Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Review the latest concerts you have listened to.
mahavishnu
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by mahavishnu »

Rajesh, he just went to mangalam after the mathe pallavi.

cacm
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by cacm »

PROBABLY because the M.A. has the great history of closing the curtain EVEN BEFORE TIME RAN OUT in the case of MMI & has insulted GNB also tho' not in the same way. PR might have told him about it. Speculation on my part. VKV

rajeshnat
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by rajeshnat »

Cacm/VKV sir,
In 2010 during maiden abhishek evening II concert , abhishek just began the rtp in hamsavinOdini after anantha's tani at 09:30PM finished about 20 to 25 minutes late with a thundering ovation that earned him outstanding vocalist . This year 2013 with a reduced or a near zero tani with the vocal quota being more - abhishek got the yogam nagaswamy award after another thundering ovation. Makkal theerppu mahesan theerpu(audience verdict is gods verdict).

cacm
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by cacm »

Rajeshnat, VERY NICELY EXPRESSED!...TIMES HAVE CHANGED?! VKV

rajeshnat
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by rajeshnat »

mahesh3/mahavishnu/hema
There is a mention of 30 minutes of kamas . I am assuming it is vocal and violin return put together for 30 mins in khamas.Can one of you confirm?

samarasaa
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by samarasaa »

Wow cacm - you are blessed! I think it's time at least a few sabhas experimented with longer concerts. Those rasikas who would like to experience this could attend - the numbers would be be known only after a few trials.. I'm sure there are several artists as well who do have the capability today to present four plus hours of the highest quality music. I remember the Eka raga concerts in the early 90's where many artists did a fine job of holding audience interest through five or six pieces in the same raga. Not had the chance to attend such a concert in many years even if they still happen.. I remember among the current senior Vidwans, TNS in Hyderabad '90 or '91, sang an exquisite Thodi for one hour and one kalpana swara sequence was over 25 minutes. The concert had it's share of positive and negative opinions on the proportion... but personally I thought it was immensely creative, an outcome of exceptional sadhakam and believed such a flow must be appreciated.

samarasaa
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by samarasaa »

rajeshnat - Abhishek's Khamaas alapana was a little over 25 min, Violin alapana plus both Abhishek and Srikanth Tanam was about 15 min.

satyabalu
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by satyabalu »

cacm wrote:PROBABLY because the M.A. has the great history of closing the curtain EVEN BEFORE TIME RAN OUT in the case of MMI & has insulted GNB also tho' not in the same way. PR might have told him about it. Speculation on my part. VKV
Also similar thing happened when TS Balakrishna Sastrigal was narrating Karna... about to die in the battlefield!

cacm
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by cacm »

MAYBE they wanted it to be a HITCHCOCK MYSTERY!....OR THE "SUNDAL" WAS GETTING COLD?! VKV :)) [-x :-Q :-ss

Ramasubramanian M.K
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by Ramasubramanian M.K »

Apropo VKV's comments about MA's "abrupt" interruption-- It was the late K.V.Krishnaswamy Iyer(KVK)--President of MA for over 25 years--who was ruthless in adhering toschedules-in those days there used to be a concert @ ( P.M. and there were no canteens so that people(mostly Mylapreans!!) could have time to go home for dinner and come back for the 9 P.M. concert--unfortunately most of the 9 P.M. slots were either taken up by a Hindusthani concert of which there few votaries or other Veena/solo violin(a la Dwaram) concerts which were sparsely attended.
The modus operandi for KVK was to depute one of the then Secretaries,C.K.Venkata Narasimhan or Dr.V.Raghavan around 8: 15 P.M. motioning to the artist--no matter whether it ws ARI or GNB or MMI--- to "wind" up the concert--in case of MMI because he was so engrossed and also because his eyesight was partially impaired the signal used to go to Vembu Iyer(TVS's father and Br-in-Law of MMI) I USED TO HATE THAT AS A STUDENT EAGER TO HEAR MMI's enchanting music--more so because I was not going to sit for the 9 P.M. slot anyway!!

In retrospect,given the tightness of the schedule I guess the "organisational realities" need to be taken into a/c as well!! -

rajeshnat
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by rajeshnat »

Ramasubramanian M.K wrote:
In retrospect,given the tightness of the schedule I guess the "organisational realities" need to be taken into a/c as well!! -
MORE than organizational reality, the only sabha that is trying to be fair like the blind eyed women we see in the court scenes , other sabhas give purposely more time only to their preferred folks.

cacm
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by cacm »

Ramasubramanian M.K wrote:Apropo VKV's comments about MA's "abrupt" interruption-- It was the late K.V.Krishnaswamy Iyer(KVK)--President of MA for over 25 years--who was ruthless in adhering toschedules-in those days there used to be a concert @ ( P.M. and there were no canteens so that people(mostly Mylapreans!!) could have time to go home for dinner and come back for the 9 P.M. concert--unfortunately most of the 9 P.M. slots were either taken up by a Hindusthani concert of which there few votaries or other Veena/solo violin(a la Dwaram) concerts which were sparsely attended.
The modus operandi for KVK was to depute one of the then Secretaries,C.K.Venkata Narasimhan or Dr.V.Raghavan around 8: 15 P.M. motioning to the artist--no matter whether it ws ARI or GNB or MMI--- to "wind" up the concert--in case of MMI because he was so engrossed and also because his eyesight was partially impaired the signal used to go to Vembu Iyer(TVS's father and Br-in-Law of MMI) I USED TO HATE THAT AS A STUDENT EAGER TO HEAR MMI's enchanting music--more so because I was not going to sit for the 9 P.M. slot anyway!!
In retrospect,given the tightness of the schedule I guess the "organisational realities" need to be taken into a/c as well!! -
HAVING DEALT WITH THE OFFICIALS OF THAT TIME IN M.A. I can say that THEY WERE RUDE TO ARTISTS. THEY MAY BE GREAT LAWYERS OR SCHOLARS BUT LACKED RESPECT FOR ARTISTS. EXCEPTING AT ACADEMY MMI BLIND OR NOT NEVER EXCEEDED HIS TIME IN LP RECORDINGS, AIR CONCERTS ETC. HE HAD UNCANNY SENSE OF TIME. UNFORTUNATELY even though Sri.N.Murali is AN EXCEPTION TODAY'S SO CALLED OFFICIALS OF M.A. ARE NO BETTER;WHEN THE ARTIST REQUESTED A PERSON-SHALL REMAIN NAMELESS- TO COME & SIT IN THE FRONT FOR KEEPING THALAM PURPOSES WHEN THE HALL WAS PRACTICALLY EMPTY THIS VIP HIMSELF WAS RUDELY ASKED& REMOVED FROM THE SEAT HE WAS ASKED TO OCCUPY BY THE ARTIST!....The M.A. has done great things to our culture& music IN SPITE OF EGOISTIC RUDE PERSONS IN OFFICIAL POSITIONS WHO ARE NO DIFFERENT EVEN TODAY. the ONLY EXCEPTION is Sri.N.MURALI who actually has SAVED THE M.A. from going down IN FLAMES literally.....VKV

sathguru
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by sathguru »

An Open Letter to The Editor of the publication The Hindu:

At the outset let me state that I am as much a rasika of Abhishek Raghuram as I am of various stalwarts who have kept Carnatic Music and its treasures alive – right from Sri Ariyakudi and Sri GNB onwards.
Apropos of the review in debate, I am afraid whether the two musician- judges who chose Abhishek for the “Yogam Nagaswamy” award were ignorant to “identify” the unsure opening of Simmendramadhyamam or the so-called infiltration of Behag into Khamas.
Your knowledgeable reviewer need to specifically call out the patterns that did not sound like Simmendramadhyamam; and maybe enlighten the judges at Music Academy as well.
Mysore Srikanth is one of the most sought after violinists of the day – known for his versatility and scholarship as well as his partnerships with Abhishek. To question his ability to accompany Abhishek is quite insulting – especially when he was perfectly competent in this specific concert. His ability to ably support as well an enhance concerts is well-known. In this specific concert, he was most certainly not “catching-up” at any point as the reviewer claims.
It is relevant to mention that Sri Bhaktavatsalam’s point has been misrepresented. He specifically stated that “After SUCH a Simmendramadhyamam he just had no mood to play the Tani and wanted Abhishek to get more time to sing Khamas”.. infact, he mentioned again after the Khamas alapana that he had asked Abhishek to sing without looking at time constraints. Why is this not called out in the insightful review?
“Just four items” says the reviewer – is quantity a measure of quality?
Did “ALL” the people in the audience send the “one-off concert” reviewer a personal confirmation that they were stressed?
Last but not the least, going by the turn of events, a one-off reviewer brought into centre stage makes one suspect whether whole exercise is a design to malign a specific youngster. Hopefully THE HINDU will scrutinize contents of the reviews given to them especially when it is derogatory and contrary to facts as testified by the musician-judges of the Madras Music Academy.
As a closing remark on the goaded review, THE HINDU has not only done a gross injustice to an outstanding talent but also to Carnatic music as a whole. This is a clarion call to wake up.

kvchellappa
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by kvchellappa »

The Hindu as a policy does not publish any comment critical of it. You must commend them for their consistency in this.

Rajagopalan_V
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by Rajagopalan_V »

Lately The Hindu has been publishing/syndicating columns by a David Brooks of The New York Times.

Liked his column in today's The Hindu. Was googling to locate it and stumbled upon the below. The below words from NYT's 'Public Editor' assume significance -- in light of the subject review in The Hindu that has ruffled quite a few 'musically heavy' feathers [-x

//In the course of a given week, I hear from many readers who don’t like something that one of The Times’s star columnists has written. I may agree or disagree, but I only rarely write about it. That’s because by virtue of their job descriptions, columnists are supposed to stir things up and get people talking. Yes, they have to deal in the world of facts and truth, but their opinions – and the way they express them – are almost unassailable. So I let the protests pass.//

http://publiceditor.blogs.nytimes.com/2 ... onds/?_r=0

Especially relevant to our context are the words "by virtue of their job descriptions, columnists are supposed to stir things up and get people talking. Yes, they have to deal in the world of facts and truth, but their opinions – and the way they express them – are almost unassailable"!

The following two questions become pertinent here!

1. Was the review written in the first place by this 'reviewer' 'to stir things up and get people talking'???!

2. "They have to deal in the world of facts and truth, but their opinions – and the way they express them – are almost unassailable" -- what say the knowledgeable forumites on this point though??!!! :-ss #:-s

Rsachi
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by Rsachi »

That review wasn't a column. A columnist has an image and a readership.
This was one of many among the season's reviewers.

His review was a mixed bag of observations, opinions and evaluations. That they were contested is just in the normal course of things.
If there had been no Abhishek, let alone this MA Khamas, no such review or reaction would have occurred.

You can't be a boxer and not take an occasional one on the chin! Applies to Abhishek, applies to the reviewer...

Rajagopalan_V
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by Rajagopalan_V »

//You can't be a boxer and not take an occasional one on the chin! Applies to Abhishek, applies to the reviewer...// B-)

Well said Rsachi!Yes, it was indeed a 'review' and not a 'column'.

Vyuptakesha
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by Vyuptakesha »

This review has raised heckles with the statements at the end of the write up; which is very dismissive.
I am happy a letter has been written to The Hindu; and of course, it will show this publication has a spine, should this letter be published.

sais72
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by sais72 »

The Hindu reviewer writes
First ‘Ra Ramaa Intidaaka’ in Asaveri, followed by ‘Naada Sudha Rasa’ in Arabhi, Abhishek managed to wade through both the kritis without distorting Tyagaraja’s sahitya beyond the regular.
Is the kriti not "Ra Ra maa intidaka" , wonder if the reviewer was referring to the slight distortion by Abhishek or did the reviewer contribute to the distortion?

mahavishnu
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by mahavishnu »

Personally, I think Veejay Sai is a pompous nobody who thinks he is the cultural czarina Pupul Jayakar and the late irreverent critic Subbudu rolled into one, who will be best remembered for being on the wrong side of history.

That said, what I find unusual and particularly worrisome is why the Hindu would commission a review of what was possibly the most high-profile concert of the season from a guy who obviously holds such a singularly negative opinion of Abhishek. I am not a conspiracy theorist ;) but my guess is that the negative review was planned and organized deliberately by the reviewer (possibly in collusion with his employer). My sense is that Veejay Sai sought out this particular review opportunity and used it to express this view. This review was going to be negative no matter how Abhishek sang that day.

I am posting examples of extremely negative views that the reviewer expressed elsewhere (all in public domain) about Abhishek as far back as May 2011. There are many others, all over the web.

See for example...
Image
and the discussion follows...

Image

and on...
Image

CHIGO
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by CHIGO »

As Mahavishnu puts it, this Veejay Sai has been writing at the behest of someone (hopefully not an artist) to keep ridiculing Abhishek whenever he gets on to the stage as the quotes suggest. This probably is being done to restore the dwindling prominence of his idol (?) with the arrival of Abhishek in a big way. Years back, there used to be a website or two started with sole objective of promoting and consolidating one's own position in the field of music. The scenario has today changed to ghost-writers of the envying artist in proxy doling out reviews and accolades at every given opportunity. The field is any way big enough to accommodate even the mediocre ones and if that is realized perhaps the principles of co-existence will prevail. But, who knows the human envy is beyond redemption as the orchestration vindicates.

Rsachi
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by Rsachi »

CHIGO, MAHAVISHNU and others,
Anyone who attended Abhishek's MA concert will trash the comments by VEEJAY SAI especially the last line and the insinuation about tani being jettisoned. Please consider carefully before you give "bhaav" to this critic and his reviews.

At least one thing, he doesn't hide his identity and if he wants he can come here and engage in a debate.

History shows that EVEN dubious narratives gather prominence WHEN they are taken in earnest. This Hindu review deserves to be grandly ignored.

rajeshnat
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by rajeshnat »

mahavishnu wrote: I am not a conspiracy theorist ;) but my guess is that the negative review was planned and organized deliberately by the reviewer (possibly in collusion with his employer). My sense is that Veejay Sai sought out this particular review opportunity and used it to express this view. This review was going to be negative no matter how Abhishek sang that day.
Mahavishnu,
You are certainly pulling the trigger here, i would not attribute to employer per se - unless you know something that private that i donot know.

On a side note - I had a chance to hear the simm madhyamam alapana of abhishek in my friends place in a recording . Abhishek begins with some thing like dha ri nA , in a second i could identify as simm madhyamam . In the historic past I have sat thru ambiguities of abhishek in alapanas but definitely not in simm madhyamam.Of course i knew the answer even before hearing the question ;)

BTW is there any other review in the hindu from this veejay sai. It is his bad luck that the polarity of yogam nagaswamy award and the review came . Possibly if by any chance the award was not awarded to abhishek , then he may have sounded more right to more masses , then it might have hurt a bit of abhishek is my best wrong guess.

Now it is a multiplier effect for abhishek :D - :ymparty:

mahavishnu
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by mahavishnu »

History shows that EVEN dubious narratives gather prominence WHEN they are taken in earnest. This Hindu review deserves to be grandly ignored.
RSachi. I agree. I posted this because something didn't smell right about the nature of the review itself and not just the content.

Rajesh, To the best of my knowledge, this was Veejay's only review for the Hindu this season; which is why I am saying that he sought out this particular review opportunity. I only refer to the employer because he was given this gig over the regular season's reviewers (V. Balasubramaniam, Garimella Subramaniam, Bala Shankar, SVK and others) and I don't see any reason for this particular choice.

mssnlayam
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by mssnlayam »

Given that I attended both of Abhishek's concerts mentioned in this thread, the one in Bangalore in 2011 and the Academy Concert in 2013, of course, I am going to have a positive opinion about Abhishek. I pity the poor reviewer who couldn't feel the same joy I did.

Rajagopalan_V
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by Rajagopalan_V »

Hello all, I had bumped into Veejay Sai @ The Hindu Lit Fest yesterday. Asked him if I could talk to him briefly about this review. He readily agreed.

Asked him the three questions that most of us have been debating here for a while now --

1. //Abhishek next began a slow alapana, which remained ambiguous in its structure. It wasn’t a while before one realised that he was actually singing Simhendramadhyamam// Asked him what prompted him to say this. He basically reiterated the same and said the pidis/sancharas did not actually convey the raga lakshana till some point in time. This according to him was not on. "You can't keep the audience guessing and it definitely wasn't Simhendramadhyamam".

2. //The fourth and final piece was an elaborate RTP in Khamas. Abhishek over-stretched his alapana for almost half an hour, often repeating phrases and wandering into the notes of Behag, at an odd occasion. While notes in both the scales do overlap, a singer of his smartness can afford to exercise restraint.// "Again what Abhishek did here was a mistake. It wasn't a calculated/intended srutibedham but an unintended slip into Behag" according to him. "Someone of his calibre should have done much better than this"!

3. //While Abhishek is certainly a gifted artist for his age, for now, the recall effect from his music is obscured by his gimmickry. High on technique, low on music and zero on aesthetic, to sum it all up.// When asked if he still fully stands by his remark of "zero on aesthetic" or wants to take some parts of it back( ;) ), he said "yes, I stand by it fully and emphatically. Zero on aesthetics indeed!"

Went on to remark that when a legend like GNB was blazing a new trail, he didn't give a go-by to the aesthetics and sowkhya bhava in the music while demonstrating all his virtuosity. "Music should touch your heart and soul, it should not be an exercise of your wizardry sans aesthetics."

"Yes, I know very well that it has whipped up a storm especially amongst his die-hard fans, but so be it. His guru Shri. PSN himself complimented me on this review. Told me that such reviews only would help him introspect and improve, not the run-of-the mill hyperbolic reviews lavishing wholesome praise on him".

p.s. Please note that the above is the essence of his responses - though have put them within quotes, it is from my recollection of what he said and may not exactly match what he said word-to-word. But definitely reflect the spirit and substance of his responses.

Rsachi
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by Rsachi »

I suggest we approach PSN for his assessment.
I also suggest we find a way to play S'madhyamam raga via a file share.
I heard the Khamach. THERE WAS NO BEHAG.

Addendum :

Is VJS was so keenly listening to the concert, how come he misquoted Bhaktavatsalam?

If aesthetic was zero as confirmed by PSN, how come the MA awarded Yogam Nagaswamy award?

How come nobody here said S'madhyamam was playing hide and seek?
Last edited by Rsachi on 13 Jan 2014, 19:00, edited 1 time in total.

rshankar
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by rshankar »

I have no intention of adding to this storm in a tea cup, but, how on earth does a reviewer know whether something is intended not? If there is a science to this (and not just a gut feeling, or IMNSHO etc., it's not worth the paper it's reported in), prosecutors and judges the world over would be scrambling in line to help them figure out intent/accident.

kvchellappa
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by kvchellappa »

It was in poor taste of the reviewer to drag the name of one's guru to substantiate his comments; if he knew music and the basics of what he was talking about, he should stand by them on his own even if the entire world is up and against him. To drop a name only betrays paucity of that confidence. In any case, I would rather it was not brought in the open.
For the moment, there is a ready audience for AR and his music is in demand. He should follow his manodharma and evolve. GNB blazed a new trail. I for one do not know what comments were made about him in his early days. It is easy now to say he had aesthetics, sowkhyam. In any case, neither Abhishek seems to think that he is another GNB or no one is comparing the two.
I do not know music, but I enjoyed listening to him.

rajeshnat
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by rajeshnat »

Rsachi wrote:
I also suggest we find a way to play S'madhyamam raga via a file share.
Let there be no trespass or let there be total trespass of ragas, let us not share any download link in this site . With so many things happening on copyright let this forum not aide with a small misstep, we may face bigger consequence.

Rsachi
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by Rsachi »

Rajesh,
I am prepared to ask Abhishek himself. Perhaps he is allowed by MA to record his own concert.

On second thought, the only guy who missed identifying S'madhyamam is VJS. So perhaps we can drop this step.

mahavishnu
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by mahavishnu »

I also doubt if PSN is being quoted right and fairly. While PSN might have been ok with a review that does not heap lavish praise on an individual, I seriously don't think he would condone a judgment that says : "zero on music and zero on aesthetics". One cannot write vitriolic BS like that and get away with it.

I was quite perturbed by the serious lack of professional ethics in this (not just the negative tone of the review), which is why I brought it up again.

RSachi, I think we should follow your earlier advice and move on. History will judge this concert in its own way. MMA has already made its call :ymapplause:

rupavathi
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by rupavathi »

So now Yogam nagaswamy prize is the benchmark! I thought this forum not so long ago was fulminating en masse against the poor judgement values of the Academy... when your blue eyed boy gets the prize, all is well? :D

arasi
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by arasi »

May I say, "we should leave the lad alone!" ??

Abhishek is evolving (though endowed with such shining qualities of a musician). He is evolving, strictly because of his being so young--how many more years await him as he evolves even more? Surely,we don't want him to stay where he is now without changing (evolving). He will find new horizons, will grow in the process, temper himself, sharpen his skills even more, experiment, innovate, settle down, find new horizons, grow in the process...
There are so many possibilities with a talent as big as his.

One thing we know. The world is his oyster. He has youth, immense knowledge and talent, has popular appeal so that he can display his musical skills amply on stage in the years to come.

It's going to be fun watching his 'evolving', for sure :)

Rsachi
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by Rsachi »

Rupavathi,
Nothing is an absolute benchmark really :D I repeat NOTHING. (at least for me).

In your opinion, Is there a positive, or negative, or a non-existent correlation between the expert view of that Hindu review and the committee view at MA!?

Do you think the review was biased and rigged!?
Do you think the MA prize was rigged or biased?
Do you think this thread is rigged or biased!?

I am curious to know!

Rajagopalan_V
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Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by Rajagopalan_V »

All, a few clarifications to set the records straight --

1. I agree with the following comment of mahavishnu here -- //I also doubt if PSN is being quoted right and fairly. While PSN might have been ok with a review that does not heap lavish praise on an individual, I seriously don't think he would condone a judgment that says : "zero on music and zero on aesthetics".//.

Yes, Veejay mentioned that PSN had complimented him on the review. However, that does not necessarily mean that PSN had agreed with the review in full or had endorsed the "zero aesthetics" and Veejay's aspersions on Simmendhra Madhyamam and Khamas.

2. kvchellappa's following comment -- //It was in poor taste of the reviewer to drag the name of one's guru to substantiate his comments; if he knew music and the basics of what he was talking about, he should stand by them on his own even if the entire world is up and against him. To drop a name only betrays paucity of that confidence. In any case, I would rather it was not brought in the open//

Well, please see the context in which he mentioned about PSN's compliment. It was an 'informal' conversation I had with him. He was not making a formal rejoinder of sorts. It was me who has brought this to this forum's attention. Based on the limited, 5 minutes conversation I had, I could say that he stood by every word of his review! And he made that amply clear to me.

3. rshankar's following comment -- //how on earth does a reviewer know whether something is intended not? // well, as I mentioned in my earlier post, it was a recollection of the 'essence' of the conversation I had with him. The words were not exactly his as I didn't record it and nor did I write them down. He meant to say that Abhi had wandered into the notes of Behag while doing the Khamas alapana. And this was not acceptable to him. "While notes in both the scales do overlap, a singer of his smartness can afford to exercise restraint".

Trust this clarifies.

rupavathi
Posts: 173
Joined: 13 Dec 2011, 08:44

Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by rupavathi »

Rsachi wrote:In your opinion, Is there a positive, or negative, or a non-existent correlation between the expert view of that Hindu review and the committee view at MA!?
None at all.
Rsachi wrote:Do you think the review was biased and rigged!?
Do you think the MA prize was rigged or biased?
Do you think this thread is rigged or biased!?
The review reflected the writer's opinion and he is man enough to stand by it. Rigged? No, not to the best of my knowledge... and I do have some familiarity with the workings of Friday Review. They are even-handed in their encouragement of mediocre writing.

The MA prize is actually not that big of a deal. There is a bunch of endowments, with several overlaps. Over the past few years, the Academy simply bunches many of them and hands out two or three prizes. Yogam Nagaswamy simply happens to be one of the larger endowments. There is no significance beyond that.

This thread in particular and the forum in general has its collective biases. And the forum's collective herd mentality is offended that someone dared to write an opinion contrary to the mass mania of the moment. Storm in a kaapi-davara... greater artistes have been subjected to much worse attacks than this. So, get over it and move on!

vasanthakokilam
Posts: 10956
Joined: 03 Feb 2010, 00:01

Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by vasanthakokilam »

They are even-handed in their encouragement of mediocre writing.
:)
greater artistes have been subjected to much worse attacks than this. So, get over it and move on!
while I agree with that
Yogam Nagaswamy simply happens to be one of the larger endowments. There is no significance beyond that.

This thread in particular and the forum in general has its collective biases. And the forum's collective herd mentality is offended that someone dared to write an opinion contrary to the mass mania of the moment.
There is no ONE collective bias. As you can see from the various threads over the years, there are many. Just saying.

In this thread, I am definitely not in this particular collective, but I think this reviewer is uncouth and irresponsible. That is a bad combination and one symptom of that is usually reflected in magnifying the bad and minimizing the good. That is my problem with him.

kvchellappa
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Joined: 04 Aug 2011, 13:54

Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by kvchellappa »

What is the collective bias in this? The argument was whether the critic's review had the basics right (though I am not aware of them). Take for instance Simhendramadhyamam. Gayathri Girish said it was bang on. Another point was whether Khamas had trespassed into behag. Sri MKS and somebody else also mentioned they got a shade of Behag, but then the two ragas have overlaps, it was said. GG did not find anything odd there. GG opinion overrules the critic in my (uninformed) view. Would it not be fair to mention only what of the critic's view is justified if it is, instead of labelling the forumites? What if greater people have also been subjected to worse criticism? Can the court acquit a murderer because there were more heinous crimes?
The tone of the review left much to be desired and I feel that is what irked, not that AR is a God and he should not be criticised. To my mind, there is no collective bias in this thread.

sureshvv
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Joined: 05 Jul 2007, 18:17

Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by sureshvv »

Plus the reviewer has been expressing his disdain for Abhishek's music for quite a while and finally got his chance to do the hatchet job. It seems that the reviewer's mind was made up even before the concert started.

CHIGO
Posts: 13
Joined: 21 Apr 2012, 15:10

Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by CHIGO »

Can anyone bring in the past reviews of the attention-seeking veejay.sai to ascertain his taste, especially leanings. The review under fire is obviously a hatched one, going by the way that other usual reviewers of the hindu have been overlooked for this particular concert. Perhaps if only the "yogam" (?) award was not given Abhishek would have bee spared. I do not subscribe to the impression that the review was written prior to yogam award as it appeared only after the award was given. Anyway the reviewer has got the mileage he wanted as he is being talked and written about time and again, dishonorably though. I would like to sum up "eithavan irukka ambai novanen"

Rsachi
Posts: 5039
Joined: 31 Aug 2009, 13:54

Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by Rsachi »

CHIGO,
Reading your post, i googled VEEJAY SAI. His reviews and Tweets indicate he a roving culture reporter with cinema, dance, light music, coffee table books etc. as his main themes. I found no proof if he is equipped to write a serious Carnatic music concert review, let alone at the Academy, and I am not even going near Abhishek or artistes of that class.

rajeshnat
Posts: 9906
Joined: 03 Feb 2010, 08:04

Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by rajeshnat »

CHIGO wrote: I do not subscribe to the impression that the review was written prior to yogam award as it appeared only after the award was given.
Chigo
Dec 26th was a thursday night when abhishek concert was given. Friday review of Dec 27th cannot have this entry as they have no time to write and publish -this is not a cricket match review. The award was rewarded on Jan 1st sadhas and this hindu online came on Jan 02nd,2014. If they had pushed to print to the the next lot (post Jan 04th )possibly this abhishek review would have never be published [-x , as it would have been a kind of too much of risk to publish this(not that i am saying they would not publish).

On a side note , On Dec 31st evening one friend who follows the artist in this thread called me and told me that sub senior artist was rewarded . He asked me do you know who gets the senior award , I said i have no info other than rasikas.org to know about awards. For a brief 10 mins my friend was wondering loud as to how academy can announce the awards on DEC 31st itself and associated blah blah when there are artists who are scheduled to perform on Dec 31st.

I took the MA schedule and reasoned out that on Dec 31st VK Raman is only playing flute and it is ok to declare the award for sub senior on Dec 31st, but for senior they have to wait as the last slot KBMK is performing as we spoke that day and that is why it is not declared yet as KBMK is a contender. Why am I stating this - many were mistaken about the intentions of Academy etc.Just clarifying for those

Similiarly CHIGO take your time .I dont think your impression is right at all , unless you have some insider info that I am not aware.

sathguru
Posts: 9
Joined: 07 Jan 2014, 21:53

Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by sathguru »

When an artiste is scrutinised thoroughly and reviews published, it is good for the art and the artiste.
But when a review is biased, then it serves no purpose; but the ulterior ones.
Irrespective of whether Abhishek selected for the Yigam award or not, that the reviewer dismissed this performance in such a crude manner has made us sit up and discuss it.
And this being this acribe's first, it seems (1) he definitely needs the mileage to be known or recognised, and (2) he probably took some help in getting this piece together.
Subscribing to CHIGO and to Rsachi, and a few others who have shared their thoughts, I now see that there is a pattern to the ridicule and vitriolic statements he has used in other chat forums shared here and the culmination of it is this bad review.
I will like to see this rabble rouser write similarly on other artistes.
Last but not the least, I am quite surprised no other artise but Gayathri Girish admonished this Veejai Sai.
Very sad!!

VijayR
Posts: 198
Joined: 13 Jul 2011, 21:59

Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by VijayR »

sureshvv wrote:Plus the reviewer has been expressing his disdain for Abhishek's music for quite a while and finally got his chance to do the hatchet job. It seems that the reviewer's mind was made up even before the concert started.
I completely agree... If it looks like a duck, talks like a duck, and walks like a duck, odds are that it is indeed a duck. Given the context and the numerous past instances where this reviewer made his bias unmistakably clear, there is no doubt in my mind that this was an attempt at a hit, plain and simple. Unexpectedly for him, it blew up spectacularly in his face, thanks to the award. He can act indignant and try to justify his review all he wants, but it is clear to me that he has just been publicly unmasked (in fact, here is a thought, partly in jest ... perhaps someone had enough of his loud-mouthing and executed a hit on him by inviting him to write this review. His true colors and ignorance have now been exposed).

Either (a) the "collective" vidwat of the MA experts committee (and other knowledgeable musicians such as Smt. Gayatri Girish) completely missed all the errors that this reviewer caught, or (b) he had his head so far up his rear end that his brain was unable to function normally. Sorry, but I'm going with the latter explanation.

At the end of the day, neither this hatchet job of a review nor the award will unduly influence Abhishek... He is smart enough to self-introspect and has a solid family/well-wisher circle to keep him grounded and give him honest, real feedback.

rshankar
Posts: 13754
Joined: 02 Feb 2010, 22:26

Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by rshankar »

VijayR wrote:At the end of the day, neither this hatchet job of a review nor the award will unduly influence Abhishek...
Sort of an "If" (Kipling) moment if you will, huh?

VijayR
Posts: 198
Joined: 13 Jul 2011, 21:59

Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by VijayR »

rshankar wrote:Sort of an "If" (Kipling) moment if you will, huh?
Indeed... :)

sathguru
Posts: 9
Joined: 07 Jan 2014, 21:53

Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by sathguru »

A comparison of the reviews of concerts by the scribes of this esteemed daily....discussion of the review of Abhishek's concert... versus
this review http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp ... 531174.ece
While I am not against this artiste whose concert was reviewed, I find it disgusting to see how this daily The Hindu allows malicious attacks against an artiste of a high calibre as Abhishek.......
Shame on this daily....why blame the parasites writing these reviews.

sathguru
Posts: 9
Joined: 07 Jan 2014, 21:53

Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by sathguru »

And I attended both these concerts...so I am not quoting hear say.

CHIGO
Posts: 13
Joined: 21 Apr 2012, 15:10

Re: Abhishek Raghuram MA Dec 26 2013

Post by CHIGO »

Sathguru-that's why I have many reasons to feel that veejay Sai has played into the hands of someone and Hindu also unwittingly without realising what is up the sleeves of the vested interests blindly published the orchestrated bias. When there were half a dozen regular reviewers why this odd review by an odd man? There were accolades for the pedestrian -amateur artistes in the same daily but the only harsh review was for the one and only Abhishek. It is very disturbing that a daily of this standing could be influenced to target an artiste "enviably" endowed with voice, gnanam and above all mastery over laya. Let the "envying ones" try to match him musically and not through back door methods.

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