Sri. Thyagaraja Aradhana - 17th Jan 2017

[arunsri]

Did not want to start a thread, but could not hold back.

Why is Binny given 3 mikes, when she has no sense of aesthetics -- why is she sceeching as a rat caught between the door and the frame?. Agreed your voice is shrill, but don't you know that there is something called silence.

Varali is CHAOS - better they stop singing this kriti.. which sangati of kanakanaruchi needs to be sung after each charana/swara ----- is not clear even to the musicians Listen to it when it is uploaded on You tube again, you will know what I say.

Rudrapatnam Bros [of course they go for the homage and not for publicity] are relagated somewhere, while Krishnakumar, Carnatica Bros OS Arun [I have nothing against them, though I do not listen to their music] occupy pride of place. Amrita Murali is at the end, while Cuddalore Jananiy, Binny [I do not have anything against them personally, but cannot listen to their music] hog the limelight. Shows the sensitivity [or lack of it]

One thought ---- You need to look good, presentable on TV, definitely... but wear 20 mozham of flowers, that too at a 'aradhana' function. There is something called sensitivity and sensibility --- completely lacking. Grow UP artistes, beyond all this -- show some mental maturity

Some in the audience, sang so beautifully and sincerely! Wish they occupied the place in the middle

No flames please!!

[badari]

@ArunSri.. completely agree with you.
Is it that this has become an event of glamour and prestige to hog the TRPs being there?

Felt scratchy all through.. though you have highlighted the "Tip of the Iceberg ".

[Sundara Rajan]

Is this ThamazhA available on the internet to ENJOY ?!

[arunsri]

who was the person to the left of Binny and why was she smiling SO Much?? She was never singing anything, atleast when the camera focussed on her.

Priya Sisters were simple and elegantly dressed, closed their eyes and sang. Heartening to see these.

When the same ladies go to a trek, they will wear appropriate dresses, go to Grand Canyon, there entire get up will change {FB and other media have several photos of them in various incarnations]... then if those venues and situations have a 'unwritten dress code' in your head, why don't you have the same sense here. Are you going and singing at a wedding reception?? Even a concert in the evening at the Samadhi, you can dress your best... But here --- show some restraint. What are you trying to prove? Your lack of sensitivity, if so - you have proved it year after year. Mature with age.

[bhaskaran19]

Sadguru Thyagaraja 170th Aradhana
1) Glamour takes the front seat and divinity takes the back set (excepting a few)
2) DD Both audio and video quality much to be desired
3) As usual female musician dominated the Group singing and
4) Most of them looking at the camera than Sadguru's Sannadhi
5) Popular male stars conspicuous by their absence - probably they did not "apply" nor they get invitations -nor interested in farce "aradhana"
6) Needless to mention anything about "sruthi" synchronizing etc part of it
7) Are we missing Aradhana of 70s

[rajeshnat]

Usually Sudha Ragunathan regularly participates . Most of the years there was also a concert in Trichy that sudha had , I used to think she coupled Tiruvayaru with Trichy. This year even sudha has not participated - possibly it is just one off aberration this year.

Unfortunately most of the talented musicians donot participate and slowly it is dwindling to very few accomplished musicians. Certainly this does not mean that artists donot have devotion to Tiruvayaru and the bard of Tiruvayuru. It is just that there is not enough pull for them to participate. May be the bunching of microphones can be avoided , that is always the case for atleast the last 50 years.

Kudos to all those who participated irrespective of other opinions in the thread. This tradition has to continue.

[bhaskaran19]

Usually Sudha Ragunathan regularly participates . Most of the years there was also a concert in Trichy that sudha had , I used to think she coupled Tiruvayaru with Trichy. This year even sudha has not participated - possibly it is just one off aberration this year.

Unfortunately most of the talented musicians donot participate and slowly it is dwindling to very few accomplished musicians. Certainly this does not mean that artists donot have devotion to Tiruvayaru and the bard of Tiruvayuru. It is just that there is not enough pull for them to participate. May be the bunching of microphones can be avoided , that is always the case for atleast the last 50 years.

Kudos to all those who participated irrespective of other opinions in the thread. This tradition has to continue.

Sudha Ragunathan was very much there

[Gamakam]

I wrote this in 2005: https://carnaticmusicreview.wordpress.c ... a-utsavam/

[MaheshS]

Pardon my ignorance, who is Binny?

[rajeshnat]

Pardon my ignorance, who is Binny?

Binny is the textile mill that went out of business and most of its prime properties are taken by real estate sharks to build concrete jungles.

Binni Krishnakumar is a film and carnatic musician , check this url
http://www.swathithirunal.in/composeres/binnikumar.htm

[gardabha_gana]

I watched the aradhana after a long time... decades and glamour took the front seat. I think Priya sisters stood out by their (relative) simplicity and not looking at the cameras but sang with eyes closed. The instrumentalists looked sincere. I couldn't recognize some of the participants - later came to know that they were Sobhana, Binni - who music I haven't heard. I did spot Sudha, Amrita, Priya sisters, Ramakanth, Karthik, UKS, Raja Rao, Rudrapatnam bros(?), G Ravikiran(?) etc...

I remember the days when Semmangudi et al used to drive the renditions in the 80s........

[thanjavooran]

"Unfortunately most of the talented musicians donot participate and slowly it is dwindling to very few accomplished musicians. Certainly this does not mean that artists donot have devotion to Tiruvayaru and the bard of Tiruvayuru. It is just that there is not enough pull for them to participate. May be the bunching of microphones can be avoided , that is always the case for atleast the last 50 years."

Yes I totally agree. BTW Shri rajeshnat what and which ' PULL' is referred here. Ishared my views few years back the state of Thiruvaiyyaru utsavam under Aradhana Conundrum link. May be these Artistes are getting prepared for Aradhana at US kshetram . Though the coverage was of little low quality one cannot fail to admire the curiosity of the camera man focusing a VIP reading Hindu paper.
Let us seek the Musical blessings of St T
Thanjavooran
17 01 2017

[MaheshS]

Binny is the textile mill that went out of business and most of its prime properties are taken by real estate sharks to build concrete jungles.

Ahh not Roger Binny then

Binni Krishnakumar is a film and carnatic musician , check this url
http://www.swathithirunal.in/composeres/binnikumar.htm

Thanks.

[kvchellappa]

For those who missed (?) it, here is Sri TVG's uploads:
https://youtu.be/QxyUvxwv6No
https://youtu.be/_GDtsKLZ2dk
https://youtu.be/HCaR5mwO2Xk
https://youtu.be/T7Mp-rZhEY4
https://youtu.be/y9Amln8q4P8
https://youtu.be/GFec3aouXsk
https://youtu.be/e_afdipHxJE
https://youtu.be/wUnMHYHWyFA

[kunthalavarali]

"Ahh not Roger Binny"
Roger retired long ago, may be his son Stuart!!!

Humour apart, I agree with rajesh's comments. I think comments by some are uncharitable to the many artistes who turned up to pay homage to the bard.

Hope Podhigai telecast quality improves in the future.

[shankarabharanam]

Let us not generalize all musicians who come to pay respect at the venue today. This year the audio quality wasn't great. Pardon me but on so many occasions Priya sisters didn't even sing. Of course not taking away the vidwat or anything from them. My anger is definitely at people who raise this topic year after year and talk cynically. I know for sure in that crowd few performing artists have been coming there for close to three decades. The only way to push people like binny behind is other performing Carnatic musicians to participate. How many musicians have been attending except Smt Sudha Ragunathan and Shri Umayalpuram sir. To my knowledge I have been seeing them for her two decades performing there.

Coming to Kanakanaruchira. Let me tell you this is one composition that many musicians aren't taught in the pancharatnam because of it being varali. My guru taught me vijay Sri and said now learn the varali panachararnam. And some schools have different patantharam. For instance Maharajapuram Santhanam once said I don't sing the varali krithi along with others in thiruvaiyyaru because my patantharam is different. And in goshti ganam one can't rehearse to figure out which is the next sangathi. So there are going to ups and down and you can't expect uniformity. Even in concerts we see the same krithi has different sangathis being sung by different musicians, so we can't complain.

Now coming to the point of telecast, I have never been to thiruvaiyyaru but sitting in Mumbai as a young girl always cherished watching it in the 90s and early 2000. Now yesterday night though it was way past 10, I did log in US to watch it because just hearing gives me good vibes. Why can't we as rasikas just enjoy rather than look at these petty things. We can't stop or dictate as to who sings there. So all those who complain go there next year and see if the homage is better

[kvchellappa]

Even when two people sing after many joint sessions, we can often hear two voices. It has been said that orchestral singing is not our forte. An unrehearsed event where participation is voluntary and many join in, perhaps we should not expect concert standard. We can perhaps pay our homage listening to the aradhana of the years that please our aesthetics.
Podhikai must be thanked for bringing such events for those that cannot attend.

[kapali]

Sudha Raghunathan regularly participating in the Aradhana for so many years is a tribute to her unflinching commitment in paying obeisance to Saint Thyagaraja at the annual aradhana at Thyagaraja Samadhi.

[kssr]

Mention is made here about the "seating arrangement and order" . Is there someone who gives seat numbers or artists arrange themselves on first come first served basis or their own perceived importance? If some "junior" artist comes and sits in the front row, I guess that he/she will not be shoed away.

What I greatly admired was the total dedication, bhakti with which some young boys and girls sat in remote corners of the arena and sang their heart out. ( I could identify at least two such youngsters from Bangalore some where in the last row and singing with all concentration) Great tradition indeed. This is probably THE greatest occasion in the world where thousands congregate in a place and sing a set of very difficult songs without any rehearsal whatsoever. Also , several thousands watching the telecast, singing along.

Why notice how many muzhams of malligai poo so and so is having. How much make up some one is wearing. Such persons may add up to only 20-25 persons out of a thousand persons. A mere 0.25 percent. To respect and notice the rest of the 99.75% would show our calibre as a rasika of such a great musical tradition. No offence meant to any one.

[varsha]

relax
enjoy old visuals
1GB WORTH !
https://archive.org/details/TyAgarAjaAr ... ayyAru1984

[svenkat]

This garish display of silks and gold makes me want to gag. Not to mention the total cacophony under the guise of paying tributes to the great bard. Many smaller aradhanas in other parts of the world are done with greater sincerity and harmony.

[venravi]

Who is the singer next to Sudha? on her left.

[Vocalist]

2015 (168th Aradhana)
Female vocalists front row (left to right):

1. ?
2. ?
3. Amrutha Murali
4. ?
5. ?
6. Mambalam Sisters
7. ?
8. Srimathumitha?
9. ?
10. ?
11. Suguna Varadachari?
12. Binny Krishnakumar
13. Mahanadhi Shobana Vignesh
14. Sudha Raghunathan
15. Nithyashree Mahadevan
16. Charumathi Ramachandran
17. S Mahathi
18. B Suchitra
19. ?
20. S Aishwarya

Male vocalists front row (right to left):

1. OS Arun
2. R Ganesh
3. Sirkazhi Sivachidambaram
4. ?
5. Trichur V Ramachandran
6. Rudrapatnam Brothers
7. ?o
8. Papanasam Ashok Ramani
9. K Krishnakumar
   (NB: Vijay Siva not in front row but in row further back with Tanpura)

2016 (169th Aradhana)
Female vocalists front row (left to right):

1. Binny Krishnakumar
2. Mahanadhi Shobana Vignesh
3. Amrutha Murali
4. B Suchitra
5. S. Aishwarya
6. Ranjani & Gayathri
7. S Mahathi
8. Sudha Raghunathan
9. Jayasree Vaidyanathan?
10. Nithyashree Mahadevan
11. ?(same as artist between Suchitra and Aishwarya last year)
12. Rukmini Raman? + 2 others (all 3 wearing same sari)

Male vocalists front row (right to left):

1. Rudrapatnam Brothers
2. ?
3. OS Arun
4. R Ganesh
5. Papanasam Ashok Ramani
6. Carnatica Brothers
7. Trichur V Ramachandran
8. K Krishnakumar

2017 (170th Aradhana)
Female vocalists front row (left to right):

1. Charumathi Ramachandran
2. ?
3. ?
4. Priya Sisters
5. Mahanadhi Shobana Vignesh
6. ?
7. C Sukanya??
8. S Mahathi
9. Sudha Raghunathan
10. ? (same as artist between Nithyasree and Rukmini Ramani last year)
11. Savitha Sriram
12. ?
13. Binny Krishnakumar
14. ?
15. B Suchitra,
16. S Aishwarya
17. Amrutha Murali

Male vocalists front row (right to left):

1. K Krishnakumar
2. OS Arun
3. Ashwath Narayanan
4. Kunnakudi Balamuralikrishna
5. Carnatica Brothers
6. Sandeep Narayan
7. Papanasam Ashok Ramani
8. ?
9. ?o

[Sivaramakrishnan]

Many smaller aradhanas in other parts of the world are done with greater sincerity and harmony.

Managing a local/native group of participants is much easier than a crowd.
(Hope you have participated or visited the Samaadhi on Aaraadhana day. I have seen the organisers often struggling to accommodate the 'non-artist VIPs' who arrive just for the widely covered pancharatna session). Even to gain entry into the pandal, the 'ordinary devotees' have to stand in the 'Q' by 6.30 am. But if you could get inside and manage to sit 'within the first few rows' with a sight of the Sannidhi and ignore the media, it'd be sheer bliss.

[Krishnan4856]

Haha so many comments. Want to share few things.

Binny krishnakumar - I accept with her voice . But she is attending. We need to praise that.
Except Sudha raghunathan, noone will participate regularly. If they get chance to sing the day before aradhana, they will continue for the next day.

Female Top rank artistis (I donot want to name) have to participate regularly. Accommodation might be reason for not coming . I do accept.

Regarding the male artistis, i dont think except OS Arun, papanasam sivan noone will participate.

They should voluntarily attend without the invitation. Some might get 3 to 4 mikes. no issues .
They are hear to pay tribute the great saint.

Kudos to the youngsters like kunnakudi balamurali krishna, sandeep narayanan, ashwath . They should come regularly.

Regaring the personal attire, I donot want to comment.

Everyone should get blessings from tygaraja swami irrespective of top rank artists to beginners.

not sure how about the past years, i donot see MLV, Radha jayalakshmi, DKP in you tube on tygaraja aradhana day. I saw T Brinda, MS subbulakshmi.

yesteryears we can see semmangudi ( being old of others obviously he will lead , DK jayaraman, Alathur brothers , Madurai mani, Madurai somu, Maharajapuram santhanam, Bala murali krishna would particpate so its is male dominated. Now female artistis are particpating in majority obviously it ll be reverse.

I heard Balamurali krishna , was the president not sure what happen to that. Not sure why he moved out... It is like get to-gether they should come and sing to gether for the great saint.

similarly, We should have Dikshitar and shyama sastry aradhana too. Its happenening but not that much popular like tygaraja aradhana.

[Ponbhairavi]

The roaming camera stopped for a shortwhile In the ladies sideto show a very little girl (apparently not more than 5 years of age ) who was singing the pancharatna krithi without any book .she was shown twice. May be a very gifted child if not a prodigee. Any clue about her identity?

[svenkat]

Many smaller aradhanas in other parts of the world are done with greater sincerity and harmony.

Managing a local/native group of participants is much easier than a crowd.
(Hope you have participated or visited the Samaadhi on Aaraadhana day. I have seen the organisers often struggling to accommodate the 'non-artist VIPs' who arrive just for the widely covered pancharatna session). Even to gain entry into the pandal, the 'ordinary devotees' have to stand in the 'Q' by 6.30 am. But if you could get inside and manage to sit 'within the first few rows' with a sight of the Sannidhi and ignore the media, it'd be sheer bliss.

I understand that crowd management must indeed be a tough one at Tiruvaiyyaru. My point is about how the songs are presented unrehearsed on such a big occasion. Is there another world event of this scale where the music is presented in such an ad hoc manner?