Veena Jayshri and Jairaj performing in Sunnyvale, CA

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ramakriya
Posts: 1877
Joined: 04 Feb 2010, 02:05

Post by ramakriya »

Veena: Smt Jayshri & Sri Jayraj (veenajj on the forum)

Mrdangam: Sri Shriram Brahmanandam

Venue: Sanatana Dharma Kendra, 897 Kifer Rd, Sunnyvale,CA
http://www.sanatandharmakendra.org/


Date & Time: 3:00 pm, Saturday , June 21st

(Thanks Arasi :) !)

Jeyaraaj Krishnan & Jaysri Jeyaraaj Krishnan

(LOTUS "Visiting" Artiste Series)

Artiste Duo - Veena

JT Jeyaraaj Krishnan and Jaysri Jeyaraaj Krishnan (popularly known as Jeyaraaj and Jaysri) belong to the direct Shishya Parampara of Nadajyoti Sri Muthuswamy Dikshitar - who is one among the famous Trinity of Carnatic Music.

Jeyaraaj and Jaysri started their intensive training in vocal and veena music at a very tender age under the tutelage of Vainika Vidwan Late A. Anantharama Iyer and his sister Late A. Champakavalli who continued the Dikshitar Parampara they imbibed from their father Brahmasri Ananthakrishna Iyer, a direct disciple of Ambi Dikshitar, the great grand nephew of Muthuswamy Dikshitar.

Jeyaraaj and Jaysri are also being guided in their musical quest by esteemed Carnatic Music Exponent, Sangeetha Acharya, Vidwan Shri Chingleput Ranganathan.

"A" grade veena artistes of AIR Chennai, this husband and wife team has regaled audiences in India and abroad. They are passionate Vainikas who believe that Veena holds a revered place in Carnatic Music and have dedicated themselves towards preserving and propagating the "Gayaki" style of playing the Veena. The couple has started an organization called "VEENAVAADHINI", with multifarious objectives, namely, teaching keen students the art of veena playing; conducting chamber concerts to provide an accessible platform for musicians; retracing Muthuswamy Dikshitar's pilgrimage and singing the kritis that he has composed on various gods and goddesses enshrined in the respective temples; and undertaking a mammoth archival project of recording 1000 compositions and 100 raga alapanas played on the veena by the duo.


Shriram Brahmanandam (Mridangam)
Shriram Brahmanandam has learnt from the great Guru, Shri Kumbakonam Rajappa Iyer. He hails from a family of great musicians. His mother Lalgudi Shrimathi Brahmanandam is violinist of international acclaim. His fine musical instincts are imbibed from a great family lineage and from the traditions of his Guru parampara.

He started learning to play the mridangam from a very tender age and had his debut when he was twelve years old. Since then he has played in innumerable concerts. He has performed in most of the major venues throughout India. He has also teamed up with many senior musicians including, his uncle, Shri Lalgudi. G. Jayaraman, Shri K.J yesudas, Shri N. Ramani, and others.

He is a graded artist with All India Radio (AIR) and has performed regularly in national broadcasts in AIR and in Indian Television. He has won awards for "Best Mridangist" during the music concert series held in Indian Fine Arts and in Youth Association for classical music. Shriram has also visited United States on a concert, and Lecture/Demonstration tour. He has performed in Melbourne, Australia, and has given presentations in the major multinational music festivals held in Australia.

His style of accompaniment is vibrant and energetic, but it never ceases to support the main artiste. Shriram specializes in supportive accompaniment, and in bringing out the tonal excellence of his instrument.


Visit LOTUS website: http://www.svlotus.com/ for monthly concert announcements

-Ramakriya
Last edited by ramakriya on 17 Jun 2008, 03:04, edited 1 time in total.

arasi
Posts: 16873
Joined: 22 Jun 2006, 09:30

Post by arasi »

Ramakriya,
Thank you for announcing the concert of J&J in Sunny Vale. The LOTUS web site gives the date. Ramakriya, you could add it to your post, I suppose. For those who have not heard our fellow members on the vINA, please make an effort to be there. Their music is something not to be missed.
J&J,
Look forward to listening to you both this season. Are you playing elsewhere in the US? Hope the dates are going to be posted on Rasikas so that members in those cities can attend.

rshankar
Posts: 13754
Joined: 02 Feb 2010, 22:26

Post by rshankar »

I hope they perform in NJ!

vijay
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Joined: 27 Feb 2006, 16:06

Post by vijay »

Look forward to reports and wishing JJ all the best!

PUNARVASU
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Joined: 06 Feb 2010, 05:42

Post by PUNARVASU »

Ramakriya,
I plan to attend the concert; I am very much interested in Veena recitals since I am learning to play the veena. Thanks for the info.

rshankar
Posts: 13754
Joined: 02 Feb 2010, 22:26

Post by rshankar »

JJ,

All the best. Is the schedule posted on your website??

veenajj
Posts: 125
Joined: 18 Apr 2007, 11:54

Post by veenajj »

Thanks ramakriya, arasiji, vijay and shankarji.

Our schedule for June is put up on our website.

We will be in NJ after the Independence Day weekend until the middle of August. Two weeks in between (latter part of July) will be in Florida.

We look forward to meeting rasikas.org members from these parts during our stay here. You can get in touch with us over email.

Regards,
Jeyaraaj & Jaysri

prashant
Posts: 1658
Joined: 03 Feb 2010, 09:01

Post by prashant »

All the best for your tour Sri Jeyaraaj and Smt. Jaysri. May it be a grand success and looking forward to rasika reports on the concerts.

appu
Posts: 443
Joined: 20 May 2007, 09:46

Post by appu »

veenajj, Could you please put up your website address.

kmrasika
Posts: 1279
Joined: 10 Mar 2006, 07:55

Post by kmrasika »

veenajj: Many best wishes towards your tour success. Please post concert reports if you can.

Ramnath Iyer
Posts: 72
Joined: 19 Nov 2007, 13:33

Post by Ramnath Iyer »

Jeyaraaj & Jaysri,
All the best for a great tour !
envy those lucky rasikas who will get to listen to your pristine renditions of Dikshitar kritis.

regards
Ramnath

veenajj
Posts: 125
Joined: 18 Apr 2007, 11:54

Post by veenajj »

Thanks prashant and kmrasika.

Ramnath, that was very nice of you!
appu wrote:veenajj, Could you please put up your website address.
Our website address is www.veenajj.com

ramakriya
Posts: 1877
Joined: 04 Feb 2010, 02:05

Post by ramakriya »

Ramnath Iyer wrote:Jeyaraaj & Jaysri,
All the best for a great tour !
envy those lucky rasikas who will get to listen to your pristine renditions of Dikshitar kritis.

regards
Ramnath
Yes, it was a wonderful concert yesterday! One that I will remember for a long time.

Here is a listing of compositions Jaysri and Jayraaj presented:

1. sarasUDa - sAvEri Adi tALa varNa
2. vAtApi gaNapatim bhajEham - hamsadhwani (R,S)
3. akhilAnDESwari - jujAvanti
4. tyAgarAjO virAjatE - aThANa (R)
5. sarasa sAmadAna - kApinArAyaNi
6. mAmava mInAkShi - varALi (R, N,S)
7. RTP in nATakuraji with rAgamAlikA tAna set to Adi tALa
8. viSwanAthEna - sAmanta
9. English note
10. dhanAsrI tillAna

Shriram Brahmanandam provided excellent support on Mridanga.

I had the fortune of introducing the artists and delivering the vote of thanks :)

-Ramakriya
Last edited by ramakriya on 23 Jun 2008, 03:32, edited 1 time in total.

PUNARVASU
Posts: 2498
Joined: 06 Feb 2010, 05:42

Post by PUNARVASU »

Yes , it was a very nice concert indeed. I had to leave before the concert ended; but looks like I did not miss any item.
The RTP had thanams in sahana,bilahari,behag and brindavani and the pallavi was
'mAtA pitA guru deivam anudinamu namaskAra(m)-
Sri Jeyaraaj announced that since 'Fathers' Day' was celebrated last week, they chose this pallavi.
I am hearing the duo for the first time and I was very happy I could attend the concert.
They played the 'ThyAgarAja vibhakthi krithi'-the first one.
Last edited by PUNARVASU on 23 Jun 2008, 04:28, edited 1 time in total.

shripathi_g
Posts: 359
Joined: 30 Mar 2005, 08:25

Post by shripathi_g »

Awesome list. Too bad I couldn't make it to the concert.

ramakriya
Posts: 1877
Joined: 04 Feb 2010, 02:05

Post by ramakriya »

Here are couple of pictures from the concert: (Picture quality is not that great.:|)

Image

Image



-Ramakriya
Last edited by ramakriya on 23 Jun 2008, 10:35, edited 1 time in total.

prashant
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Joined: 03 Feb 2010, 09:01

Post by prashant »

What a cute pallavi line :-)

cienu
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Joined: 04 Feb 2010, 11:40

Post by cienu »

Congratulations Veenajj :)

srkris
Site Admin
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Joined: 02 Feb 2010, 03:34

Post by srkris »

Why is the shape of the veena (kudam) different here? Are they using some modified form of it?

mohan
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Joined: 03 Feb 2010, 16:52

Post by mohan »

Is it a Radel Electronic Veena (Sunadavinodini)?

PUNARVASU
Posts: 2498
Joined: 06 Feb 2010, 05:42

Post by PUNARVASU »

I did see the name 'Radel' on the veenas. I suppose these the portable/dismatling-types, better suited for travels abroad. This is the first time I am hearing a full concert on this type of veena. I think I have seen one in some music conference a few years back.
Mrs. Jaysri sang the rare kritis so that we were able to hear the sahityam-
Wonder if the concert will be uploaded for the benefit of Rassikas.

kkumar29
Posts: 46
Joined: 04 Feb 2010, 20:26

Post by kkumar29 »

I also had the prevelidge of attending this superb concert. Through out the entire concert, their synchronization was so perfect that I could feel as though I was listening to only one veena. It shows the enoromous practice and effort that must have gone into it. All I can say that this will be a concert I will remember for a very long time to come. Well done, Jayaraj and Jayashri and keep it up.

K. Kumar.

arasi
Posts: 16873
Joined: 22 Jun 2006, 09:30

Post by arasi »

Kumar,
So glad you could make it to their concert in your own vicinity. I remember that you spent a couple of days in Chennai during the season--both being terribly rainy days! Nice running into you and your wife at the breakfast table...
Last edited by arasi on 23 Jun 2008, 19:49, edited 1 time in total.

kkumar29
Posts: 46
Joined: 04 Feb 2010, 20:26

Post by kkumar29 »

Arasi,

I am glad you remember us running into each other at the breakfast table. I normally don't miss any concert in the bay area but this one was special. How could I miss a fellow forumites concert? In addition I have recently started learning veena and this was a good opportunity to observe how real professionals play from up close. I was sitting right in the first row and could observe every little detail and it was really an educational experience. I was amazed at the sustain Jayashri was able to produce from a single pluck and play multiple number of swarams. Amazing.

K. Kumar.

ramakriya
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Joined: 04 Feb 2010, 02:05

Post by ramakriya »

mohan wrote:Is it a Radel Electronic Veena (Sunadavinodini)?
Yes, the instruments were Radel Sunadavinodini.

rajeeram
Posts: 105
Joined: 02 Sep 2006, 00:04

Post by rajeeram »

JJ,
Do you have a concert (formal or informal) planned in the NJ area? I see that you will be in the area from July 1st week or so. Would love to attend.

Thanks

srkris
Site Admin
Posts: 3497
Joined: 02 Feb 2010, 03:34

Post by srkris »

Do these radel (modified) instruments offer the same resonance that a traditional sarasvati veena provides? The depth of the nAdam is no way affected?

cienu
Posts: 2392
Joined: 04 Feb 2010, 11:40

Post by cienu »

srkris wrote:Do these radel (modified) instruments offer the same resonance that a traditional sarasvati veena provides? The depth of the nAdam is no way affected?
Srkris,
As a listener, my personal preference would always be the traditional Veena without a contact mike and in a chamber concert setting :)

However Radel has some distinct advantages in the sense that it is easy to carry around (especially on long tours), can be dismantled and reassembled very easily & once the Sruti is set , there is no need to retune (fine tune) the veena during the concert. For this Radel needs to be congratulated. They have been in the forefront of various innovations :)

On the flip side Radel has driven the art of tuning the Tambura to the verge of extinction :(
The late KVN for one always attached high importance to the process of tuning and fine tuning of the tambura before a concert and said that this was one of the key factors to attain perfection in Sruti.
Last edited by cienu on 24 Jun 2008, 23:32, edited 1 time in total.

arasi
Posts: 16873
Joined: 22 Jun 2006, 09:30

Post by arasi »

Cienu,
Very informative post about Radel vINAs and thank you for the added comments.
When J&J played in Raga Sudha Hall last December, if I remember correctly, it was an ensemble of a traditional vINA and a rAdel one. I do not know if the combination made it sound that beautiful, or--if in able hands, a Radel can sound very melodious!

rshankar
Posts: 13754
Joined: 02 Feb 2010, 22:26

Post by rshankar »

rajeeram wrote:JJ,
Do you have a concert (formal or informal) planned in the NJ area? I see that you will be in the area from July 1st week or so. Would love to attend.

Thanks
All of us in NJ would like to extend a warm and hearty welcome to J&J. Is anyone aware of concerts (formal and informal) or lec-dems during this holiday week/weekend?

veenajj
Posts: 125
Joined: 18 Apr 2007, 11:54

Post by veenajj »

Thank you so much shankarji, and rajeeram. Please check your email.

veenajj
Posts: 125
Joined: 18 Apr 2007, 11:54

Post by veenajj »

Dear Rasikas,

We are pasting this link below in context of the electronic veena. Please also do check out the amazing story of a blind veena artist.

http://www.radelindia.com/user_news.aspx

Jeyaraaj and Jaysri

kartik1
Posts: 3
Joined: 08 Jun 2008, 22:36

Post by kartik1 »

gr8 to know about your concert abroad and i am glad it was admired by all the rasika-s present. i hear u did some lecdem-s. love to know more about it. kartik kolkata

veenajj
Posts: 125
Joined: 18 Apr 2007, 11:54

Post by veenajj »

Dear Rasikas,

Sorry for putting this up rather late. We are playing a concert in Miami today (3rd August) at 4pm, venue details given below.

Shiva Vishnu Temple of South Florida
5661 Dykes Road
Southwest Ranches
FL-33331

It would be nice if we do get to meet some of you there.

Kartik, good to see you here. We did a workshop on Dikshitar kritis in CA, and had a teaching camp in Tampa.

Regards,
Jeyaraaj and Jaysri
Last edited by veenajj on 03 Aug 2008, 18:26, edited 1 time in total.

srkris
Site Admin
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Post by srkris »

Did anyone attend the miami concert? Any reviews please?

anu_pankaj
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Joined: 29 Dec 2008, 09:58

Post by anu_pankaj »

Does any know the notation (swaras) and sahityam of the dhanasri tillana by swathi tirunaal? Thanks.

shadjam
Posts: 202
Joined: 06 Apr 2007, 05:45

Post by shadjam »

Look at the end of this page for notations in tamil (4 files):

http://www.karnatik.com/c1242.shtml

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