N. Ramani Flute - 1972 Ramanavami, Parvathi, Mysore

[Rsachi]

We welcome rasikas to a lovely concert of Vid. Ramani from the Parvathi archives.
Ramanavami Concert at Parvathi, on 25 - 3 - 1972.
Song List:
01-Evarani-Devamruthavarshini-Thyagaraja-6.39 ***02-Nagumomu-Abheri- Thyagaraja - 36.28***03-Bhajana seyarada-Dharmavathi - Mysore Vasudevachar-16.53***
04-Bhaja Govindam - ragamalika - Adi Shankara-8.03***05-Jagadoddharana - Kapi - Purandaradasa-4.47***06-Tillana- Behag- Lalgudi Jayaraman-4.42***
07- Thiruppugazh - Kannada - Arunagirinathar-1.39***08-Pavamana- Saurashtra-Thyagaraja-0.24

You can access the concert here:
http://chowdaiahandparvati.blogspot.in/ ... amani.html

[mahavishnu]

Thank you, Rsachi. This is going to be my weekend treat!
I am impressed by how LGJ's behag tillana was one of the first ones to get picked up by leading contemporary musicians of the time as early as four decades ago. Beautiful composition, IMHO one of the best tillanas ever composed.

[vasanthakokilam]

That Thiruppugazh in kannada is also interesting. In the midst of all that fast pace and unique style of rendering Thiruppugazh, Kannada comes out brilliantly.

[Rsachi]

Yes, my favourites too!

[srikant1987]

I am impressed by how LGJ's behag tillana was one of the first ones to get picked up by leading contemporary musicians of the time as early as four decades ago.

Dr N Ramani has been associated with LGJ from very early on, thanks to the veena-venu-violin concerts they have given together. The behag tillAna seems to have been commonly included in those concerts.

[varsha]

hanks to the veena-venu-violin concerts they have given together

more than that , it was probably their duet tour of the usa - of which recordings of only a few concerts are in public domain .
N Ramani once mentioned in a Sun TV interview that this particular tour was an important milestone in his own career . He exhorted the interviewer not to refer to the tour as one in which Lalgudi accompanied him - Dont refer to my name and his under the same breath - was his respectful fervent plea .
Those concerts are wonderful in the sense one does not get an idea as to who is accompanying whom

[Rsachi]

Yes, Varsha!
I also know of other references Vid. Ramani makes respectfully to Vid Lalgudi Jayaraman. I feel the Kannada raga Thiruppugazh in this context also is tuned by LGJ.
When I was in IIT in late 60s, they performed together memorably in the IIT Music club with Vid Karaikkudi Mani. I also attended the V3 concert once in that time.
Nothing new to be said for the ocean of musical genius called Lalgudi. Apropos Vid. Ramani, I am repeatedly struck by his musical sensitivity, his gaayaki style, and his very fruitful collaborative spirit with the violinist. We have a true maestro amongst us.

[varsha]

and his very fruitful collaborative spirit with the violinist

http://www.mediafire.com/?m2t80qgebb13ytf
from the nr-llg-ts trigalbandi

[Rsachi]

Oh, what a lovely lovely tonality to the flute! Thanks a lot, Varsha!
There are two mridangams...kindly identify them for me (left one=? and right one=?)
Thanks!

[varsha]

one is Trichy Sankaran. As to the other , perhaps cacm or mahavishnu can tell. From one of the twenty odd concerts they gave on a tour .
Only two are in public domain , as far as I know .
Brilliantly recorded spool tape version .

[mahavishnu]

Varsha, a million thanks for that clip.
RSachi, The other mridangist on that tour would have been Sri Ramnad Raghavan (although I cannot confirm that with my tiny macbook speakers). I think cacm/VKV sir organized that concert tour!

There is another lovely recording in the public domain with a varnam in Garudadhwani, Mamava sada varade, and ending with Lalgudi's Tilang tillana. Some of Carnatic music's greatest moments.

[varsha]

his gaayaki style,

Another extreme here . A great catch - me - if - you - can with MSG at Ayodhya Mantapam . A finale that sent the crowd into raptures
http://www.mediafire.com/?lzqckqye57tmyso
only the roller coaster part here ..

http://www.mediafire.com/?ew7sox9j5yjki1o
here is the full song

[arasi]

The roller coaster part is anything but the speed races some of today's performers venture into. This is sheer ebullience--imaginative cascades which are as soothing as still waters.
I heard Ramani play at Cleveland via streaming this year and was moved to tears at times with his fine playing (what an effort it surely is, to blow so finely after all these years!). And here, to hear the two masters together in their youthful playing was joyful.

[Rsachi]

Varsha,
Your samples are lovely. Thanks.
By the way the 1972 concert we have posted, the subject of this thread, has an equally long and intense Nagumomu. It will be interesting for you rasikas to listen to the Parvathi concert...

[varsha]

arasi -- rsachi
Thanks . That track was meant only as a counterpoint
Parvathi concerts ... Which ones , among them , are not great ???

[Rsachi]

thanks Varsha, your encouragement is valuable to all at CPBlog.

[vasanthakokilam]

Rsachi, such encouragement and appreciation is always ON. Thanks for bringing all the Parvathi recordings to the world.

varsha: Thanks for all the tracks. That vathapi sounds awesome, indeed to be preserved for the ages, both for the recording quality and of course most importantly for the quality of the music. There is that certain fluidity that is present in that music which is hard to describe.

Flutists can play fast, in fact quite fast because they can, in traversing the scale to create a sound-scape that is breathtaking ( literally for the artist and figuratively for the audience ) but carrying the substance along is a different matter. I tend to think of it as thaila dhara, a viscous flow, if I may, in contrast to a torrent of water. Here, a familiar song, done many hundreds of times, presented beautifully in that fluid manner, putting speed to good use and only to good use. Awesome. Thanks.

[Rsachi]

Dear VK,
You've put it beautifully. Yes! Like a 'taila dhara' (a paradigm from our scriptures you've invoked and one that is very dear to me!)
For a musician, playing in front of an audience, with the welter of ideas possible with years of musical pursuits, to achieve that meditative quality in actual musical output, calls for a unique equipoise. Vid.Ramani often invokes this.
I have found it also -to name a few -in KVN, MSS, MDR, Bombay Jayashree. That is why perhaps we say music takes us closest to nirvana.

[varsha]

MDRs passages haunt me even in non MDR concerts :^)

[Rsachi]

Varsha,
"The music in my heart I bore,
Long after it was heard no more."-Wordsworth

[arasi]

VK,
Contemplative words from a flautist himself--
Leading us to a Wordsworthian frame of mind!

[semmu86]

one is Trichy Sankaran. As to the other , perhaps cacm or mahavishnu can tell. From one of the twenty odd concerts they gave on a tour .
Only two are in public domain , as far as I know .
Brilliantly recorded spool tape version .

The other vidwAn is indeed Ramnad Raghavan. Sankaran Sir's mrudangam would have especially sang along, Esp in chakkani rAjA and the koraippu in the kalpanaswarams.. Its absolutely amazing the way he would have played and embellished each and every sangathi and gamakam. Perfect example of how to establish one's own authority and that of the instrument, without dominating/ being an hindrance to the main artists. Verily, a lesson on accompaniment.

Those two concerts are literally stuff from the heavens.

[Rsachi]

Sir, could you clarify whether TS is on the right or left in the Vatapi clip here? Thank you.

[mahavishnu]

The right channel is TS (with the deeper thoppi sound and gumki enhancement) and the left is RR. I finally had a chance to hear this with headphones. Wonderful recording, Varsha.

Perfect example of how to establish one's own authority and that of the instrument, without dominating/ being an hindrance to the main artists. Verily, a lesson on accompaniment.

Semmu, Very nicely said. Couldn't agree more.

Just for the record, I have heard that Sri T Ranganathan accompanied them on at least one occasion the '71 tour. This concert might be available on Sangeethapriya. Ajit would know much more about this.

[Rsachi]

Thank you Mahavishnu!
I liked also the RR entrances and little touches.

[mahavishnu]

RSachi: Yes, absolutely. Ramnad Raghavan is an excellent vidwan in his own right. Some of his best work was when he accompanied his brother, the great Ramnad Krishnan. He also ventured into the world of fusion music with John McLaughlin and L Shankar (Raghavan's nephew) as the first percussionist for "Shakti".

I had the pleasure of interacting with Sri Raghavan for many years when I used to live in Connecticut. It is figures like him, Viswa sir, Sankaran sir, Sri Higgins, Dr S Ramanathan, Palghat Raghu and Sri KVN that transformed the face of Carnatic music globally (and not some teen reality show as many seem to think today; I think we discussed this in another thread). The 71 tour of LGJ/Ramani played a historic role in this as well.

I am really enjoying how a great concert from 1972 has fostered such an interesting discussion among music lovers almost five decades hence.

Returning to the original topic of this thread, I also really enjoyed Sri Ramabadran's playing at the PArvati concert. As stable as a harmonic oscillator, as a physicist like Sri VKV might say. He plays with a certain assertiveness that gave way to a softer style in his later years.

And we have you to thank for starting all this, RSachi. And from me special thanks for all your work on the chowdiahparvati blog.

Varsha-ji: I know it is very cheeky of me to ask. But do you have the rest of the LGJ/Ramani concert featuring Vatapi? I would give my left leg for such a good recording.

[cacm]

Sri.Ramnad Ragavan was the MAIN accompanist for the fabulous& historic 1971 tour of N.A. by LGJ& Ramani which had many firsts e.g.: the pallavis in R.T.P. were ALL LGJ Composed. The Final double mridangam concert with Trichi Sankaran in NYC is considered by ALL the artists involved as one of their BEST & will go down in history as a landmark concert of our times. Sri.Raghavan was a modest man but truly a GREAT ARTIST. VKV

[varsha]

Varsha-ji: I know it is very cheeky of me to ask. But do you have the rest of the LGJ/Ramani concert featuring Vatapi? I would give my left leg for such a good recording.

Will do . And thanks for the offer . I would not know what to with your leg . And considering that there are two concerts , which works out to two legs , I suspect you will be put into some discomfort .
Keep looking forward . As cacm confirms , it is something out of this world .

[varsha]

http://www.mediafire.com/?cg3alj9c8q356

full concert is here . please take a deep breath before listening to it . especially the chakkani , as someone mentioned earlier

[mahavishnu]

Merci infiniment. I owe you at least a prosthetic limb

For now, just a picture.


Found this picture along with the accompanying article (featuring some very interesting anecdotes as narrated by Sri VKV).

http://www.indiacurrents.com/articles/2 ... ik-revival

[Rsachi]

Guys, just one word to all you Maha Rasikas, WoW!!!!!

[Rsachi]

superb Marivere to celebrate Gouri festival today!

[semmu86]

especially the chakkani , as someone mentioned earlier

That was me Sorry if this sounds repetitive, but i still cant help but sit still and marvel at the way Sankaran Sir would have played each and every sangathi in chakkani rAja (Might take repeated careful listenings in a quiet atmosphere to assimilate, internalise and appreciate that). And what marvellous valam-eDam sErkkai (Treble-bass balance) in that kucchi vAdhyam!!

There is something which gets frequently mentioned : "pATTODa oTTi vAsikkardhu" in laya language (Roughly translated as "mrudangam accompaniment blending with the main artist's music"), for which, there cannot be a better example than this...