Carnatic Music Idols (2011)- JAYA TV Programme

venkatakailasam · Post by **venkatakailasam** » 10 Feb 2011, 13:01

E'-SWARA-009-Bru Carnatic Music Idol-2011-Part IX-10-02-2011

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMjhuVFZCfw

venkatakailasam

smala · Post by **smala** » 10 Feb 2011, 13:31

Liked Ganesh a lot - very attractive voice.

music_is_life · Post by **music_is_life** » 10 Feb 2011, 20:09

Currently the second round recording is going on. They selected around 32 in the first round and 16 will be eliminated in this round. So, nobody knows who's the Carnatic Idol 2011 yet!

Ponbhairavi · Post by **Ponbhairavi** » 10 Feb 2011, 20:19

The semifinal stage has been reached. I feel that, besides shri Thyagaraja ,some other composers also (including some tamil) may be given a chance to have their compositions sung in this prestigious programme. . “ Since it is not a competition but it is a career” It would be difficult nowadays to make a musical career with the repertoire of any single composer
I appeal to the young competitors to prepare themselves to the great unique and extraordinary reward which awaits the winner. Pl do not think that it is simply a kutchery at Thiruvaiyaru in front of the mourning Samadhi of the swamy It is not a mere occasion to sing in the very house where the saint lived at Thiruvaiyaru or Tiruvarur in front of the same old idols which he worshipped centuries ago, it is not just like singing in front of the kalinga Narthana idol at the dusty decrepit Oothukkadu village temple which inspired that unlucky composer, it is not a routine and cheap occasion to sing in front of the idols of presiding deities of Kancheepuram Tirupathi or Chidambaram .
Yours is a Unique and golden opportunity to perform at Cleveland USA , the Mecca of carnatic music ( no idolatry) where even established musicians are longing for an opportunity which neither Thyagaraja Dikshithar Sastri or venkatakavi ever had. Please make sure you go with a Jari veshti ( Pothy’s are good). For inspiration, you will have in front of you not inert idols but inter alia, selfless zealous dedicated persons who have sacrificed their life ,time, energy name fame wealth and everything for the sacred cause of promotion of carnatic music. Perhaps, to add to the solemnity, you might even soon find, somewhere nearby, a replica of the thiruvaiyaru Samadhi or the thiruvaiyaru house of the bard (renovated version and not the old dilapidated one.)
Good luck and enjoy.Do not be surprised to see some of your judges there. those who cannot make it ( the vast majority ) take it as a BIG tamasha and be contented to do any of the things stated at para 2 above..

suma · Post by **suma** » 10 Feb 2011, 21:21

mahavishnu wrote:Suma, to answer your earlier question. While the show may be taped ahead of time, no one is talking about the results anywhere. I have tried probing through all venues known to me and no answers are forthcoming! I guess they don't want to miss out on any viewers for the grand finale.

My top 3 so far: Raghavendra, Anahita and Nandini in that order. Looking forward to the next episode!

Thanks. I havent watched today's recording. Will do so in the weekend.

I wonder who got eliminated (16)

mahavishnu · Post by **mahavishnu** » 11 Feb 2011, 00:45

I believe Ganesh from episode 9 is Maharajapuram Ganesh Viswanathan, grandson of Sri Santhanam, great-grandson of MVI. No wonder he picked Arabhi and sang Chalakalla ladu.

Must be difficult for "regular" folks to compete with people whose families breathe (literally) music!

smala · Post by **smala** » 11 Feb 2011, 02:37

Maybe that explains it. Soumya's eyes lit up when Ganesh sang and Ganesh (judge) was listening attentively too. Soumya seemed especially kind in her asking Ganesh to brush up on a point or two in the next semi-final round. His voice carries shades of his grandfather's.

Enna_Solven · Post by **Enna_Solven** » 11 Feb 2011, 06:18

@ Ponbhairavi,
I hope you wrote your post in jest; otherwise it makes a very disturbing read. I am surprised that no one commented on it yet.

suma · Post by **suma** » 11 Feb 2011, 06:43

Thanks, just watched. That was Ganesh, Maharajapuram Srinivas's son. He does vocal support with his dad. I am happy that children from musically established families are participating and taking up the challenge. It is one thing were they get concert slots because they are sons and daughter's of xyz artists and it is one thing to win through a competition and prove their merit.

mahavishnu · Post by **mahavishnu** » 11 Feb 2011, 07:08

I agree with Enna_solven. Ponbhairavi sir, why this sarcasm? These are merely kids we are talking about, at a very impressionable stage still. I am glad that they get these kinds of opportunities that will encourage them to pursue a career in music.

rshankar · Post by **rshankar** » 11 Feb 2011, 07:10

suma wrote:Thanks, just watched. That was Ganesh, Maharajapuram Srinivas's son. He does vocal support with his dad. I am happy that children from musically established families are participating and taking up the challenge. It is one thing were they get concert slots because they are sons and daughter's of xyz artists and it is one thing to win through a competition and prove their merit.

I have no idea about these shows, but I wonder how the results can be expected to be unbiased...MVI's great-grandson..hmmm versus a young man who chose not to wear a vESTi, for after all this was supposed to evaluate his music, and not his fashion sense....This is similar to the reviews of NIH grants - even substandard applications from established investigators seem to stand a better chance for funding than better efforts from 'new' (unestablished) investigators!
I think Ponbhairavi's ire is not directed at the particpants per se, but the organizers!

mahavishnu · Post by **mahavishnu** » 11 Feb 2011, 07:31

Ravi, Having served on NIH and NSF routinely, I am not sure if I agree with you. There are special classes of awards reserved for young investigators. Also, I am not sure if that analogy applies here. Everyone that competes is not "established". Some may have family connections, some may have top-end gurus; but in the end they have to prove their mettle in front of several judges and the voting public. It is best to give the system a chance before we find fault with it. Sure, the veshti incident was not very graceful, and a couple of participants might not have been encouraged adequately,there are issues of conflict of interest, but I have not seen any unfairness yet. I seriously doubt if Ganesh will win just because he is MVI's great grandson. If he wins, it will be because he is a good singer. I am sure he would like to earn the title meritoriously.

Sam Swaminathan · Post by **Sam Swaminathan** » 11 Feb 2011, 08:03

Mahavishnu, I agree with you. Being MVI's grandson is probably a handicapped situation, for much would be expected of him. On the flip side, it is not and should not be taken for granted that he has got the talents of his grand father either. I also agree that so for, both Sowmya and Ganesh have been excellent judges, barring the unfortunate veshti incident.

Ponbairavi...unless you can explain the reason for your sarcasm, I am unable to understand the under current of your comments.

suma · Post by **suma** » 11 Feb 2011, 08:11

Influence in a closed competition definately helps. But in this case, they are telecasting the competition. So, regardless of the influence factor, the judgement cant be openly biased. If the canidate is really good, then may be the judges add a point or two because of influence, but if the canidate is not good, they wont be able to openly add points and favor a canidate in an open and telecasted competition.

kunthalavarali · Post by **kunthalavarali** » 11 Feb 2011, 08:24

A new dimension to the show now, with the expansion of the judges' panel. It was a top drawer performance today. What a beautiful Saveri, specially the prayogas in the upper octave.

venkatakailasam · Post by **venkatakailasam** » 11 Feb 2011, 10:00

E'-SWARA-010-Bru Carnatic Music Idol-2011-Part 10-Semi I-10-02-2011.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBw8Xj18DzQ

venkatakailasam

mahavishnu · Post by **mahavishnu** » 11 Feb 2011, 10:27

You are as reliable as a rolex watch, Sri Kailasam. Thank you for your diligence. I am usually the very first viewer!

Vishnu was quite the dark horse till this point. What an amazing Saveri he sang. The kAnada swarams poochi style were also very creative and well executed. It was good to see someone rise up to the challenge of this round. NSG is an excellent judge. I loved how he egged him on to touch the upper nishadam.

The plot thickens!

smala · Post by **smala** » 11 Feb 2011, 13:16

I have a hunch we are going to witness several excellent performers like Vishnu who is Malayalee, I think - I hope the "Carnatic Idol" is not cast in stone and can be expanded to include more than one winner - if cases merit such a consideration. That would be progressive and truly encouraging to these promising youngsters. After all, it is not all about winning - rather the program is about recognizing and identifying promise towards being top-notch performers. Hope others concur with this but since the program is already done - mine may just be wishful thinking.

Sam Swaminathan · Post by **Sam Swaminathan** » 11 Feb 2011, 13:45

Very true SP...this show is an eye opener for all the youngsters who are learning CM and they can see the heights they can grow up to...

By the way, why is it that we do not see any instrumentalists? Any particular reason? Surely there are youngsters who are learning veena, violin etc. Why are they not participating? Can some one throw some light on this? Cheers

suma · Post by **suma** » 11 Feb 2011, 19:46

Vishnu was good. If I am not mistaken, this is the same person that sang Kambhoji in the first round and is from Kerala. He sang well in the first round also.

NSG adds elegence to the Judges Panel. Asking to say the lyrics and having the contestant try and figure out the mind set of the composer was simply brilliant.

nadhasudha · Post by **nadhasudha** » 11 Feb 2011, 20:11

I think I get Ponbhairavi's sarcasm - The carnatic music idol show appears to promote performing at the Cleveland Festival as the inspiration for the winners. What is so sacrosanct about performing at Cleveland? Can an aspiring carnatic musician build a career with a single performance at Cleveland once a year? Why not work with local sabhas/institutions like Krishna Gana Sabha,Music Academy, AIR,Podhigai, TTD and other institutions to give concert chances to the final winner at their upcoming December season. And by the way - why nobody ever thinks that giving these kids a chance to perform at any of the composers' samadhi on their aradhana day is worthwhile?

cmlover · Post by **cmlover** » 11 Feb 2011, 21:48

Yes nadhasudha
it is inappropriate to see the emphasis on the trip to USA as though that is the goal for excellence in CM. Of course performing in Cleveland is a good incentive though the quality of CM there is of varied standards. Actually the goal of many learning CM in NA is to perform at MA considered the Mecca of CM (though the standards have fallen considerably these days). The best of CM is there yet only in SI (in Bangalore/Hyderabad/Trivandrum and in the small villages and of course in Chennai). Instead of the trip to USA as the carrot they could have promoted a cash prize of 10 lakhs or a Kg Gold bar as the prize which is worth coveting for. We can enthuse youngsters to learn CM and follow it as a career only if there is a strong financial incentive...

thanjavooran · Post by **thanjavooran** » 11 Feb 2011, 22:26

Shri Ponbhairavi Avl,
While totally agreeing with your views, permit me for a small correction . Those who missed to get the blessings of the stalwarts of CM music at Thiruvaiyaru on Pushya bagula panchami day, can make good from all such seniors seated on the front row at Cleveland on St. T's aradhana Day.
Thanjavooran 11 02 2011

Nick H · Post by **Nick H** » 11 Feb 2011, 22:55

I'm not following the program (but I am following the thread about it, even if that is a bit crazy)!

I do wonder though, if this Cleveland carrot is not just part of a whole trip-to-USA thing? Even the festival itself... is it not a special thing for a youngster to be an ambassador of the youth of Chennai?

Probably talking out of my left foot here. Or somewhere even less informed!

mahavishnu · Post by **mahavishnu** » 11 Feb 2011, 22:59

Ok, I get the picture. If the criticism is about performance in Cleveland as the only end goal of the contest, then it is well taken. I thought Ponbhairavi was referring to the merit of having such a contest in general, since he was taking a dig at the "this is not a competition, it is a career" tagline. The organizers do mention record contracts, chances to perform at other sabhas in India etc, but they were all secondary.

However, we should not be hypocritical about the acknowledging the impact of positive exposure that one gets from being successful in a show like this and the significant additional motivation of going to the Cleveland festival. I have heard a couple of these contestants in the noon slots during the music season: Anahita @ KGS, 2010, Ganesh on several occasions and Raghavendra, BK, 2008-9 (he looked different then with glasses etc). They sang wonderfully, but there were 30-40 people in the audience. On the contrary, Bharat Sundar, last year's winner sang to a near full house in the noon slot at the MA in 2010. He got opportunities to perform with UKS accompanying him on atleast two occasions. Let us also not be negative about the draw of commercial success in encouraging young people to take up carnatic music. I see no problem with the show promoting itself as a career maker and not merely a "competition". I don't think it is a misrepresentation.

And CML, please let us not use words like "disgusting". A milder term like "inappropriate" might suffice.

suma · Post by **suma** » 11 Feb 2011, 23:11

Yes, I agree. The anchor was bragging about "getting to perform in cleveland". While it is a big deal for people who never came to US to get a round trip ticket paid and a have a concert slot in cleveland with the winner of cleveland's own concert winner, that certainly does not make it a career. Performing once in cleveland does not make one a career musician.

That said, the publicity that this carnatic idol gets, plus the level of scrutiny a canidate goes through to get the coveted title of a carnatic idol is definately a career in the making. Many organizers are watching the show, many viewers are following the show. So the winner will have instant name recogniztion as he/she was a time tested carnatic musician.

The local sabha's in india will definately invite the winner to perform and if the performance is good, it would become a regular routine and therefore a career.

cmlover · Post by **cmlover** » 12 Feb 2011, 00:14

Ramesh
Happy to oblige

By the by it is difficult not to notice the dominance of one family among the judges. Not that they are necessarily biassed. But monocloning CM is not healthy like ponbhairavi's reference to confining to T's kritis during the preliminaries. It is refreshing to see a different approach from NSG who looks only at the vidvath rather than the attire, place of origin or even the genealogy of the contestant....

smala · Post by **smala** » 12 Feb 2011, 01:03

NSG is heads taller - humble, erudite, dignified gentle person - watch his entry in the show as judge and then watch Shashikiran or even any of the others.

mahavishnu · Post by **mahavishnu** » 12 Feb 2011, 02:30

CML, thank you. You are a true gentleman

.
For the record, several non Tyagaraja compositions were sung in the preliminaries. Sowmya's student Subashri sang Chittam Irangadadenayya (Sivan) in round 1. Others include, Dakshayani in Todi MD (sung by Anahita), Saraguna Palimpa (poochi) by Nandini. These are just the ones I remember!

However, it is not unusual for T compositions to dominate. 1) He was very prolific, 2) the compositions are the rock foundation of our pedagogical system.

I totally agree with your observations about NSG. He is indeed a true gentleman!

kartik_krish · Post by **kartik_krish** » 12 Feb 2011, 02:46

NSG's questions tested the creativity and spontaneity aspect along with vidvat. I am sure the contestant would have learnt a lot too. The kanada swarams were very good and the Saveri excellent. Most importantly, what stands out is, NSG is generally bent upon making the contestants feel comfortable and constantly encouraging them, while the other judges didnt sound so positive.(for example, when the contestant was asked to sing the dhaivatam differently, and he couldnt get it right in 2 attempts, the laughing in the judges panel was distasteful ). The GRNDMGRN (without sa-pa) are learning aspects even for a normal viewer. I think upto now, NSG has done a great job, he is ubiased.

smala · Post by **smala** » 12 Feb 2011, 04:41

I too felt like cringing at the laugh particularly a wild one from Ganesh, judge - joined by his brother too, I think. Pretty unprofessional and heartless and took something away from Ganesh's applause for Vishu's fine performance that came earlier. At the very beginning, Vishu was made to feel uncomfortable by that guy with the mike, when he said he could not speak Tamil, being a Malyaalee, and replied in English. Vishu followed clearly all the instructions/questions from the judges which were in Tamil.

Jaya TV needs to have some ground rules for judges - perhaps NSG can be the principal person to communicate regarding judges' etiquette, specially when dealing with youngsters. On the other hand judges on AmritaTV's Ragaratnam are pleasant, kind, patient and very encouraging - knowing they are dealing with juniors. I find the Kerala program to be several notches higher in professionalism and sensitivity.

cmlover · Post by **cmlover** » 12 Feb 2011, 05:45

Are there any Tamil TV stations in TN? We have a couple here in Canada and of course they talk mostly Srilankan Tamil but it is still Tamil and not Tanglish. Why don't they hold these programs all in English since the participants are from all over SI and abroad? The judges (NSG excepted) as well as the emcee are fluent only in English. Of course CM is language-free...

Rasika911 · Post by **Rasika911** » 12 Feb 2011, 07:16

Neyvelli Santhanagopalan judge the finals last year and I thought he did a pretty poor job. As a judge your primary aim is to give the contestant clear instructions and ensure that each participant gets an equal chance to showcase their talent. I felt that last year that he was in too much of a hurry and at times particularly early on his instructions were unclear and confusing which cost some of the contestants for example, anahitha who was given vague instructions to sing swarams at various eddupus for the kamboji pallavi. In saying that though he has done very well as a judge in the first semi-final. In fact, I have been to another competition where he asked a boy to sing savei omitting sa and pa.

All of the judges come from different schools and backgrounds and their approach towards the participants will be a reflection of the relationship they ahd with their gurus...i feel that they engage with participants the way their gurus did with them. NSG comes from a gurukula background with TNS where as somebody like Gayathri venkatraghavan comes from a more modern guru--shisya relationship (i think).

TM Krishna was quite an entertaining jugde in cleveland a couple of years ago and last year KN Sashikiran was also very good. KNS and GV are basically being used as the filtering juges so its hard for them to express their skill in that area.

Rasika911 · Post by **Rasika911** » 12 Feb 2011, 07:18

Also, why are there no instrumentalists???

I can understand no mridangam but surely you can have violin, veena, flute, mandoin ect.
A Carnatic Idol shouldn't be restricted to vocalists in my opinion.

kunthalavarali · Post by **kunthalavarali** » 12 Feb 2011, 10:15

" AmritaTV's Ragaratnam" What are the timings of the program?

bilahari · Post by **bilahari** » 12 Feb 2011, 12:02

Been catching up with Idol this morning. Nandini, who sang kEdAragowLa, was quite impressive. It is too easy to become repetitive with a ragam like KG, where the MGR,,,, seems to be the default ending of most phrases and the D/N are hardly dwelt on. I thought she sang with a lot of azhuttam and pretty good bhAvam. Raghavendra was very good - his harikAmbOji had some really beautiful touches, especially in the upper octave (as Sowmya observed). Definitely the one to beat from what I saw. I liked the girl who sang tODi in the next episode as well - Anahita? As someone observed, Sowmya's advice on bringing out more shades of tODi and not limiting oneself to the oscillating ga and da was very appropriate. In general, I find a lot of the contestants attempting to give azhuttam to their music by constantly oscillating every note that allows oscillation! The judges have frequently asked them to cut that down and adopt a more sparse approach.

Sowmya and Ganesh gave good advice for the most part, but seemed rather snide at times with the sarcastic chuckles (there was a "Congratulations" in one of the initial episodes which was patently unkind). I find Sowmya much more pleasant when she judges light music competitions like Super Singer! I understand that this is about preserving our art, so it's "tough love", but the judges could definitely have been more encouraging (again, this may all have been edited out due to the Simon Cowell phenomenon). The Sholingur boy incident still rankles. Does Ganesh remember what kind of a show he put up for the T Aradhana some years back with Sivamani on the drums?

The semi final was very interesting and NSG was excellent. I especially loved how he asked the participant to use the spirit of the kAnaDa varNam to organise his own kalpanaswaras in 3 beat patterns pivoting about the madhyamam (and then panchamam). The contestant handled it admirably! NSG's background questions (do you know the sAhitya of the caraNam? Who's the composer? Why is he called "pUchi"?) were appropriate as well. He encouraged the contestant constantly and made him feel comfortable, and that played a large part in the latter's confidence to be able to stray very far from safe territory and sing some of the quirky stuff NSG asked him to. NSG once again emphasised the lack of need to constantly oscillate notes, and asked the semifinalist to sing the sAvEri with just a short dhaivatam to close phrases. indeed, the GRNDMGR phrase, the dwelling on the tAra gA, were both challenging and the contestant was up to it. NSG is just an elevated human being, and his questions demonstrate how much thinking goes into his own music.

A big thank you to Sri Venkatakailasam for these timely uploads. I'm learning a lot from this program and looking forward to more.

P.S. Does anybody else find the host somewhat...crass?

smala · Post by **smala** » 12 Feb 2011, 12:06

kunthalavarali wrote:" AmritaTV's Ragaratnam" What are the timings of the program?

I'll post the links from youtube in a separate thread in this section - the ones I have seen. It seems to be broadcast Sat & Sun 8.30 pm IST - uploads are still going on.

Enna_Solven · Post by **Enna_Solven** » 12 Feb 2011, 21:19

bilahari wrote: P.S. Does anybody else find the host somewhat...crass?

That guy is suited for light music programs only. Shallow, emphasizes silly matters (GK- it is very nice to see you together) and is patronizing toward the participants.

I didn't like the fact that they gave plastic chairs to GV and Shashikiran. Not professional. Compare it with the set of ragatatna junior 2.

mahavishnu · Post by **mahavishnu** » 12 Feb 2011, 22:15

Agreed. I think they should get a professional, practicing carnatic musician to host the event. If they can't find a suitable person, why not just go with Subhashree Thanikachalam? She knows some music and sounds fine hosting the Margazhi Mahotsavam.

squims · Post by **squims** » 12 Feb 2011, 23:24

Don't get me started on the host. Every time he is on the screen, he's like a highly irritating fly buzzing about that I just can't wait to swat.

hamsadhwani · Post by **hamsadhwani** » 13 Feb 2011, 02:08

squims wrote:Don't get me started on the host. Every time he is on the screen, he's like a highly irritating fly buzzing about that I just can't wait to swat.

Especially in the semi-final episode, he was just going on and on and on and on!!!! Too much vala-vala! He does a pretty good job of hosting light music competitions, though.

bilahari · Post by **bilahari** » 13 Feb 2011, 06:20

"Too much vaLa vaLa" is the perfect description for the first half of the semis. I just fast-forwarded to the first contestant.

Squims, the fly analogy is apt, too!

E_S, I agree. Shashkikiran and GV are not lesser judges to be relegated to plastic chairs in a corner.

Rasika911 · Post by **Rasika911** » 13 Feb 2011, 06:40

Well are GV and Sashikiran judging this round? If not they don't need to be there. If they are giving marks for the contestants then they need to be seated with the other judges. Even last year Dr BMK was seated in a special chair where as trichur ramachandran, r vedavalli and other people were sitting in normal chairs. We dont need this type of class segregation in CM!

kartik_krish · Post by **kartik_krish** » 13 Feb 2011, 10:43

There was one contestant who sang Begada and the swaras werent terribly brilliant. Ganesh says "Sollave vendaam, the swaras could have been better. Sowmya says talam grip illai. Ragam la verum Ni thaan kettuduAnyway, you are in"? Why? am I the only one reading too much into it, or did the contestant really deserve the semi slot?I didnt think so, but could be my being a nyanashoonyam.

It is in episode 7.

cmlover · Post by **cmlover** » 13 Feb 2011, 20:15

I was wondering too!
There may be other hidden equations too which we are not aware of!
They do get feedback from GV and SK...

smala · Post by **smala** » 14 Feb 2011, 11:05

What's happening with the very talented Erode Anantharaman - he was featured in Isai Mazhalai 2008-2009 - he should be fifteen ? now but doesn't seem to be in this contest. Here he is, with his very attractive singing in his new adult voice (courtesy : vkailasam).

-bhavayAmi
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9WPLilnW1U

Who is that in at 3.09 with vibhuti pattai ? Who is his guru?

-kandEnAn udupiya krishnanA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Y-D_Z6h ... re=related

Here is Master Prachotan, disciple of Hyderabad Brothers, another boy wonder.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-3c6vfm ... re=related

mahavishnu · Post by **mahavishnu** » 14 Feb 2011, 11:20

S-P: He didn't make it past the prelims last year. See his clip from round 1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFIfHuRo ... EC373439st

I saw him perform in the last music season at Krishna Gana Sabha; felt like he had a long way to go. Physiological changes, voice breaking etc. He is around 18 now.

Rasika911 · Post by **Rasika911** » 15 Feb 2011, 15:24

VenkataKailasam sir...when will the next episode be up?

hamsadhwani · Post by **hamsadhwani** » 15 Feb 2011, 19:02

The episode for 14th is there already! You can see it if you go to sir's channel.

mahavishnu · Post by **mahavishnu** » 15 Feb 2011, 19:08

Hamsadhwani, I think Rasika911 meant the episode for the 15th. It is usually up by around 10:30am IST like clockwork.