman \:D/. I was elated.

Naughty throughout :)

I have no clue as to what his grandma told him, but he went upto the stage and vanangeefied the sisters and just flit from the scene ;)). What a doll!!! The sisters were baffled and exchanged their shock and smirk while singing. And yeah, my camera is still in one piece :D.

Here is a summary of the songs -

1. vanajAkshi ninnE kOri (R: reeti gowLa) tentatively
2. thathvamariya tharama (R: reeti gowLa)
3. teliyalEru raama (R: dhEnuka)
4. ??
5. Etaavuna nErcitivO (R: yedikula kaambOdhi)
6. dhEvaadhi dhEvaa (R: sunaada vinOdhini)
7. paal vaDiyum mugam (R naaTTai kurinji)
8. paripurNa kaama baavamuna (R: poorvi kalyaaNi)
9. ??
   
10. aruL sEiya vendum aiyA (R: rasikapriyaa)
11. nannu paalimpa (R: mOhanam)
12. ??
13. kurai Ondrum illai
14. theeradha vilayattu pillai
15. mudhakeratha modakaam (slokam)
16. thandananaa abi
17. ??
18. chinnan chiru kiliye
19. aasai mugham marandhu (R: jOnpuri)
20. ??
21. gOvindam gOkulanandam ... Om namo bhagavate vaasudeevye (slokam)
22. ??
23. ??
24. kanda naal mudelai (any one knows in what raagam this song goes traditionally??)
    
25. mangalam
    

The Troup:
Priya Sisters - Vocal
Sri M.A.Krishnaswami - Violin
Neyveli Sri S.Skanda subramanian - Mridangam
Sri S.V.Ramani - Ghatam

so next stop with GnK (Ganesh & Kumaresh) on turssday

this is SamY, reporting from Sri Rama Samaj, West Mambalam, Chennai (11th April 2006)

Makkal roar for T.M.Krishna & Kuzhuvinar (8th April 2006)

My only penchance with my december season spree was I missed a few artists I hoped to attend. TMK was on top of that list and now I realize I did miss something. This was acclaimed by many as one of the top kutcheris given in the recent past of the rAma navami utsavam (sudha is still unbeaten, for the huuuuge mandapam looked like pallavan bus 12G, yes the fetid smell inclusive). The crowd was also very mixed. I was surprised to see a whole lot of school kids today, and of course the old patrons and pedestrians as I.

Enchanting the crowd

To the disappointment of we junta, it started half hour late (T.Nagar traffic jam was blamed for it) and the length brought down to two and half house :(, which is quite less for such emminent artists. All thanks to a bhajan to go all night until the cock koovifies in the morning, it was wrapped up by 9. Nevertheless it was a enjoyable all through.

from where I listened to

The man has astounding enegry *hats off to him*. He was bustling from the start to the finish with only some short respites in between, to brush off the sweat and such. Unforgiving voice, esp when he went almost as low as the lower rishabam/sadjamam :-o, topped it all. Plausibly there was only one place where his voice didn't quite listen to him :( I think, when he was peaking. Choice of songs were simply amazing, esp. his mangalam in praise of lord rAma was groovy :-", and the crowd just lovvved it for it was so befitting for the ocassion.

Majestic tunes to follow

As for the violinist :), I was simply admiring his majestic posture once in a while. Not a wee bit slouching :-o, for the entire session. The mridangist, ghatam combo today was scintillating. Crowd went gaga for it :)). I can't say if it was flawless, but it was much more coherent than the previous concert - the orchestration between the two. The whole crew made the even very vibrant.

If a casual listener as I could enjoy the concert this much, then imagine how it would be for the mavens out there. Best of all, its free :D. Simply brilliant. But am still wondering what all those Bose equipment (the white kits) were doing up front :-?.

Here is a summary of the songs -

1. rAma nannu brOvarA
2. teliyalEru rAma
3. rAma ninnE tentatively (R: husEni)
4. sri rAmam ravikula sOmam
5. ?? (with verses as - shrE rAja gOpAla bAla)
6. ?? (with verses as - sambase kousalya)
7. raamajOgi mandhu (R: kamaas)
8. pibarE raama rasam
9. rAmachandra janaka (R: kurinji)

The Troup:
Sri T.M.Krishna - Vocal
Sri S.Varadarajan - Violin
Srimushnam Sri V.Raja Rao - Mridangam
Sri E.M.Subramaniam - Ghatam

so next stop with Priya Sisters on tuesday

this is SamY, reporting from Sri Rama Samaj, West Mambalam, Chennai (8th April 2006)

Bombay Sisters opening the musicals (April 7th 2006)

Today saw the opening of the Music Festivities as part of the 53rd Sri Raama Navami Utsavam by the Bombay Sisters.

One with the nAdam

Unlike my usual synopsis, I wouldn't be able to put time into researching and finding what the unknown songs were. Nevertheless I shall try. As always let me reiterate that I am a dilletante and the briefing here may not be accurate. The mavens out there are welcome to correct anything gross you notice here.

In short, it was neat and enjoyable :). Esp when they sang bhajan like songs, their voice reminded me of the raspy yet agile and commanding voice of MS. Their rendition of brOcEvaarevaruraa was my favourite, so much so I was able to follow it all along ;)) for a song I learnt much by listening (due thnx to kadri and sudha for that).

:)) what a good pick of sarees

The best part about concert is the interplay of percussions. Never on records do I enjoy them this much. Not that I understand the math but with my little sense and prying conscience for patterns I enjoy it in my own way. But today the change in nadai was so much fun, coz I found it difficult to follow. Had to concentrate, which is not on my virtue list :D.

neat and sweet

I can't close this without mention of the violinist. She played without a twitch ;), and just sweet, neat and fine. Having sat upclose I got to observe her do it. Fingers made of some liquid and on the fingerboard like a woodpecker :-o. I can only dream of such things 8->.

1. jaya jaya jaya jAnaki kAntha (R: nAta)
2. brOcEvaarevaruraa (R: kamaas)
3. enna punniyam seidhenO (R: reeti gOwla)
4. GnanamosagarAda(R: poorvi kalyaaNi)
5. bhOgeendra shaayinam
6. ?? (verses resembling - namO ranga nayaki) - excellent percussion interplay
   
7. raNgapura vihaara (R: brindaavana saaranga)
8. bhajan on gOvinda
9. Thillana
10. mangalam + slokam on lord rAma
    

Next stop ... with T.M.Krishna

this is SamY, reporting from Sri Rama Samaj, West Mambalam, Chennai (7th April 2006)