Sikkil Gurucharan, Anil Srinivasan, B.S. Purushotham @ SISO,

karthikbala · Post by **karthikbala** » 15 Jul 2009, 17:33

Billed as "Contemporary Carnatic Concert", Sikkil Gurucharan, Anil Srinivasan, and B.S. Purushotham performed at Samsung India premises, Bangalore. (2009-07-15)

Sikkil Gurucharan (vocal) was accompanied by Anil Srinivasan (keyboard), and B.S. Purushotham (kanjira).

As a first-time listener, I found it pleasant, with the keyboard accompaniment being unobtrusive and allowing Gurucharan's attractively timbred voice to come through nicely. Purushotham was sportingly supportive on the kanjira, while not having too much to do. After a brief chat by Anil to break the ice, they took up ragas Vasanta, Abheri, Senjuruti, Mand, Madhuvanti, Kapi.

There was a recent thread on another of Anil's joint ventures which got a little heated, with cries of blue murder, crimes against CM etc. This format is a very different beast, and comparisons are somewhat beside the point. If they are drawing non-conventional audiences, full power to them...

IMHO, the glut of "conventional" kutcheris of wretched quality are doing real harm to CM, not experiments on the fringe.

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 15 Jul 2009, 20:38

Kartikbala,
Conventional or not, any kutcEri of wreched quality (reminds me of some of the s-called fusion music), does harm CM, as you say.
Yes, this format is a very different beast (of a gentle nature!). I am with you on that. This is music that soothes you but does not put you to sleep. It is music of high quality as well.
In the culture that CM grew up in, there were marriages contracted strictly within families, then within the village, then the same district-- and it gradually grew into seeking brides and grooms from different parts of the land. All alliances work, if they have merit, harmony. It is the same here. This appears to me as a healthy addition to CM, experimental as it is at the moment . Hope it evolves into something which would become an integral part of CM in the future.
Quality is the key. Fervor about a new form is an additional asset. I am not talking about anything and everything which goes under the name of fusion music...

rajaglan · Post by **rajaglan** » 16 Jul 2009, 09:25

Hi karthikbala,

Chennaites have lots of this kind of oppurtunities. Can you post what was the format of this kutcheri and what krithis were sung. Is Anil a totally accompanying artist in this kind of format. Keen to know such things. Why mridangam is missing?

mohan · Post by **mohan** » 16 Jul 2009, 09:31

What tone was Anil using on the keyboard? Was it being played in piano style or were there gamaka-s evident (like Sathya plays)?

sundance · Post by **sundance** » 16 Jul 2009, 17:05

I did not personally attend this particular concert, but have attended Anil Srinivasan -SG at Music Academy in the last edition of the Hindu's November Fest as well as subsquently at their performance in Chowdiah Hall Bangalore last year. Friends of mine have attended their concerts at Esplanade, Singapore and in the Experimental Theatre in Kuala Lumpur, and from what I have heard personally and from others, this format has definitely captured the imagination of a lot of listeners, both those who are well-versed in CM and those with little or no exposure. As karthikbala correctly states, full power to them if they are managing to reach out to unconventional audiences.

Anil Srinivasan, from both my observations of his playing as well as personal conversations following concerts, seems to be a highly qualified and gifted classical pianist. In accordance with that, his playing style is western classical, using the piano tone on a digital piano owing to the non-portability and availability of grand pianos in most venues in S India. Of course, the performances abroad as well as the one in Chowdiah featured grands which enhanced the quality of the music considerably. Recently, I attended a lec-dem given by him on WCM and found his insights and sense for classical rigour very refreshing, especially given some of the (unnecessarily scathing) remarks directed against him debasing CM etc. mentioned elsewhere in the forum, but not saying this to start off another battle here

!

In the format with SG, he seems to be another "main" artist, adding WCM flourishes and counter-melodic passages when necessary, and seamlessly shifts over to the raga equivalent on the keys, and this clicks with SG's very attractive voice very intuitively. Also, he usually explains, in the beginning of each piece, the musical and lyrical significance of the composition to follow, and helps contextualize the piece - a move I find very welcoming, especially for new audiences.

I have not so far experienced him using a portamento glide or other device to either mimic "gamaka" playing, nor is he attempting to do a solo CM stint on stage. He retains his WCM core, and apart from occasional forays that demonstrate his appreciation and knowledge of CM, stays his own course. The choice of ragas is done deliberately, keeping in mind the limitations or possibilities of the instrument.

Attendees of the SISO concert to please give us a list of pieces they presented.

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 16 Jul 2009, 20:53

Sundance,
Your description of Anil's music is spot on: he retains his western classical
music core, and apart from occasional forays that demonstrates his appreciation and knowledge of CM, stays his own course.

That about sums up his music, in my view too.

sundance · Post by **sundance** » 16 Jul 2009, 23:33

@arasi - i have also felt for a long time that the beauty of WCM integrating seamlessly within the CM frame leaves a lot of room for exploration - Dikshitar himself started on this path and its been left untended for far too long. Artists like Anil and V S Narasimhan, while still in the process of perfecting their technique, have the right idea, and already - are attracting a lot of people outside the usual CM demographic. Kudos to them.

It is wonderful to see the healthy tone these discussions have taken post the unfortunate attacks some weeks ago. Lets hope we continue in this vein

!!

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 17 Jul 2009, 02:24

Sundance,
For every derider, there will be others who applaud new strains of creativity. Of course, applauding discretely (read the current thread on Applause)

rshankar · Post by **rshankar** » 17 Jul 2009, 06:11

arasi wrote:Sundance,
For every derider, there will be others who applaud new strains of creativity.

Said another way, 'you git a thorn for every rose, but aint the roses sweet?'

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 17 Jul 2009, 08:48

You betcha!

Ravi,
Now we are inviting trouble

An imagined fear of 'a thoroughly american influence' on the forum might trigger unpleasant statements. So, mum is the word

rajaglan · Post by **rajaglan** » 17 Jul 2009, 23:00

Sundance,

Thank you for the clarifications on the format.

Revathi S · Post by **Revathi S** » 23 Jul 2009, 01:21

Guess I made a late way-in to this topic. However the discussions probed me in to be better late than never

.I was an attentive audience at SISO.
Being an ardent Carnatic vocalist/enthusiast, I have tried ways to make a larger crowd show interest in CM and admire its beauty. In those ranks, AnilÃƒÂ¢Ã¢â€šÂ¬Ã¢â€žÂ¢s effort and his contemporary classical music model is to be applauded. I ve had heard about their performances, seen on net, but witnessing a live performance of their Contemporary Classical Music was my first. I should say their efforts reaped very well.
Even people from nil musical background came up to appreciate and paid attention; I attribute it all to the concept.
The selection of ragas for the opening piece "suttum vizhi"

Suji Ram · Post by **Suji Ram** » 23 Jul 2009, 02:04

The concert was unblemished; it appeared that piano should have been considered a best-go with Carnatic Music from ages

Nice review Revathi.

Piano and guitar are very powerful instruments. Off course when you strike the right chord!

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 23 Jul 2009, 02:16

Revathi.
Your words do speak of your concert experience very well!
I have heard Anil play jagadOddharana ADisidaLu yaSOda with Viji Natarajan on the violin. You are right in thinking that this kind of fusion music elevates itself. It is a careful blending of two kinds of classical music which are worlds apart. It sounds like distilled music to me while the wild mixing of different genres of music just for the sake of it with speed as a main ingredient puts me off. When a friend sent me a CD of Anil and Gurucharan's music with the accompaniment of Purushottam, I had no clue about how good the music was going to sound. I was surprised, and have come to like Anil's playing as I heard him a few more times. His music reflects the respect and love he has for the music of both the east the west. I see it as a natural growth of an accomplished musician rather than the result of two artistes bringing their own music together--sincerely perhaps, but with chaotic results, simply because they forced a fusing.
In this case, the bending and blending is done wth care and clarity that the voice and the instrument or two instruments have the same purpose and the progression of the music is graceful and pleasing. ..

Revathi S · Post by **Revathi S** » 23 Jul 2009, 11:17

We have accepted violin in CM to an extent that a concert without violin is beyond our imagination with violin being of European origin. This was introduced to Indian Classical Music by Dikshitar's brother. When Ariyakkudi preset a pattern to the concert, he was seen a rebel .But now the "Classical Carnatic concerrt" in popular terms means "Ariyakkudi style"