CLEVELAND THYAGARAJA FESTIVAL-----PART ONE

[cacm]

I AM TAKING THE INITIATIVE MYSELF (THO' A COMMITTEE MEMBER) AS I FEEL THIS PARTICULAR EVENT IS A VERY UNIQUE EVENT IN WHICH NEYVELI SIR is going to demonstarte how far Carnatic Music IN NORTH AMERICA HAS COME! VKV
AUM​,
Namas​the to all from Neyveli Santhanagopalan,​
​
​​INVITATION​ FROM ​​THE CLEVELAND ARADHANA COMMITTEE​​:​
The Cleveland Thyagaraja Festival is getting ready with the celebrations of the 38th annual aradhana which is scheduled to start on April 1, 2015 featuring over 200 professional musicians and dancers in about 85 concerts spread over 12 days. The enthusiastic global participation and generous support of families like yours is the reason for the growth of this festival – the largest festival outside India.

Another reason is our commitment to bring innovative programs without compromising the festival’s core values of classicism, tradition and musical heritage which resonate well with enthusiasts like you.

This year, the Cleveland Thyagaraja Festival is offering another unique opportunity spearheaded by the respected scholar-musician, vidwan Neyveli Sri Santhanagopalan where we are planning to present a cascade of ragas and swarams with a strong underpinning of pleasant rhythm performed by as many as 500 people. This program is designed to be very inclusive with no restrictions on age. Thus, it is conceivable to have 3 generations of the same family getting trained and performing together on the stage.

Neyveli Sri.Santhanagopalan is an erudite musical scholar, an outstanding performing musician, a committed teacher with few equals and an extraordinary creative artist. His visualization and conceptualization of artistic expressions are breathtaking and reach out to both the intellect and the soul. His relentless pursuit of aesthetics and perfection result in a musical journey that stimulate, entertain, and elevate. The Cleveland Thyagaraja Festival is excited to partner with this gifted musician to present a musical experience that starts with the primordial omkaram, glide through a series of soul stirring ragas, explode into complex swara prastharas and position all of these in the bedrock of rhythm.

We want you to be part of this musical journey where you will learn and experience music as never before both as an individual contributor and a group performer where every musical nuance will be carefully and lovingly chiseled and given to you to learn, imbibe, integrate , savour and present to the discerning audience of the 38th Cleveland Thyagaraja Festival.
V.V.SUNDARAM

​ Kudos to NEYVELI SIR & CLEVELAND V.V.Sundaram for this fantastic initiative.....VKV

A FEW DETAILS:

​FAQs:​

​​​​1; How does the training happen?

Step 1: You will have to download the Telegram app in your mobile​ or PC and​ drop a message through the same to​ the Coordinator, K.S.Krishna at ​ ​​​​​​​+919840567582 and also a mail to ​​[email protected], ​so that you can be added to THE CARNATIC EPIC group in Telegram.


Step 2: You will have to send an audio file of yours immediately after joining the group.

All the participants will be able to download the lessons from Telegram group after Joining.

​2; Can I participate if I am an ​INSTRUMENTALIST​?

Yes, Almost all the INSTRUMENTS have scope in this composition and you are most welcome to participate.

3; When does the ​TRAINING​ start?

Once the enrollment is over the training will start ​from Feb 1st ​​onwards ​on a daily basis with me explaining step by step​,​ the contents of the compositions.

Apart from my direct training, a team of training experts have been formed and you will also get an individual training by them through online.​

​​​​​4​; Day and date of the event and the actual arrival date for rehearsal?
​
The ​Carnatic Epic Choir ​event ​is ​happen​​​ing​ on ​​​the 4​th ​April 2015, ​​​​Saturday ​Morning​​​ from 10.30AM- 1130 AM immediately after the Pancharatnam​ group singing.The​ participants are​ expected​ to​ arriv​e on ​​the April 1st (Wednesday Night) ​​so that ​the rehearsal can happen on ​​​the 2nd​ and​ 3rd​.
​
THIS IS ONE OF THREE segments I INTEND COVERING SEPARATELY IN RASIKAS to inform rasikas about the very exciting aspects of this year's CLEVELAND THYAGARAJA FESTIVAL I INTEND COVERING & WRITING ABOUT. VKV

[thanjavooran]

Best wishes to all the Committee members of C A F. A new venture. Kudos to S/Shri VVS, VKV and NSG
Thanjavooran
05 02 2015

[cacm]

THIS YEAR'S CLEVELAND ARADHANA- 38TH ANNIVERSARY- IS SO EXCITING I want to point out the highlights in THREE SEPARATE SECTIONS THOUGH SUBJECT MATTER MAY OVERLAP.

IN THIS SECTION I INTEND COVERING AREAS INVOLVING YOUNGER PERSONS TYPICALLY ESPECIALLY THE ONES WHO ARE GROWING UP IN NORTH AMERICA. THE AIM OF THE ARADHANA AND THE EFFORTS OVER THE YEARS BY V.V.Sundaram especially have been to INVOLVE THE NEXT GENERATION & THIS YEAR'S ARADHANA NOT ONLY WILL SHOWCASE THEIR TALENTS BUT HOW EXTENSIVE THEIR CONTRIBUTIONS HAVE BECOME. I feel this is the MAJOR ACHIEVEMENT OF THE CLEVELAND MIRACLE.

IN PART 2 I intend covering the UPHOLDING & REMEMBERING OF THE PAST GIANTS, COMPOSERS ETC BY THE FESTIVAL.

PART 3 WILL COVER ASSORTED OTHER ASPECTS INCLUDING DANCE WHICH HAS BECOME A CRUCIAL PART OF THE CELEBRATIONS.

CLEVELAND V.V.SUNDARAM himself will correct or add to the things I will be writing as MY WRITING MAY NOT EXACTLY COVER THE IDEAS OF THECREATOR HIMSELF! VKV

[cacm]

I had intended to write in this section about young persons growing & living in North America. In the festival roughly close to two thousand out of the eight thousand who typically attend annually belong to this category. Their ACTIVE PARTICIPATION includes Volunteering, taking part in THE VARIOUS COMPETITIONS, AS WELL AS PERFORMING IN THE CONCERTS & PERFORMANCES (MUSIC&DANCE) AT VARIOUS LEVELS. I find that there are so many exciting things to write about abandoning any order or chronology appears to be the only possible "modus operandi" .......
So I will start with a brief account of ONE of THREE FINALISTS (Manasi Suresh) from NORTH AMERICA OUT OF SIX FINALISTS IN THE TIMES THYAGARAJA AWARD, 2015 - the most prestigious award for young artistes sponsored by Chennai organisations & chosen by judges like Aruna Sairam etc- whom I had the pleasure of (just now) interviewing from Los Alamos while she was in Chennai in V.V.S'S HOUSE (probably working on the Festival Requirements at some level or taking part in Sustaining Sampradhaya activities!). Actually just learnt she won the First Prize after we finished the conversation! Congragulations!
This is the culmination of the years of efforts on the part of V.V.S. It is matter of great pride&parity for the children from North America. Manasi is a Fullbright Scholar ( at early twenties which itself is astounding for starters!) from Fremont, CA who is learning from Sri.P.S.N. Actually when I heard her sing "YETI JANMAMU"(on the internet) I was pleasantly surprised by the perfect Balance(Nidhanam, Tempo) WHICH IS VERY RARE AMONG FAR MORE SEASONED ARTISTS & felt she should be the winner! Even more exciting to me were her comments emphasising the HISTORIC NATURE of concert the six finalists who gave a performance at Kapaleeswarar Temple on march 6. Actually the LAST TIME I talked to a performer after a concert there was none other than Madurai Mani Iyer who had rendered a MEMORABLE& UNEQUALLED RENDERING OF "KANAKKANKODI" at the request of Papanasam Sivan in the late fifties (MMI-LGJ-V.R.). Actually mmi went straight from the concert to Sivan's house & gave him the envelope he was given at the end of the CONCERT. SIVAN OPENED IT& SAID IT HAD 1500Rs. & ASKED mmi to take it back. MMI AGAIN DID ShstangaNamaskaram & said without SIVAN composing that song he could not sing Kambodhi the way he did!After that ACTUALLY SIVAN DISCUSSED CERTAIN TECHNICAL INTRICASIES with MMI & THE INSPIRATION FOR THAT COMPOSITION! ....I FEEL MANASI will reach far greater heights & make not only her parents but anyone who had anything to get her interested in CM living in usa be VERY PROUD......VKV (TO BE CONTINUED)

[GVR2004]

VKV Sir,
Thanks for the info. Have you finalized the schedule yet ? Particularly I am interested during the Easter weekend 2- 6 April schedule - Also for competitions - are general rasikas allowed to see or is it just the participants and judges - How about parents of the kids who participate in the competition - are they allowed to be there?
Want to plan and book in advance since we have less than 2 months now. Thanks.
Venkat

[cacm]

Dear Venkat,
The schedule is ALMOST FINALIZED & SHOULD BE ON THE WEB SITE ANY DAY. IN THE MEANWHILE I can send you the CURRENT STATUS&SCHEDULE WHICH IS VERY CLOSE TO THE FINAL ONE. IF YOU INDICATE ANY PARTICULAR ARTIST YOU ARE INTERESTED I CAN TRACK THAT PARTICULAR PERSON'S SCHEDULE FOR YOU. YOU CAN WRITE ME AN EMAIL AT: [email protected]. THANKS. VKV

[cacm]

Carnatic Symphony 2015 – Cleveland Thyagaraja Aradhana
The 38th annual aradhana festival organized by the prestigious Cleveland Thyagaraja Committee begins on the 1st April, 2015 and is spread over 12 days. The fest features over 200 celebrity artistes in over 85 concerts. With generous support and participants from across the globe, the program has grown tremendously to be one of the largest festival outside India presenting state-of-the-art events without compromising on the core values of classicism, tradition and musical heritage.
Premiered to rave reviews and overwhelming appreciation, Carnatic Symphony is a unique concept that fuses Western classical music orchestra seamlessly with Carnatic music. Conceptualized and conducted by Sri.K.N.Shashikiran, the Symphony saw enthusiastic participation from over a hundred talented children from across the United States of America & Canada in the previous years! Following its stupendous success, Carnatic Symphony is back this year on a hatrick and is slated to be presented on April 5th, 2015 at 8 am at the Cleveland Thyagaraja Aradhana!
Carnatic Symphony will have kids of various nationalities and musical backgrounds performing together. This concert will comprise simple yet attractive pieces from Carnatic music such as short Utsava Sampradaya kritis of Sri Tyagaraja, Varnams and other popular, elegant and simple pieces presented through voice and instruments. This concept has earned a lot of accolades through performances at UK, the USA and in India (where it was performed in the presence of the former President of India, Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam). This will be yet another opportunity for young children to be part of the innovative effort to present The Carnatic Symphony.
Sri. K.N.Shashikiran is a popular musician singing as Carnatica brothers with his cousin Chitravina P Ganesh. He is not only one of the most gifted and sought after musicians but is also an arts promoter, entrepreneur, voice expert, teacher, author and daily columnist. Most of all, he is a very enterprising, energetic and innovative thinker. He is the brain behind several "first evers" and innovations in Carnatic music. The Cleveland Thyagaraja Committee is eager to present the Carnatic Symphony along with Shashikiran to globalize Carnatic music and reach it to youngsters all over the World.
We are very pleased to bring this initiative to you and hope to provide a grand platform for the performance and recognition for your students. We look forward to your involvement and support.
Sincerely
V.V.Sundaram
Cleveland Thyagaraja Festival

Follow the link to register, download audio files & notations and any other necessary information required about the Carnatic Symphony 2015 at the Cleveland Thyagaraja Aradhana.
http://www.carnaticworld.com/index.php/ ... ymphony-15
I STRONGLY ENCOURAGE ATTENDING/PARTICPATING IN THIS PROGRAM. IT IS AN EXCELLENT CREATIVE AND NOVEL IDEA OF K.N.SHASHIKIRAN. VERY EXCITING! It is in keeping with the VERY CREATIVE APPROACH OF THE CARNATICA BROTHERS. LOOK AT THE ARADHANA SCHEDULE FOR TIMINGS ETC TOO! VKV

[cacm]

VKV Sir,
Thanks for the info. Have you finalized the schedule yet ? Particularly I am interested during the Easter weekend 2- 6 April schedule - Also for competitions - are general rasikas allowed to see or is it just the participants and judges - How about parents of the kids who participate in the competition - are they allowed to be there?
Want to plan and book in advance since we have less than 2 months now. Thanks.
Venkat

I have mailed the latest schedule to you. I DO NOT ANTICIPATE CHANGES IN THE 2-6 PERIOD. ALL ARE ENCOURAGED TO ATTEND EVERY ASPECT OF THE FESTIVAL ESP. THE COMPETITIONS ( ALL DAY FRIDAY 3RD) VKV

[GVR2004]

Thanks VKV. Yes I received the schedule. Will call you in the next couple of days.
Look forward to seeing you in person during the Aradhana -

[thanjavooran]

S/Shri VKV and CS Avl
Excellent venture!
Best wishes.
Thanjavooran
09 02 2015

[cacm]

MANASA PRASAD & YOUNG ARTISTS
I had intended to write in this section about young persons growing & living in North America. In the festival roughly close to two thousand out of the eight thousand who typically attend annually belong to this category. Their ACTIVE PARTICIPATION includes Volunteering, taking part in THE VARIOUS COMPETITIONS, AS WELL AS PERFORMING IN THE CONCERTS & PERFORMANCES (MUSIC&DANCE) AT VARIOUS LEVELS. I find that there are so many exciting things to write about abandoning any order or chronology appears to be the only possible "modus operandi" .......
So I will start with a brief account of ONE of THREE FINALISTS (Manasa Suresh-Janani Iyer?-Sri Ranjani Dharba?) from NORTH AMERICA OUT OF SIX FINALISTS IN THE TIMES THYAGARAJA AWARD, 2015 - the most prestigious award for young artistes sponsored by Chennai organisations & chosen by judges like Aruna Sairam etc- whom I had the pleasure of (just now) interviewing from Los Alamos while she was in Chennai in V.V.S'S HOUSE (probably working on the Festival Requirements at some level or taking part in Sustaining Sampradhaya activities!). Actually just learnt she won the First Prize after we finished the conversation! Congragulations!
This is the culmination of the years of efforts on the part of V.V.S. It is matter of great pride&parity for the children from North America. Manasa is a Fullbright Scholar ( at early twenties which itself is astounding for starters!) from Fremont, CA who is learning from Sri.P.S.N. Actually when I heard her sing "YETI JANMAMU"(on the internet) I was pleasantly surprised by the perfect Balance(Nidhanam, Tempo) WHICH IS VERY RARE AMONG FAR MORE SEASONED ARTISTS & felt she should be the winner! Even more exciting to me were her comments emphasising the HISTORIC NATURE of concert the six finalists who gave a performance at Kapaleeswarar Temple on march 6. Actually the LAST TIME I talked to a performer after a concert there was none other than Madurai Mani Iyer who had rendered a MEMORABLE& UNEQUALLED RENDERING OF "KANAKKANKODI" at the request of Papanasam Sivan in the late fifties (MMI-LGJ-V.R.). Actually mmi went straight from the concert to Sivan's house & gave him the envelope he was given at the end of the CONCERT. SIVAN OPENED IT& SAID IT HAD 1500Rs. & ASKED mmi to take it back. MMI AGAIN DID ShstangaNamaskaram & said without SIVAN composing that song he could not sing Kambodhi the way he did!After that ACTUALLY SIVAN DISCUSSED CERTAIN TECHNICAL INTRICASIES with MMI & THE INSPIRATION FOR THAT COMPOSITION! ....I FEEL MANASA will reach far greater heights & make not only her parents but anyone who had anything to get her interested in CM living in usa be VERY PROUD......VKV (TO BE CONTINUED)

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repeat omit

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omit as repeat!

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OMIT AS IT IS REPEAT VKV

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omit as repeat vkv

[cacm]

YOUNG DANCERS- OPPORTUNITY TO TAKE PART IN CTA IN A COLLOBORATIVE DANCE INITIATIVE SPEARHEADED BY THE DANCERS THEMSELVES
PLEASE READ THE EXCITNG DESCRIPTION BELOW: & REPOND ASAP
Hello All:
Cleveland Thyagaraja Festival wants to give an opportunity to young dancers who are interested in taking part in a collaborative dance initiative spearheaded by young dancers themselves. We plan to create 3 slots in the 2015 festival - each of 50 minutes duration. Each group can have a maximum of 10 dancers plus musicians. Suggested format is a Kauthuvam, followed by a Varnam and ending with a Javali or Thillana.
We are limiting this to 30 participants - 9 as coordinators (3 for each of the 3 groups) and 21 dancers (7 for each group). The bani or school is not significant. We want the participants to bring in intellectual curiosity, rigor and discipline and a spirit of total cooperation. This will be your production and you get a guide/consultant/resource person in Smt Savithri Jagannatha Rao who will advice you on need basis. The choreography will be yours. She is available as a sounding board.
In addition, during the Cleveland Thyagaraja Festival, all the senior dancers will be available for you to consult, review your production, offer suggestions/guidance if sought. You will also have an opportunity to rigorously rehearse during that period - April 5 through April 10, 2015.
This will also push you to create a fair environment where every participant has a role in the production. As a group initiative, you will have to decide on structuring the kauthuvam, varnam and Javali/thillana so that all 10 dancers have fair amount of dance participation.
The dancers will be selected/approved by the Cleveland Thyagaraja Festival.
If this initiative is successful, we will work with you in giving bigger roles to you in the future productions of Cleveland Thyagaraja Festival.
In Summary:
1. Each group to have 3 coordinators and a maximum of 7 dancers for a total of 10 dance participants
2. Each group to select a kauthuvam, varnam, and javali or thillana which they have not learnt. This has to be completely new so that the group can research, do their own choreography, incorporate the sancharis and jathis and train themselves and others in the group. The Varnam should be a traditional one - preferably a composition of Tanjore Quartet. Your choice will have to be approved by the Cleveland Thyagaraja Festival.
3. Search the internet or talk to your guru about your choices.
4. Get local musicians of your age to sing, play the violin, the mridangam etc
5. Smt Savithri Jagannatha Rao would be your resource person to go for any clarifications or guidance
6. Do the rehearsals etc by leveraging technology - skype, yahoo groups etc and/or arrange to meet during weekends
6. Be available in Cleveland from April 5 through April 12 for guidance by senior dancers, group rehearsals, etc
7. Presentations will be on Saturday April 11 and Sunday April 12.

So far Nivedha Ramalingam, Pooja Kumar Shyam, Kalyani Pillai, Saranya Balaji, Joshua and Shriya Srinivasan have agreed to be coordinators. We need 3 more coordinators and dancers.
This is a great opportunity to do choreography on your own and get your leadership skills developed as you need to work with peers and seniors in dance and music.
One condition though, to be part of this, you should have participated in any of the Cleveland initiatives in the prior years.

The centers for the three groups are US East Coast, Mid-west, and US West Coast. If interested, write to us indicating (1) your center preference and (2) in addition to being a dancer whether you are willing to be a coordinator also.
We at the Cleveland Thyagaraja Festival are very excited to work with you, and we hope that you also share our enthusiasm.
With warm regards
V.V.Sundaram

[cacm]

PROGRAM SCHEDULE DETAILS FOR CLEVELAND ARADHANA 2015(April 1-12)
As many know this year's Aradhana program has been finalized and it is an exciting one. You can see all the DETAILS AT: www.aradhana.org
I want to point out that after an absence of a few years Dr. (Flute) Ramani- christened VENUGANAM by none other than LGJ who called him "YEN RAMANI"- IS NOT ONLY APPEARING AT THE FESTIVAL BUT IS GOING TO LEAD A SESSION ON FLUTE MALI. It will not only be a HISTORIC occasion it will bring back memories of the REVOLUTION MALI BROUGHT TO FLUTE AS WELL AS CARNATIC MUSIC. TO ME IT IS THE HIGHTLIGHT OF THE FESTIVAL.....VKV

[hnbhagavan]

It is to the credit of Cleveland festival Managing committee V V Sundaram,VKV etc that year after year they are successfully conducting the festival.Last year on the Internet,I personally heard Sri V V Sundaram appeal for funds(In fact he requested for 10 donors to come forward with 5000 dollars each).
it looks he has been successful in getting the required funds and a large number of concerts and related innovative programs have been scheduled.
The number of American Indians learning Carnatic music is sizable and we already have several young musicians - Ramakrishnan Murthy,Sandeep Narayan etc already settling back in Chennai to pursue music as career.During Chennai december season i met several other youngsters from USA in schedule of the afternoon slots in Music Academy,krishna gana sabha etc .These young people were getting advanced training from reputed gurus in Chennai.
I read with interest several postings by Sri VKV on this topic.I wish the festival a great success.

[rajeshnat]

The line up is very nice I am very happy to see an award on Late Prof TRS is this a new thing from this year . My niece and my elderly cousin sister akka spent a lot of time there at cleveland for their first time last year(my cousin akka came to cleveland for the first time) . My niece was slightly home sick as she started studying from last 2 years in US.She felt cleveland was a great stress buster for losing home sickness - perhaps we can also market the cleveland festival as the best antidote for home sickness

[cacm]

Dear Rajeshnat,
THANKS FOR WRITING ABOUT TRS IN Cleveland. I am writing about it in PART 2 ABOUT THE FESTIVAL.
REG your suggestion for Marketing Cleveland as best antidote for home sickness : IN THE INFINITE NUMBER OF ATTEMPTS TO MAKE THE CLEVELAND FESTIVAL SOLVENT& SELF-SUSTAINING Cleveland V.V.Sundaram has been trying for the past thirty eight years this idea has not been tried to my knowledge. May be we should make you the Marketing Manager! VKV P.S: The FOOD FROM THE PITTSBURGH GOURMET COOK IS EXCELLENT TOO & DOES COMPETE WELL WITH THE FAMOUS MADRAS SABHA CANTEENS IN DEC TOO!

[cacm]

It is to the credit of Cleveland festival Managing committee V V Sundaram,VKV etc that year after year they are successfully conducting the festival.Last year on the Internet,I personally heard Sri V V Sundaram appeal for funds(In fact he requested for 10 donors to come forward with 5000 dollars each).
it looks he has been successful in getting the required funds and a large number of concerts and related innovative programs have been scheduled.
The number of American Indians learning Carnatic music is sizable and we already have several young musicians - Ramakrishnan Murthy,Sandeep Narayan etc already settling back in Chennai to pursue music as career.During Chennai december season i met several other youngsters from USA in schedule of the afternoon slots in Music Academy,krishna gana sabha etc .These young people were getting advanced training from reputed gurus in Chennai.
I read with interest several postings by Sri VKV on this topic.I wish the festival a great success.

WE STILL NEED FUNDS! I BET YOU WILL SEE VVS REPEATING HIS ATTEMPT!..... YOU SHOULD COME. NEXT YEAR IS M.S.S'S BIRTH CENTENARY YEAR. VERY SPECIAL THINGS ARE BEING PLANNED! VKV

[cacm]

YOUTH PARTICIPATION
NOW THAT THE PROGRAM IS AVAILABLE I URGE EVERY ONE TO SEE HOW MANY YOUTH (&THEIR TEACHERS) IN MUSIC& DANCE ARE INVOLVED!VERY, VERY GRATIFYING TO SEE THE NUMBERS FROM N.A.EACH THESE HEIGHTS! VKV

[Sundara Rajan]

Will the festival programs be available on line via icarnatic, as in 2014, for those of us who could not travel to Cleveland. It will be a boon to home bound oldies like me.

[cacm]

I do not know what their plans are. May be you can reach them. vkv

[cacm]

WALK A THON IN CLEVELAND:
Please see www.aradhana.org or Hindu FOR DETAILS . This is to simulate "UNCHAVIRUTHI". Hope Cleveland weather co-operates! VKV

[icarnatic]

Will the festival programs be available on line via icarnatic, as in 2014, for those of us who could not travel to Cleveland. It will be a boon to home bound oldies like me.

Yes, please see http://www.icarnatic.org for details.

Regards

Team iCarnatic.org

[cacm]

Dear Sundararajan,
I HOPE THIS HELPS. FOR OTHERS INTERESTED PLEASE GO TO THEIR WEB SITE. VKV

[Sundara Rajan]

Thanks. I did check their web site two days ago and will subscribe to their relay.