Jal Tarang

[cookmex]

Dear members,
do you think that Jal Tarang has a solid future in carnatic practice and concerts, or this instrument has a small number of new aficionados and professionals?

[Nick H]

I'm afraid that it is possible that it may have no future at all.

I have been to two jala tarang concerts in the past five years --- and I don't think I have missed many more than that.

cookmex... how delightfully you ferret out the unusual in music

[arasi]

So nice! I was waiting to hear a song too in KHP, but the clip ended

Just an idea. One way of keeping alive such a delicate expression of music is to make it prelude to some full-length concerts. That is, to give a chance to a jalatarangam player to play for half an hour before a concert starts.This way, a regular concert can start without any interruptions of the coming in of late-comers. I'm sure the JT artistes won't mind the trickling in of the audience (while being happy that they are given a chance to play!).
The old cinema halls used to have organ music before the start of a film which people were
eager to hear. In the silent movie days, they even played throughout the length of the film!HArmonium in India, if I'm not mistaken.
The Jalatarangam has such a pleasing sound. What a good thing to introduce its sound to the children in a conert!

Who's the fine player? His last sangati was such a sweet sweeping one! I remember one Seetha ...... ?? who sounded very good as swell.

[maduraimini]

The artist is Anayampatti S. Ganesan according to the heading. It was nice to hear this instrument. I remember going to a Jalatharangam concert(?) as a young girl in Madurai with my father . There were just a few people and we sat on the floor in a semi-circle. When he was finished, we were all curious and along with a few, I went to see the bowls with water and the artist explained about the level of water and such things to the audience . I liked the sound of it and I remember my brother playing with a few bowls when we got home, trying to reproduce the harmony!

[Nick H]

I first heard this instrument[s] as background music in a Kochi silk shop! I deduced what it was, from having read about it, from the sound. Somehow, nobody in the shop had a clue what CD/tape it was, or even where the system it was being played from was, but I chanced upon the the same CD soon afterwards.

[arasi]

Maduraimini,
Thanks! The name Anayampatti came back to me an hour ago, but not his name!

Nice recollections of a concert from your chlidhood! The audience forming another semi-circle! It looks as though this 'ripples (waves) in the water' instrument is a good one to introduce to children for gentle hearing (lullaby?). Your brother perhaps turned into a musician (rasikA)/scientist--his immediate experiments at home indicates that!

Nick,
Smooth as silk music--a subliminal message? How many saris did S buy

Seriously, wish we can listen to short concerts of jalatarangam...

[Nick H]

How many saris did S buy

It was during a pre-S lifetime. She likes jalatarangam, though.

[cookmex]

In November 2010, there was a concert in Mysore with hundred musicians. The only condition was that only instruments native to India could be used to accompany the singers. Thus the violin was ruled out. Veena, flute, nagaswaram and jalatarangam were ruled in.

[cookmex]

raga: hindolam

[Jyeshtha]

The artist is Anayampatti S. Ganesan. An amazing dexterity and gnanam to coax out this kind of anuswarams!! He is also an excellent vocalist, with a resonant voice that belies his age. And also a very good violinist who has accompanied many stalwarts. Unfortunately he does not seem to have any students-- such is the demanding nature of the instrument I guess
Where is the patronage??
His son Venkatasubramaniam is making a name for himself as a good violin accompanist.

[duff777]

Another audiovisual:

[venkatakailasam]

commonly known as Madisaar Maami, Smt Seetha Doraiswamy is a renowned Carnatic Multi-instrumentalist. She is the last recognised female exponent of a dying Indian instrument, the jal tarang. She was the first (and till date youngest) female musician ever to be awarded the Gold Medal of Honour from The Music Academy, the first Carnatic music Institute. She is the only Jal Tarang exponent to have ever received the Kalaimamani award, India's fourth highest civilian award, in 2001 with the citation reading "(Seetha) has tirelessly worked to prevent the jalatharangam from becoming extinct and is often recognized only for that; it is time to bring to notice the fact that she championed for the cause of equal female representation during a time where our cultural norms may have not. Additionally, her theoretical knowledge was the foundation for many of the modern concepts of Carnatic music as we know it today."

E-SWARA-003- Smt Seetha Doraiswamy-Jaladharangam-kapali.flv

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JDhpkop0Oqc

there are a few more clips which will be posted ...

[duff777]

Great contribution, vkailasam.