My season began!

[rbharath]

My season began on 21 Nov 2012. The first day of the first festival of this season. As usual, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan have began their annual festival.

21 Nov 2012. 5 pm. I entered a few minutes late as Seshampatti Sri T Sivalingam was playing gajavadana (sriranjani - Papanasam Sivan). The kriti was presented so well with a refreshing round of kalpanai svarams. Next was a neat elaboration of jayanta srI with marugElarA to follow. The main AlApanai of kalyANi was awesome. The phrases were interestingly woven together with a blend of traditional heavy phrases and classical-and-yet-innovative phrases. After the main were a kApi jAvaLi, rEvati tillAnA, oruti maganAi and tiruppugazh. The just-about-an-hour concert concluded with kAtrinilE varum gItam.

It was a wonderful presentation and one enjoyed thoroughly. It was unfortunate that most nAdasvara recitals are given the 'mangala isai' stamp and cut short. Wish organisers have full-length nadasvara concerts as a integral part of their concerts. Why not have a full 'mangala isai' concert? Especially when there are so many deserving artists.

Thats not all. As the second half of the concert was unfolding, there was continous train of people coming to catch their seats, so as to not miss the inauguration function and the concert that was to follow. Most of them, disturbing the listener and the performer together. Thats not all, the invited guests of honour and dignitaries were coming in as well. While, it is nice of them to come early and attend the concert before it would be very helpful if they come-in without much extravaganza. Though the guests themselves may not demand so much, the organisers create a bubble of volunteers and photographers and videographers around each guest as they walk in. And they dont stop even after the guests take their seats. Much of these photo-flashes and people-walking diverting the attention of the artist and the listener. Especially with some high-profile chief guests the disturbances are way too many to tolerate.

This writer found it too disturbing to be there, for the treatment given to the artist on stage. One just quietly slipped out of the auditorium as the curtains drew, and before the inauguration ceremony could begin.

I dont know if I am the only one who has problems with all this and/or if it is worth making noise either. Still, I think I should file my thoughts on the issue...

[srikant1987]

Bharath, nice that you began your season this early, hope it continues with the same momentum.

I distinctly remember that we attended Vidwan Sivalingam's concert [pakkala nilabaDi main] in the very same hall a few years back, which was followed by a TNK concert [sarasijanAbha - endarO mahAnubhAvulu - kalyANi RTP ]. Your blog tells it was 5 December 2008. That, too, was brief, but the scenery you describe here is indeed very sad.

I feel even more depressed when seeing extremely talented nAdaswaram artistes at weddings and other events, where they're treated like fans or ACs -- machines meant to improve the ambience.

[Rsachi]

Sir,
Though the guests themselves may not demand so much, the organisers create a bubble of volunteers and photographers and videographers around each guest as they walk in. And they dont stop even after the guests take their seats. Much of these photo-flashes and people-walking diverting the attention of the artist and the listener. Especially with some high-profile chief guests the disturbances are way too many to tolerate.

I consider this type of situation abysmal and it shakes to the roots any hope that India will emerge out of the dark ages of sycophancy.

On two occasions recently, I encountered a type of "sucking up" to politicians by unbelievably successful Carnatic stars. When I asked what made them genuflect to politicians so much, they said, "that is the only way to come up"!!!

God save our classical arts from the clutches of this "Mai-baap","Sarkar" culture.

[harimau]

My season began on 21 Nov 2012. The first day of the first festival of this season. As usual, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan have began their annual festival.

.....Though the guests themselves may not demand so much, the organisers create a bubble of volunteers and photographers and videographers around each guest as they walk in. And they dont stop even after the guests take their seats. Much of these photo-flashes and people-walking diverting the attention of the artist and the listener. Especially with some high-profile chief guests the disturbances are way too many to tolerate.

This writer found it too disturbing to be there, for the treatment given to the artist on stage. One just quietly slipped out of the auditorium as the curtains drew, and before the inauguration ceremony could begin.

I dont know if I am the only one who has problems with all this and/or if it is worth making noise either. Still, I think I should file my thoughts on the issue...

I was one of the last dignitaries to enter; in fact I was so late, I missed most of the inauguration speeches! But I can assure you there were no photographers using photo-flashes to take my picture!

I was hoping to see some fireworks, what with the Proprietress of Ye Honourable Olde & Original Abhangerie -- who received an award this year -- being seated in the front row and the Duelling Abhangists presenting the main concert of the evening. But the said Original Abhangist left after three songs, missing "Bolova Vittala Pahava Vittala" which came towards the end. The US Consul-General Jennifer McIntyre stayed the whole evening and left only after the mangalam was sung. I was wondering if I should dance and ask the Consul-General to join me but extricating myself from the middle of the n-th row would not have been easy.

I have a feeling that the Duelling Abhagists think of the abhangs as a prank they are playing on the audience. Because G of the Duellists had a half-smile on her face when she said they would be presenting an abhang. I saw the same half-smile at the Bharat Sangeet Utsav of Carnatica (as opposed to the Bharatiya Sangeet Utsav of the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan) on G's face as she announced that they were going to sing an abhang.

The overall decibel level of the Duelling Abhangists was acceptable. Unlike earlier years when the sound was so much in-your-face, they have toned down their presentation so it was tolerable. I attribute it to the fact that the both the singers have young children who -- as children are wont to do -- probably are screaming in their parents' faces so they must have realized how disagreeable that is for the average concert-goer.

[Rsachi]

Abhangerie! What flavour the word has, Harimau!
Your tweak is as deadly as Panesar's so please make your presence felt, more often, oh Tiger among Men.

PS: Wish I had woven it into my Snake and Ladders game.

[venkatakailasam]

I hope I am not an odd man here..I am not a commentator ...my vocabulary is limited....

only musings..if I may call it so..

As the season has commenced…..

A few relevant questions…

Are the Artists will be singing the same sahityams…or they are going to explore new ones??

There are many unexplored songs composed by trinities, Tamil trinities, Ambhujam Krishna.MDR, MMD, Maharajas of Trivancore and Mysore…and many others..
Why our friends are getting satisfied with the repetitions…

The composition of Wodayar ‘O jagadamba’ Raga narayanadeshakshi triputa tala has not been rendered…

Thyagaraja’s
innallu-nannEli in Raga GhanTA
…
darishunchuta in Raga mOhana



MD’s
kanakAmbarI-kAruNyAmRta raga kanakAmbari
..(only TMK has rendered it—commercially..)

nAgAbharaNaM In raga nAgAbharaNaM

GK Barathi’s
Maravamal eppadium ninai maname..Sri ragam
Hara hara siva sankara…nattai

And many more such songs of venkatakavi…and others have no takers.

I hope we will be hearing new compositions discarding old repetitions…

Best wishes..to the season and to the Artists ..and Above all to Rasikas