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Thread: Musicians,events,anecdotes and tid-bits

  1. #181
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    "Music in the air, will decorum follow?"

    http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/open...cle2642825.ece

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  3. #182
    Senior Member Seasoned Hubber R.Latha's Avatar
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    As the music of India permeated the Western world and gained popularity in the 1960s, many Westerners, like The Beatles' George Harrison, began to study this intricate music.

    According to Taoseño Phil Hollenbeck, who was first introduced to the study of classical Indian music by Ravi Shankar (Harrison's teacher) in the late 1960s, Shankar said that it would take about 25 years of dedicated study before a student would begin to understand the music. Hollenbeck, who has been perfecting his ability to play classical Indian music for four decades, said Shankar was right - it was at about the quarter-century mark that he began to grasp its musical depths.

    "Ragas Performed on Sarode and Pakhawaj" is a concert that pairs two highly accomplished musicians well-versed in the Dhrupad style of music, an older form of classical Indian music that is not often performed today. Hollenbeck will be joined by David Trasoff in a concert where they will perform both traditional classical and light classical folk ragas Sunday (Nov. 27), 7 p.m., in the Arthur Bell Auditorium at the University of New Mexico's Harwood Museum of Art, 238 Ledoux St.

    Hollenbeck explained that classical Indian music was developed over centuries by yogis (spiritual practitioners) who were exploring the vibrational qualities of sound. With origins dating back more than 3,000 years to the Vedas (ancient Hindu spiritual texts), the music is considered highly beneficial for spiritual development. From a basic understanding that all forms of the material world are in essence vibrations of sound, the texts speak of music as the divine creative language.

    Structurally, classical Indian music is based upon ragas (melodies) and talas (rhythms). Trasoff describes on his website (www.davidtrasoff.com), that "a raga is formed from a series of ascending and descending notes selected from a given music scale. Within this skeleton, the musician brings out the melody that gives a particular raga its character and mood: Joy, sadness, romance, or a combination of these and other basic emotions. In a classical performance, the raga is presented in two sections. In the first part, called alap, the musician plays unaccompanied and presents the notes contained within the raga, proceeding until all the notes and their interrelationship are explored. This allows the character of the notes and the raga to be shown in a framework free of a fixed rhythmic structure."

    The percussionist then enters into the mix to lay down a rhythmic structure. Trasoff further explained that the architecture of classical Indian music makes it possible for musicians to easily improvise with one another.

    "On the one hand, the forms are very specific and there is a lot of learning that goes into them," Trasoff said. "But once we're within those forms we're free to improvise and create the music as we go. So, musicians can come together and create a program - it's not that we have to have a fixed set of pieces like you would for a Western recital. We basically create the music with each other and also with the audience and with the setting."

    Their Taos concert at the Harwood marks the first time that Trasoff and Hollenbeck have performed together, though they first met as beginning students in the early 1970s.

    "This is going to be an interesting program," Trasoff said, "and a little different than other programs of Indian music that people have seen because Phil and I both have training in an older form of the music than what's usually heard on stages today. We're going to certainly play some in that form (Dhrupad)."

    The musicians will also play some lighter, folk pieces. In addition to playing together, Trasoff and Hollenbeck will illustrate the subtleties of their unique instruments in solo performances.

    The sarode is a relatively new, stringed instrument in the classical Indian repertoire. In the 20th century, Ustad Allaudin Khan (father of the late Ustad Ali Akbar Khan) made changes to the Afghanistan rubab and its playing style and developed today's sarode which is played with a coconut plectrum or fingernails on a fretless, steel fingerboard. The sarode is deeper in tone than the popular sitar. Ali Akbar Khan, considered by many to be the best classical Indian musician of his time, was Trasoff's teacher. Ustad is a title of honor meaning "master." It is used in reference to Muslim musicians of Indian music. Pandit is a similar title used for Hindu musicians.

    North Indian classical music used to be referred to as Hindustani music, but Hollenbeck said that because the music is played by Indians of all religious backgrounds, it is now more often referred to as North Indian classical music. The music is historically from North India, Pakistan, and to some degree Bangladesh, Nepal and Afghanistan. It is distinct from the music of Southern India.

    The pakhawaj is a double-sided drum of North Indian music. It is said to have originated thousands of years prior to the tabla and is played in a vast number of styles of music across South Asia. The drum is hollowed out from a section of the trunk of a hardwood tree. Both ends are covered with three layers of skin. The resulting drum can be struck with the fingers and palms to produce more than 20 basic sounds. The pakhawaj is known for its warmth and expressiveness and is played in classical dances, Dhrupad music, temple or devotional music and solo performance.

    North Indian classical music is taught as an oral tradition, passed from teacher to student through repetition. Hollenbeck explained that when he began his studies in Varanasi in 1969 under the tutelage of late Pandit Amarnath Mishra of Sankat Mochan Hanuman Temple, he worked with him one-on-one. Mishra played a piece of music, and Hollenbeck repeated it, as best as he could. Gradually the pieces became more and more complex. Hollenbeck described the process:

    "You stick one-on-one with a teacher and you try to basically follow and imitate what they do," Hollenbeck said. "There's not a whole lot of explanation at first because at first you're just learning rudiments and that goes on for a few years."

    Hollenbeck explained that there is a verbal language for teaching the rhythm called bols ("bol" means "word"). A teacher will use this language to recite a phrase of rhythmic pattern and the student must repeat it. Gradually the recital of the phrases increases in speed, but initially the teacher repeats it slowly to allow the student to hear the musical pattern completely - with all its subtleties. Hollenbeck explained that this language describes the weight and tone of the sounds, and that teachers will take one phrase and play it several different ways, emphasizing different beats or compositional parts to further illuminate the piece.

    Hollenbeck admitted that the study of classical Indian music is difficult at the beginning, but he said it has given him a lifetime of satisfaction. "The study of Indian music gives you a framework to understand a lot of the traditional music of everywhere."

    Trasoff has appeared in concert in arts centers, universities, conservatories and festivals in the United States, Europe, and Asia and has made numerous performing tours in India. He has also composed and performed music for film, theater and dance projects, including an award-winning Los Angeles production of "A Midsummer Night's Dream," the award-winning documentary "Broken Tail's Last Journey" and the acclaimed Indian art film "Leela." His recordings include a CD of North Indian classical music recorded with Ustad Zakir Hussain.

    Hollenbeck is said to be the most senior Pakhawaj/Mridang artist in the Western world. He is a professional accompanist in both the Dhrupad and Odissi styles of pakhawaj, accompanying vocalists, instrumentalists, and dancers of many traditions. Hollenbeck also performs with South Asian folk and devotional artists and with Western jazz, world-fusion, and other traditional musicians and dancers.

    http://www.taosnews.com/entertainmen...cc4c002e0.html

  4. #183
    Senior Member Seasoned Hubber R.Latha's Avatar
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    December season 2011

    CHENNAI: Over the years, the December season has become the ground for showing, new and experimental work, which promises a trajectory that is exciting. The music season in Chennai will be abuzz with activity this year, both on the listeners as well as performers front.

    Today, audiences are larger, keener, more enthusiastic and appreciative. The number of impresarios and concert organisers too are on the rise. Often, they come out with innovative ideas in programme planning and presentation to attract more listeners. Large commercial and business houses and even some newspapers and networks have joined the fray. Of course, they have come to regard music as a means of business proposition.

    The pursuit of music and dance is now considered a sign of culture and personal adornment. The number of young artistes, participating have been on the rise in the recent years, bringing out a wealth of aspiring talent to public view (like SR Veeraraghavan, senior disciple of Balamuralikrishna, Mambalam Sisters, Nisha Rajagopal, Sriram Gangadharan to mention a few).
    Get ready to soak in the spirit of Margazhi

    Harikatha too is being encouraged, for preserving and promoting the arts, in their pristine purity, cultivating among the public, a deep appreciation of the unique heritage of ours. While the quality of the performances are on the increase, it is becoming an increasingly tough task, to select the toppers from among the short listed.

    Some of the finest specimen of gushing, over brimming musicality are to be seen, some of them being encouraged rightly by Sri Ramjee of Isai Mazhalai group. Bharath Sundar, Vidya Kalyanaraman (vocal), Parur Ananthakrishnan, KP Nandini (violin), NC Bharadwaj and Harish Kumar (Mridangam) are among those artistes who need to be watched.

    One cannot help mentioning premier institutions like Sonal Mansingh’s Centre for Indian Classical Dances, Kalakshetra, Saila-Sudha (the academy of Excellence in Kuchipudi and Bharathanatyam), Kala Priyadharshini (Parvathi Ravi Ghantasala) creating remarkable platforms, to showcase the holistic nature of the art, indicating the signs of the time.

    The top musicians, of course, are no longer the proverbial ‘penniless wretches’. The avenues of their earning have multiplied. The fees of musicians, in good demand, have sky rocketed. Let the top musicians, realise that love of the ‘pelf and profit’ should not relegate, all finer considerations of ‘art for art sake’ by increasing the number of concerts during the season, even when ‘vocal chords’ do not co-operate.

    The advent of sponsorship as a phenomenon is a good sign, but the companies must be careful about whom they fund, particularly when this funding goes to ‘fly by night’ operators, during the music season. Music buffs like Mrs YG Parthasarathy and Sri A Natarajan (former Director/Doordarshan) opine, that though proliferation of number of programmes do help the artistes, but yet the remuneration to the artiste should not become a pittance, when compared to the generous inflow of funds from the sponsors, taking advantage of the plight of the upcoming artiste.

    Let a thousand voices echo across the city, let a thousand ankles chime and let us say with a nod ‘let happiness and pain become a music in their string, fill the mouths of heaven, with their tongue’.
    Contradictory view points have been expressed regarding proliferation of programmes, but let not the condition be that there is apoplexy at the extremities (too many concerts) while there is sheer anaemic at the centre (no audience).

  5. #184
    Senior Member Seasoned Hubber R.Latha's Avatar
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    New Guinness World Record by students of M.S.Martin's Academy

    A new Guinness World Record was created by 109 students from Chennai, who are students of M.S.Martin's ''Mellifluous Melodies". Together, they created a Carnatic Symphony on the Keyboard for 15 minutes at the Music Academy, on Sunday 27th November evening , to break the existing Guinness record for largest keyboard ensemble. Ascintillating Carnatic music performance for 2 hours followed.

    Chennai, Tamil Nadu, November 28, 2011 /India PRwire/ -- The adjudicator, from the Guinness World Records, Mr. Jack BrockBank from UK was present and handed over the certificate in presence of Music Maestro M. S. Vishwanathan, Legendary Carnatic Vocalist, Aruna Sairam and Mr. N. Murali, President,Music Academy. Awarding the certificate to Mr.M.S.Martin, Mr. BrockBank said "I am impressed by the stunning performance of the students and the dedication they have shown for creating this record .I am confident that this group will create many more records in future and wish them all the best ".

    Notes to Editor

    The earlier record was created on 25th September 2004 by Billy Joel , which consisted of 107 participants who played "Piano Man" for five minutes at the opening of The Shoppes at Cross Keys , Florissant , Missouri ,USA.

    Earlier, in 2009 , 75 children from M.S.Martin's school created a Limca Record by performing on a single stage.The key person involved is M S Martin who is a gold medalist in B A Music and was bestowed the prestigious award of ISAIMAMANI in the year 1993 by Annamalai University. He has been training children in carnatic music over the last 14 years.

  6. #185
    Senior Member Seasoned Hubber R.Latha's Avatar
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    For Sudha Ragunathan, the year ends with six more awards, thus making her already enormous list of laurels longer.

    She came! She sang! She conquered! That was the order of the day in the late 1970s when a young girl with sparkling eyes and a friendly smile, clad in a half-sari represented Ethiraj College, and won almost every inter-college classical music competition she had participated in. Her oratorical feats saw her through many debates too victoriously. Adjudged ‘The Most Outstanding Student' of her college for three consecutive years - a hat trick that remained unbeaten for years, her next playfield was the yearly music competitions held by various sabhas in Chennai and the outskirts, as a curtain raiser to the December music season. Here too the story was no different.

    Success never went to her head and her polite and humble demeanour won her many hearts. It is no wonder that the number of her admirers has always been on the rise to date.

    This writer has keenly been observing the growth of this budding artist who transformed into a globally accomplished vidwan – the seamless metamorphosis from Sudha Venkataraman to Sudha Ragunathan.

    “I still continue to analyse whether I am worthy of the lauded admiration, be it national or international,” Sudha begins at her new house ‘Vasantham' named after her guru M.L. Vasanthakumari that bears testimony to her guru bhakti.

    More credits

    At the end of the last quarter of 2011, Sudha would have created a record of sorts when six more accolades would have been added to her already enormous list of laurels. On September 30 and October 22 she received the commemoration award of Rs. 1 lakh from the Dr. Sir Rajah Annamalai Chettiar Trust and a memorial award from the Sri Maharajapuram Santhanam Trust. By the time this article goes to print ‘Vishwa Kala Bharati' from Bharat Kalachar (November 26) would have been added to the list with three more to come by December – ‘Tamil Isai Vani' from Maximum Media at their first Tamil festival on December 18, ‘Isai Perarignar' from Tamil Isai Sangam on December 21 and ‘Tamil Isai Vendhar' from Kartik Fine Arts on December 25.

    How will she manage all the above alongside her numerous concerts aligned one after the other? “It is indeed mind boggling but extremely exciting too! I will strive to live up to the reputation that I have earned over the years as an artist who delivers.” And she adds with a lilt, “did you notice that four of the accolades are for Tamil Isai propagation?” She starts to hum raga Maand and begins to sing ‘Aarumo Aaval,' one of the favourites of her guru – on my request she completes it - a definite bonus.

    “I bow my head in obeisance to the Almighty and my guru for all their blessings and of course my well wishers. It is their constant support and feedback that has kept me racing forward,” she says.

    As it can be seen at the end of every one of her concerts, Sudha is normally swarmed by a host of rasikas ages ranging from three to 80, asking her several questions from why she chose to sing a particular raga that day to enquiring about her saris and when she would sing Manirangu or Kaapi. An extremely patient and affectionate Sudha, with an effervescent smile takes the effort to answer every question whilst shaking hands and posing for photographs. Aren't all these causing a huge strain? “No way” she asserts and continues “it is my duty to make all such rasikas feel ‘at home.'” This is also true of her concerts wherein on various occasions, she would extend beyond four hours, meticulously rendering every kriti requested by her rasikas.

    “God has blessed me with a wonderful family. Be it my husband, Ragunathan or my son Kaushik or my daughter Malavika, they have never been demanding and have always proved to be understanding and supportive of every endeavour of mine, whether it concerns with music or social welfare. Since family time is extremely important, I make it a point to travel out of the country on a long vacation with no concerts, and we end up having a whale of a time!” answers Sudha when this writer queries about the time they spend together.

    Sounds like fairy-tale success, does it not? Nothing can be further from the truth, according to her. “What I am today is just not by the wave of a magic wand. It has taken 30 long years to have come this far and I feel there is still plenty to achieve and a long way to go. Or as Robert Frost would say, miles to go before I sleep…", says the philosopher in Sudha.

  7. #186
    Senior Member Seasoned Hubber R.Latha's Avatar
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    When he sings a Thyagaraja kriti in his majestic voice and clear diction, listeners get to experience the true spirit of the composition. Veteran musician Nedunuri Krishnamurthy, who has the credit of popularising several of the saint-composer's pieces through such renditions, was honoured with the ‘Thyagaraja Seva Rathnam' award at Sri Krishna Gana Sabha here on Saturday.

    http://www.thehindu.com/news/states/...cle2684778.ece

  8. #187
    Senior Member Veteran Hubber V_S's Avatar
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    One of the best speeches by a Carnatic exponent, young and hugely talented Mr. T M Krishna. I loved every moment of this video and his command, forward looking thoughts about art, artists, classical music and how it should be moving forward. Wow! take a bow Mr. T M Krishna At the end of this programme, he sang 'Vandhe Matharam'. No words to describe that. I have already become a huge fan of him. Hope you too appreciate this video and his thoughts.


  9. #188
    Senior Member Seasoned Hubber R.Latha's Avatar
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    OST's memories of chennai music

    O.S. Thyagarajan on the enduring appeal of Margazhi, the simplicity of vidwans and why he made the city his home

    My journey from the national to the cultural capital was not about traversing geographical distance, it was a voyage of self-discovery, an artistic expedition but more importantly, it was a travel back in time to soak in the sampradaya of Carnatic music.

    Before settling down in Madras, every year I would gladly leave behind the biting winters of Delhi to enjoy the misty Margazhi air, take part in the annual music celebrations and witness the largest gathering of rasikas here. You may be busy performing through the year, but Margazhi kutcheris have always had a special appeal and flavour.

    The Season then meant a few prominent sabhas, many restful sessions of music and relaxed and discerning listeners who savoured and analysed every note. The audience knew what to expect from each vidwan, who had remarkably distinctive styles. They had some compositions and ragas as their specialities… rather a concert trademark. There was an unspoken understanding between stalwarts; they would never tread into each other's area of specialisation.

    Mention Karaharapriya ragam or ‘Chakani Raja' and Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer immediately came to mind. Listeners flocked to hear Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar's rendition of ‘Sree Subrahmanya Namaste'. Rasikas could never have enough of Madurai Mani Iyer's ‘Sarasa Sama Dhana' in Kapi Narayani while ‘Radha Sametha Krishna' in Yaman was a favourite of G.N. Balasubramaniam.

    Artistes performed only when invited. Seeking opportunities was unheard of. They chose the time and date of their kutcheri. Their concert calendars were never crammed. And they ensured there was enough time between performances to unwind and prepare.

    Hearing these musical giants meant free lessons on aesthetic sensibilities and developing a sound understanding of the various aspects of this classical art. There was mutual respect and admiration among the old-world artistes, who when not performing could be seen sitting among the first few rows at kutcheris of their contemporaries or sometimes would even come to listen to a promising youngster.

    Apart from hard initial training under my father O.V. Subramaniam, Tiger Varadachariar and Tanjore Ponniah Pillai, it was the valuable guidance, encouragement and support of generous masters such as Lalgudi Jayaraman and T.M. Thygarajan that earned me the reputation of a musician with undiluted values. They approached teaching in a holistic manner. It was not just about preparing students for stage performances. Vadyars ensured understanding the art in its totality and groomed thinking musicians.

    The legends of the past remain so because of their vidwat, sense of dignity and a modest vision. I have seen Madurai Mani Iyer going to a kutcheri sitting in a mattu vandi with Lalgudi Jayaraman and Pazhani Subramania Pillai walking behind. Umayalpuram Sivaraman once arrived for a concert lugging his mridangam in a cycle rickshaw. The most touching moment was when at a Music Academy concert, M.S. Anantharaman put down his violin as a mark of appreciation after I sang a Bhairavi piece. It was heartening when many of the acclaimed names accompanied me on stage — Lalgudi Jayaraman, Palghat Raghu,

    Trichy Sankaran, M.S. Gopalakrishnan, M.S. Anantharaman and Karaikudi Mani. They even took time out to help me embellish my music with their valuable inputs. Lalgudi sir would invite me home for long discussions. Such was their involvement and large-heartedness.

    At one of my initial concerts at Krishna Gana Sabha as part of their talent promotion series, I was highly-appreciated for my rendition of ‘Nidhi chaala sukhama' in Kalyani ragam and also for some of my GNB-inspired technical flourishes. A landmark concert, it proved to be a turning point in my career as other sabhas took notice of this and invited me to perform. I owe it to the late Yagnaraman, the secretary of Krishna Gana Sabha, who after hearing me on the radio, called me in Delhi and offered me a prestigious platform.

    The experience was overwhelming. Heart is where art is — with each passing year I became eager to shift base and I finally did. To sing to audiences in Madras, hear stalwarts and imbibe from their music — this is the sotthu (treasure) I have earned.

    I remember

    It was a concert organised for a small audience by my French friends in Pondicherry. The venue was bustling with people when I arrived. The miffed security man stopped me at the gate and said I could stand at the entrance if I wanted to hear the music. Later, when he came to know I was the performing artiste, he could not hide his embarrassment.

  10. #189
    Senior Member Seasoned Hubber R.Latha's Avatar
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  11. #190
    Senior Member Seasoned Hubber R.Latha's Avatar
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    The ignorance is slowly fading to give way to realisation and action. Carnatic music is gaining popularity in the world music scene and fusion music and remixes are becoming the call of the day. We, as the youth, are becoming more open to listening to various forms of music and appreciating the nuances of them all. Carnatic music may not be “cool” yet, but it sure is getting there.

    http://www.thehindu.com/life-and-sty...cle2694554.ece

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