Music Academy Dec season schedule 2013-14

[rshankar]

Blind Monkey Song

All I will say is that this to me in the quintessential madrAsi take on the hindi sAi bhajan 'man kI ANkhEn khOlO' (just as the quintessential North Indian take of 'cold water' for the very madrAsi name of 'daNDapANi') - I will let you figure who the artist is!!

[pperumal]

Is this a first for Amrutha Venkatesh?

Sigh!!
Disappointed at such a lovely artist's music of late.
Such heavy music she used to belt out - but alas of late is on some other trajectory
I hope this is transient and sure hope she gets back to her self soon.......

[ajsriram]

It is news that MA is not interested in giving chances to performers who are working in other organization (Professional in other domain). To be precise MA is keen on giving chances to “MUSIC PROFESSIONALS” only.

I am sure that MA is not 100% sticking to the rules created by them. On seeing the list one can easily find artists who are professional in two different segments other than music.

The reason for omitting TNS Krishna & saketharaman is for this reason only and not for anything else. If this is a RULE, what about people who are working in Government Organization like AIR or DD.

Apart from the list (artists) that was mentioned in the previous posts, MA missed out lot of "PERFORMERS" this year...

-
Carnatic Music Turns Me On

[harimau]

It is news that MA is not interested in giving chances to performers who are working in other organization (Professional in other domain). To be precise MA is keen on giving chances to “MUSIC PROFESSIONALS” only.

I am sure that MA is not 100% sticking to the rules created by them. On seeing the list one can easily find artists who are professional in two different segments other than music.

The reason for omitting TNS Krishna & saketharaman is for this reason only and not for anything else. If this is a RULE, what about people who are working in Government Organization like AIR or DD.

I am sorry that you have jumped to the wrong conclusion about Music Academy not supporting musicians who have a day-time job for whatever reason (perhaps, inability to find a bride on a musician's income being among them ) ).

Swarna Rethas and Prasanna Venkataraman, to my knowledge, work in the hi-tech industry and have been given slots in the Music Academy.

D B Ashwin does not even live in India but in the US and he has also been featured by Music Academy.

Unless you have inside information, you cannot claim that T N S Krishna and Saketharaman have been excluded only for not being full-time musicians. They may have been moved out to give others a slot.

[sureshvv]

Is this a first for Amrutha Venkatesh?

Sigh!!
Disappointed at such a lovely artist's music of late.
Such heavy music she used to belt out - but alas of late is on some other trajectory
I hope this is transient and sure hope she gets back to her self soon.......

I always found great promise in her artistry and I feel she is well on her way to fulfilling the promise. I am intrigued by your observation about the other trajectory and the loss in "heavy music".

Can you be more specific and provide some more detail? I heard her recently at Kartik Fine Arts and it was as heavy as it gets (Chakkani raja main and Sadachaleswaram sub-main). Is singing at Mylapore Fine Arts tomorrow.

[harimau]

I always found great promise in her (Amrutha Venkatesh's) artistry and I feel she is well on her way to fulfilling the promise. I am intrigued by your observation about the other trajectory and the loss in "heavy music".

Can you be more specific and provide some more detail? I heard her recently at Kartik Fine Arts and it was as heavy as it gets (Chakkani raja main and Sadachaleswaram sub-main). Is singing at Mylapore Fine Arts tomorrow.

Five years ago, she was singing brilliantly.

Then she got side-tracked into what is practically Carnatic Music Lite. Her Music Academy concerts had the original azhuttham but I stopped going to any of her concerts elsewhere.

If she had continued along her original trajectory, she would have been hailed as the next Sowmya and reached the senior slot in Academy by now. That she is at the sub-senior slot only says what she (and we) have lost.

[sureshvv]

I was hoping for something more tangible and concrete rather than the amorphous azhuttham (or lack there of) complaint and the "Lite" criticism. My gut feel is that her level of sruti fidelity is what some rasikas unfortunately perceive as lack of azhuttam.

We all know that the academy slot doesn't mean diddly squat in terms of capability. Not giving meritorious artistes recognition they deserve is their loss.

I suggest that you take a fresh listen.

[harimau]

I was hoping for something more tangible and concrete rather than the amorphous azhuttham (or lack there of) complaint and the "Lite" criticism. My gut feel is that her level of sruti fidelity is what some rasikas unfortunately perceive as lack of azhuttam.

We all know that the academy slot doesn't mean diddly squat in terms of capability. Not giving meritorious artistes recognition they deserve is their loss.

I suggest that you take a fresh listen.

Kum. Amrutha Venkatesh is a well-qualified vainika. Thus her swarasthana suddham is impeccable. About 8 years back, she restricted her veena concerts to Bangalore but before that she has given veena concerts as well as vocal concerts in Chennai.

If you look at her career and, to name someone at random, K Gayathri's, both started about the same time performing vocal concerts in Chennai. Yet, K Gayathri has passed Amrutha Venkatesh in getting the sub-senior slot as well as the senior slot at the Music Academy. People need to think why that has happened.

Talking to anyone in the music field, the standard comment is, "Amrutha Venkatesh? The one who used to sing so well some 7 years back?"

One could always blame rasikas, sabhas, organizers, etc.

As to taking a fresh listen, I always stop by and listen to her Academy concerts because she doesn't pander to the sheeple there. However, the reputation as someone who has moved to Carnatic Music Lite is tough to shake off.

[sweetsong]

I wanted to chip in and contribute my two cents worth, but SureshVV ji has already said exactly what I had in mind.
I have been observing Kum.Amrutha Venkatesh's career too for some years now and feel the same.
Harimau ji is right in saying that the reputation as someone who has moved to Carnatic music Lite is tough to shake off.
Finally, time will tell what lasts and what drops off along the way.
I have seen generalizations like the following, much of the time.

In Sruthi = Hindusthani flavour

Clear lyrics = Light

Emotional content = Bhajana Sampradaya

Pleasant demeanor = Not serious

One foot in the grave/wheelchair bound = "Senior"

Young/Alive/Well = Upcoming

Dead = Great

Dead for a long time = Immortal

Sruthi and notes all out of place = Sampradayam

and so on.

Thank you Suresh ji for the expression "doesn't mean diddly squat"
It conveys the essence of what you want to say, in the most delightful manner.

[sureshvv]

As to taking a fresh listen, I always stop by and listen to her Academy concerts because she doesn't pander to the sheeple there.

Have not seen this "pandering" anywhere. Seems like yet another term for sweetsong(ji)'s dictionary.

However, the reputation as someone who has moved to Carnatic Music Lite is tough to shake off.

You are correct. But you can do your bit by not advancing this prevarication.

[harimau]

From the Vidwans & Vidushis section on Amrutha Venkatesh:

"A young vidushi who has learnt from Gurus Sri M.T. Selvanarayana, Smt Charumathi Ramachandran and Prince Rama Varma ."

One could draw conclusions, warranted and unwarranted, on who influenced Amrutha Venkatesh towards Carnatic Music Lite.

I went to Mylapore Fine Arts Club this morning with a bunch of people who have formally learnt music from eminent musicians and who are music teachers themselves to listen to the young lady. At the end of the concert, their opinion is that they could see flashes of the youngster whom they heard and admired 7-8 years ago. Also that the swaraprastharams were terrific and showed tremendous knowledge and artistry but that was not the case with the renderings of the krithis themselves.

I will probably listen to her at the Academy but most likely not at other sabhas during this Season.

[vasanthakokilam]

I am with Suresh, no point in discussing the past. How about this concert shared by kssr in Amritha's vidhushi thread

http://www.mediafire.com/listen/k5hen22 ... 1.2013.mp3

Sounds sufficiently heavy to my ears.

[sureshvv]

One could draw conclusions, warranted and unwarranted, on who influenced Amrutha Venkatesh towards Carnatic Music Lite.

My unwarranted conclusion is that this is more about a territorial bias rather than application of any real musical criterion.

I went to Mylapore Fine Arts Club this morning with a bunch of people who have formally learnt music from eminent musicians and who are music teachers themselves to listen to the young lady. At the end of the concert, their opinion is that they could see flashes of the youngster whom they heard and admired 7-8 years ago. Also that the swaraprastharams were terrific and showed tremendous knowledge and artistry but that was not the case with the renderings of the krithis themselves.

OK. Arguments from authority My BS antenna goes up and tells me that these observations may have more to do with turf-protection than anything else.

Planning to put up the song list on a thread on its own and we can continue the discussion there on this concert.

[sureshvv]

If she had continued along her original trajectory, she would have been hailed as the next Sowmya and reached the senior slot in Academy by now. That she is at the sub-senior slot only says what she (and we) have lost.

I, for one, am happy that she is choosing her own trajectory. We don't need the next Sowmya, we already have one.

Regarding this "slot" business, I thought that was a matter of concern only of the banal "sheeple".

[kvchellappa]

Here is a different take by the reviewer in The Hindu:

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V. Balasubramanian

Amrutha Venkatesh rendered each item with involvement. V. Balasubramanian


Despite her firm belief in deep rooted classicism Amrutha Venkatesh is yet to find favour with organisers except a handful. This should not deter her and she should continue with giant strides in the same path. It was a bright start that morning with Karur Devudu Iyer’s Sri Raga varnam and GNB’s ‘Nee Padhamay’ (Nalinakanti).

Boopalam raga alapana was a classic beauty sans any meandering. The vocalist’s confidence was evident in the sketch.Young Rajiv displayed his skill with a delightful reply. ‘Sadachaleswaram’ (Adi-Dikshitar) was like the breeze near a waterfall. Her involved rendition of the Tiruppavai verse, ‘Ambarame’ (Kalyani) not only reminded one of the Tamil month Margazhi, which is just a few days away , but also the hot steaming pongal given as prasadam in temples early morning.

Encapsulating the exuberance she delineated a Kharaharapriya that would remain for long in memory. Rajiv did not lag behind. That she has been influenced by the Saint’s kritis was very much evident in her essay ‘Chakkani Raja’ (Tyagaraja-Adi) was a natural corollary. The niraval and swaras that followed were not mere exercises over the scale but meaningful effort.

It was a field day for Delhi Sairam (mridangam), disciple of Tiruvarur Bhakthavathsalam, and S. Hariharasubramaniam (ghatam), disciple of E.M. Subramaniam, for they both excelled during the kritis phase with their inspired playing, which continued during the thani too. The rendering of Kulasekara Azhwar’s paasuram ‘Chediyaya Valvinaigal’ in Hamsanandi and the kriti, ‘Srinivasa Tiruvenkadamudayan’ transported the rasikas to the abode of the Lord of Seven Hills. M.D. Ramanathan’s beauty of a tillana in Kapi was the concluding piece.

[harimau]

Here is a different take by the reviewer in The Hindu:

Amrutha Venkatesh rendered each item with involvement. V. Balasubramanian


Despite her firm belief in deep rooted classicism Amrutha Venkatesh is yet to find favour with organisers except a handful. This should not deter her and she should continue with giant strides in the same path. It was a bright start that morning with Karur Devudu Iyer’s Sri Raga .............

Excuse me. Does anyone ask why she is yet to find favour with organisers except a handful?

She was a winner of the Spirit of Youth competition held by the Music Academy. Hence her caliber is known to the Selection Panel of the Music Academy. It has taken her several years more than Nisha Rajagopal (who actually went back to the tech sector job that she had quit earlier), Amrita Murali, and K Gayathri to get out of the junior slot of 12 noon. Why? By the way, all the three artists I mentioned have been promoted to the Senior level.

Worse still, she is not able to perform at Sri Krishna Gana Sabha, Narada Gana Sabha, Sri Parthasarathy Swamy Sabha, Sri Thyagabrahma Gana Sabha, Brahma Gana Sabha, etc. These along with the Music Academy and Mylapore Fine Arts Club are the saptharishis whose blessings are needed to advance in one's career.

So here we have her primarily performing for 2nd and 3rd tier sabhas after 8-10 years in the field.

The clueless amongst us will blame it on a regional bias, not knowing that she is a Tamilian girl who is domiciled in Bangalore for less than one generation.

Let me make one prediction: N J Nandini (from Trivandrum and Parassala Ponnammal's disciple) will blow past Amrutha Venkatesh. She already is performing for 3 of the saptharishis during the Season and sang at the Academy as part of the HCL series a month back. Mr Clueless has to tell us why there is no regional bias against N J Nandini.

PS. Writing glorious reviews in rasikas.org will not advance her career by one inch. Two qualified senior musicians who will be judging her concert at the Music Academy will decide her fate.

PPS. I don't believe a judge in previous years at the Music Academy will be a judge this year. That is good for Amrutha because, outspoken woman that she is, she has told Amrutha's mother bluntly that she no longer likes Amrutha's music as it has lost its azhuttham, though I know she will set aside earlier impressions and judge the concert entirely on its merits. Send me a private mail and I will tell you the name of that senior musician. I will also tell you how to verify it through her relative who is a popular member on this site. No BS here; for that you can read the review.

[tiruppugazh]

It has taken her several years more than Nisha Rajagopal (who actually went back to the tech sector job that she had quit earlier), Amrita Murali, and K Gayathri to get out of the junior slot of 12 noon. Why? By the way, all the three artists I mentioned have been promoted to the Senior level.

Worse still, she is not able to perform at Sri Krishna Gana Sabha, Narada Gana Sabha, Sri Parthasarathy Swamy Sabha, Sri Thyagabrahma Gana Sabha, Brahma Gana Sabha, etc. These along with the Music Academy and Mylapore Fine Arts Club are the saptharishis whose blessings are needed to advance in one's career.

I think Amrutha Venkatesh does not enjoy the friendship of a certain Don Vito Sundaram

[sureshvv]

Excuse me. Does anyone ask why she is yet to find favour with organisers except a handful?

Because the organizers are only purveyors of music and have their interests and perspectives.
When is the last time you have seen one of these organizers sit thru' an entire concert?

It has taken her several years more than Nisha Rajagopal (who actually went back to the tech sector job that she had quit earlier), Amrita Murali, and K Gayathri to get out of the junior slot of 12 noon. Why? By the way, all the three artists I mentioned have been promoted to the Senior level.

Sorry.. Am not going to get into the ditch here! Each artiste has their own style and capability.

These along with the Music Academy and Mylapore Fine Arts Club are the saptharishis whose blessings are needed to advance in one's career.

Saptharishis or Seven dwarfs, I am sure they will come around when it is opportune. Like they have done always with several great artistes.

The clueless amongst us will blame it on a regional bias, not knowing that she is a Tamilian girl who is domiciled in Bangalore for less than one generation.

If you would read posts carefully, you would find that the "regional bias" described was not against the artiste.

Mr Clueless has to tell us why there is no regional bias against N J Nandini.

Mr. Clueless would have to tell himself after reading the posts more carefully My gut feel is that unless she moves to Chennai and registers with one of the "families" (stretching tiruppugazh's metaphor), she may suffer the same plight.

PS. Writing glorious reviews in rasikas.org will not advance her career by one inch.

Oh.. I know that all too well. What it does mostly is bring censure and counter arguments from the musically entrenched.

Two qualified senior musicians who will be judging her concert at the Music Academy will decide her fate.

Hmm.. Hope the "seniors" don't use "Sampradaya" as criterion (Scroll up to sweetsong ji's post for the definitions).

[sureshvv]

I went to Mylapore Fine Arts Club this morning with a bunch of people who have formally learnt music from eminent musicians and who are music teachers themselves to listen to the young lady.

<snip>

I will probably listen to her at the Academy but most likely not at other sabhas during this Season.

I suggest you get out of the echo chamber and sit by yourself. You might start noticing the music.

[gs]

Just so people who like her music do not miss, AV sings in Vani Mahal on 22nd at 4.00 pm. kutcheris.com lists only main slot concerts of TBGS. AV did Satguru Rasanubhava concert for SKGS in the last week of November. Actually, majority of saptharishi voted for her!

[uday_shankar]

At the end of the day, I subscribe to the seemingly unique idea (at least among some of the cognoscenti) that music should "sound good and pleasing to the ears" ! Here's a review I wrote of a concert of hers a couple years back:

http://www.thehindu.com/features/friday ... 752799.ece

I do hope AV gets the success and recognition she deserves. It's hard to be "everything to everybody" and one has to pursue one's heart's ideals. The pursuit of tonal clarity in music is a noble one and any "azhuttham", whatever it means, need not come at the expense of this. Best wishes to AV.