Abhishek Raghuram@Los Angeles On Apr 18th,2015

[rajeshnat]

Abhishek Raghuram@Los Angeles On Apr 18th,2015
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Vocal : Abhishek Raghuram
Violin : Akkarai Subbulakshmi
Mrudangam : Anantha R Krishnan
Concert Type : Nirvana - no concert to follow
Day/Duration : Saturday/ 3 hours and 10 mins inclusive of 5 mins speech

Concert Type/Crowd : Ticketed Concert - around 350
Hall : Hoover School , Lakewood Los Angeles
Sabha : South Indian Music Academy LA(SIMALA)

1.evari bOdhana(Raga sketch) - AbhoGi - Patnam
2.palukavEminA deivamA - poornachandrika - T

3. teliyalEru rAmA (RS,S) - dhenuka - T
2 min alapana 2 mins swaras
4. rAma nannu brOva rA (R N S) - harikAmbODhi - T
2 mins alapana and no violin return
neraval in meppulakai kannatAvu-nappu baDaga for 5 mins
4 mins swaras

5. tatvamEruga tharamA(S) - garudadhwani - T
5 mins swaras

I was personally pushed out of Kollywood to Hollywood due to work and i did have a chance to hear AAA team . To me How US/Canada fares in concerts are a function of how fellow rasikas report from US in this website. I had a special hunch or liking to Bay Area/ Toronto /Chicago/ few places in NJ/NY where i felt the musicians give an ounce of extra hours- just like what they do for NGS/MA/SKGS when compared to sastri hall/BVB in chennai.

Where does LA fit in all of this, all i can recollect is few postings made by Late super senior veeyens sir.To the best of my knowledge apart from veeyens not many have written from LA.The concert was at 17:00 hours and as i bought the 25 USD ticket (looks as a predominantly thamizh sabha with everyone talking in counters in thamizh) . As i sat the MC announced her name is kalyani and moved on to introduce the standard introduction. The name kalyani did pop up a thought in me then - ayyayO kalyani maina- ithukku poi did i pay 25 USD , as the song list moved on that was not the case.

Concert start in varnam can be of two basic types one is testing their voice with a sedate varnam and another to test it with hit the ground running with sangathis. I preferably like later and for me AbhOgi varnam is personally a great choice as it is one of my favourites and Abhishek is a terrific abhogi singer. Abhogi was sung well but the acoustics was way too feeble . I was seated 20 rows some where at the usual center . I was thinking may be my chennai dAmara ears conditioning is seeking more volume , but it looks many felt that way. The next in poornachandrika was sung well with the rhythmmic dazzle of anantha certainly add pep, i was bit frustrated as the volume was still not right but was getting better - at a certain line in mid point of poornachandrika with the fiesty kalpanaswaras the volume was right with anantha giving his right measured stamp .

I took a decision to move front and sat in the first 5 rows and I think it was the right move- the personal audio setting was achieved and that too with Anantha being left hander and akkaarai being right hander i could see their playing side in full view- my left eye was on akkarai strings and my right eye on anantha left. In Poornachandrika , still the moon did not arrive in LA but kutcheri kalaikuttified - with a slight disappointment that abhishek not singing more swaras was in my head.

Abhishek sang a lovely concise dhenuka alapana- i think certain folky sindhu bhairavi sangathis are inevitable in dhenuka but i liked his brief alapana .The krithi in teliyalEdu was well sung - i felt abhishek could have sung with a little more pep speed like semmangudi but i still enjoyed , akkarai was given few snatches of gaps where her violin melody and alacrity was adequately showcased . The disappointment in dhenuka was there when he wrapped swaras quickly, i wish he is a true semmangudi school vidwan there.

The sub main in harikAmbOdhi was well done , whispers were everywhere when he began with all of them thinking it was kamas. But as he moved on with rAma nannu all of them smiled and said no it is hari kambOdhi. The phrase rAma nannu (can have so many rAmA's rAma rAmA , ramA etc can be reiterated so many times) i wish abhishek started better in pallavi (hear a maharajapuram ramachandran to sing this rama nannu brOva song) he bit raced and the neraval was measured but the swaras in harikAmbOdhi was well done with almost zero violin return. From hari kambOdhi ,the abhishek I seeked was indeed right there .

The filler garudadhwani is one of a kind - personally i cannot take out TK rangachari out of my head. Tatvameruga tharama in garadudhwani is a kind of extended western note and a more of pro instrument krithi is what i would chararcterize. Abhishek pliable voice and garudadhwani blended so well - Abhi was a mandolin shrinivas there with supersonic jet speed sangathis especially in swaras.

[rajeshnat]

6A. kAmAkshi (R N1 N2 S T)- bhairavi - SS
22 mins alapana and 8 mins violin return
Neraval in bhakta jana for 5 mins
Second Neraval in shyama krishna for 7 mins
Swaras for 20 mins
21 mins tani
KamAkshi alone without alapana and tani was for 52 mins

6B. 21 mins tani

7. aaKaTi velala - revati -AC
8. seetha kalyana vaibhogamE - kurinji -T

9. ni ra ga ma ri sA - poorvi thillana - T vaidhyanatha bhagavathar
9 . nee nama roopamulaku - sowrashtram - T

While everything before the main was a bit of french fries , burger etc with main it was a clean south indian food. Personally i also had great homely food after 4 days of continous junk and I immensely like Bhairavi as it is my big 5 top list.

I like any musician who shows allegiance to their primary school, with dhenuka and harikambOdhi semmangudi was there but semmangudi mama was omnipresent in the first 80% segment in bhairavi. Like semmangudi mama ,bhairavi raga alapana splendour was spectacular. Abhishek key strength is only in alapana singing , Lot of akaaram well rounded gamakas with semmangudi like fast podi brighas in lightning speed was thrown here and there. Towards the end of the alapana few sangathis in a bass rich voice reminding me a bit of MDR was there. Post bhairavi alapana of his , akkarai who had minimal role till then played a lovely melody soaked return- akkarai did not err in proportion and gave the prime time back to abhishek.

My mind was running then with so many T krithis gone , I was thinking he may likely sing either the lalgudi pancharathnam bhairavi krithi or may be swarajathi . But out popped carnatic music premium no - the swarajathi. Abhishek sang exceptionally well with two neravals the first in bhaktha jana centered on mid octave was well done , in the second neraval shyama krishna , i felt he lost his voice and distinctly the mel sa , he tried many times but he could not make it. In the past, few musicians have attempted two neravals in a single song and i like abhishek effort and sincerity to bring it back . The swaras were well done but at half point there was little excess kanakku that robbed the bhairavi muse that he so beautifully built before .

I am personally ok to hear even another 120 minutes of non stop bhairavi (measured sangathis kills carnatic music) . But Abhishek strained his voice and the aesthetics got lost , he has to find a way to not strain his voice as what he did in the last segment of bhairavi .

There was a long alapana in revati which was sung with passion and the annamacharya krithi was well done . I feel abhishek has to learn bit more krithi in revati than usually sticking with this standard AC krithi. Some one asked for pallavi and RTP , I wish abhishek sang it but that did not happen.

ON akkarai violin:
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Vidushi akkarai had limited violin role today, but whatever she played she was brilliant . Her raga bhavam was intact and the way she filled with alacrity in garudadhwani and quickly handing over the baton to abhishek was superb. I remember some one writing that abhishek is best with AAA combination, now i get how that poster was right akkarai adds a sure victory punch. However Abhishek is also good with other violinist (not all is great), so akkarai combination is one of the great.

ON anantha krishnan mrudangam:
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My theory is if you keep a 5% top mrudanga vidwan the concert is guaranteed success. Anantha keeps up such a tight kalapramananam and he runs in the same speed for both vocal and violin .He is a sure asset . What can i say abhishek greatest gift is not just palakkad raghu and lalgudi jayaraman lineage ,but quite honestly he has a committed cousin Anantha who only plays mostly with Abhishek. I particularly liked the way anantha played in jet speed in garudadhwani what an energy there, considering there was no upa pakkavadhyam. His tani first round was spectacular . I did not much hear a crystal clear Palghat raghu teermanam in tani , but he was more of UKS most of the time and charging like UKS in 1960's . I still think since he is raghu grand son we are all mistaking him of that school, to me he is more of UKS school to me.In bhairavi with tani he almost played non stop for 50 minutes without upa pakkavadyam.


Few things that did not go well:
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1. Sound system for the first few songs

2. One thing that frustrated me was abhishek was going so very orthogonal to the microphone . Many a times he was so out of microphone , he can have double microphone . In shyama krishna neraval all of a sudden he went out of microphone when he realized he is not reaching mel Sa , was that a case of consciously doing a quality check himself. In revathi he held the microphone with two hands but for the entire alapana he was singing away from microphone. My perceptive head is giving a doubt that there is some stage craft there to not expose few things that well to rasikas. I will keep a watch in future and assess myself.

3. The last 20% drag in bhairavi was not welcome

4. Most importantly he did not sing a pallavi . Why is this not a big city? possibly he is saving his energy for today concert at Bay area. Is LA not a big city/sabha to demand the same near 4 hour concert?

One special moment I cheered:
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The tani was going on with anantha just completing the first round in swarajathi . Superb playing was going on. Anantha being a leftie suddenly stretched to his right still playing and gave a rounded sleeve.Abhishek opened the sleeve and took his kanjira and played . At that moment I alone clapped and then all joined .What can i say one kollywood rasika starts to clap, rest of the hollywood rasikas joined and the applause was deafening .

Then when abhi ended his play which was lovely(he is a harishankar student), i did not clap all the hollywood rasikas clapped , then it was a short second round where anantha finished his tani and there was a long applause.i have that visual moment let me see if i could upload.What can i say a hollywood stunt but hey you do it and suddenly we all enjoy and clap more . What was subtle in that exercise the tani was cut short a bit . Few months back i was writing how abhishek with raghu in ayodhya mantapam concert was in my eyes when they played for vijay siva concert. Now I got a rare visual moment of Abhishek playing kanjira.

All said personally i did miss a RTP or a near 4 hour concert.I am told he is having a concert in bay area today on April 19th.Over to mahavishnu/sindhuja/others.

As Veeyens sir tells from Los Angeles, let Lord rAmA immensely bless abhishek , anantha and akkarai for them to have more energy, i wish no mel SA problems come due to excess travel.

Thank you thank you Simala, let Lord rama also bless you organizers.

Overall an excellent concert for 3 hours and 05 minutes.

[rshankar]

Wow! Rajesh, I had to do a double-take when I saw the venue of your review! Any east-coast trips, or is it just from one kADu to another (couldn't resist- from Kollywood to Hollywood)?

[mahavishnu]

Rajesh: Good to see a review from you and that too from California!
Please check your inbox. I just messaged you.

I did not much hear a crystal clear Palghat raghu teermanam in tani , but he was more of UKS most of the time and charging like UKS in 1960's . I still think since he is raghu grand son we are all mistaking him of that school, to me he is more of UKS school to me.

I can't bring myself to see this. I think his style is quite distinctly PR. His fingering and sol arrangements are very emblematic of the PR tradition. However, some of the kOrvais and nadai amaippus in their shared tradition go back to PMI and TVI, so I can see how you might notice some glimpses of UKS here.

I am really looking forward to their performance in the Bay Area later today. Unfortunately, I had to miss quite a few local concerts due to a very hectic time at work; unfortunately my travels didn't take me to any places with concerts!

[vasanthakokilam]

Thanks Rajesh. As Ravi also felt, I had to double and triple check. In fact I was looking for some header like 'posting for'. None of that, the man himself has pulled off a kADu vittu kADu pAyum act. Great you could accommodate a concert or two.

>6A. kAmAkshi (R N1 N2 S T) bhairavi
When I saw this, I first wondered if he did some kind of vivAdhi bhairavi

btw, after such a lengthy bhairavi, I am not surprised there is no RTP. In Chicago, there was only an RTP, no lengthy main. It may not be Abhi's nature to do an in between thing like a 3/4th main and a 3/4th RTP. Doing full justice to both does require the 4 hour thing you wanted.

[arasi]

Rajesh,
Great to get a review from you from the west coast!

A true rasikA and a reviewer. One of a kind Rajesh and this one of a kind review from him...

The three A-s sounds like a good combination. Yes, Veeyens, indeed, and how even after hitting ninety, he loved his music and was happy to share his impressions about the concerts he went to!

Akkarai's playing was always sweet. Now she is so skilled that any vocalist would love to have her play in a concert to enhance it.Only thing is, how long is she going to do that, now that the sisters have become vocalists?

Anantha made a very good impression with the very first concert I heard him in, accompanying a newbie.

That khanjirA playing surprise from Abhishek would have been something! I have heard him only once, and I thought, 'my! that's something!".

Hope we get reviews for his forthcoming concerts.

I don't know how long you are here for, and where all. Hope you can tuck in another concert. If it's in a temple, you can be sure of some 'carnatic' food too

[rajeshnat]

Thanks Rajesh. As Ravi also felt, I had to double and triple check. In fact I was looking for some header like 'posting for'. None of that, the man himself has pulled off a kADu vittu kADu pAyum act. Great you could accommodate a concert or two.

>6A. kAmAkshi (R N1 N2 S T) bhairavi
When I saw this, I first wondered if he did some kind of vivAdhi bhairavi

btw, after such a lengthy bhairavi, I am not surprised there is no RTP. In Chicago, there was only an RTP, no lengthy main. It may not be Abhi's nature to do an in between thing like a 3/4th main and a 3/4th RTP. Doing full justice to both does require the 4 hour thing you wanted.

Spring cuckoo and ShankarV
I read your lovely review of chicago and also houston review of shankar vaidyanathan. Keep it up both of you have written a lovely review especially vk.

VK,
We all know you are one of the finest communicator . It looks like you are okay with having an exclusive OR choice between biggie main and pallavi. No let that not happen and I am not okay at all. For atleast three musicians in my head (Suryaprakash, Abhishek , Sanjay and to an extent TMK), i think they have the endurance and skill especially to go and hit that sweet spot of submain , main and pallavi and go consistently for nearly 3 and 1/2 to 4 hours on US tours.

Even in this concert akkarai was not used that much , possibly abhishek after his alapana in revathi which was pretty long could have gone for a RTP like what typically Suryaprakash does , these are big cities and the concert starts at 5 pm , YOU HAVE TIME.PERIOD. Let the artist make it. RTP is not optional with detailed main and submain and RTP is the crowning glory especially taanam.In the historic past i remember different reviews from US especially for the 3 artists that i have mentioned where they go and hit that sweet spot(can think of seattle, chicago , toronto and bay area reviews where they have gone for nearly 4 hours ).

As of today ,Let cities in US be a precursor of what it can show back to indian cities especially chennai . - let artists take time to present everything , they never have that luxury in chennai

[rajeshnat]

Abhishek in Kanjira-Anantha-Akkarai@LosAngelesOnApril18th2015

[PUNARVASU]

Rajeshnat, thanks for your lovely review of a lively concert. I was looking for one, wondering who it will be who will write from LA. I know about the concert as my sister told me she was going for it. I was thinking of my dad so much, how he would have enjoyed going for a concert and writing 'his impressions' as soon as he came home. I could visualise him sitting in front of his laptop and typing away. Thanks for remembering him and mentioning him. Yes, he would have ended with 'May Lord Rama Bless them All'
Thanks once again!

[vasanthakokilam]

Rajesh, I do remember about your passion to have such 'full' and 'complete' concerts with a sub-main, main and RTP format. I definitely welcome that as well. But there seems to be a few sub-formats for a 3+ hour concert duration

• The mainstream one. sub main, main and RTP. Let us designate that as what Sanjay did at Detroit recently
  The not so elabrate main plus an RTP that Abhishek did in Chicago
  The very elaborate main that Abhishek did in LA
  A very elaborate main, shave off 15 minutes from other pieces and a half hour RTP ( don't have an example at this moment)

These all seem to fit into the 3+hour format. Ahishek's inclination does not seem favor a half an hour RTP.
So I can see Abhishek doing

• A very elaboarate main plus an elaborate RTP that can last close to 4 hours.

May be that is what he will do this evening in San Diego. Let us see.

[rajeshnat]

These all seem to fit into the 3+hour format. Ahishek's inclination does not seem favor a half an hour RTP.

For many concerts that I attended of Abhishek in chennai , I have heard him sing 25 to 45 minutes RTP in 2 and 1/2 to 3 hours concert. In academy he and all of them squeeze RTP even in 2 and 1/2 hours. Let Abhishek have a default view of some how fitting a RTP as such let us not miss out his taanam and palllavi . LA missed out And I am sure bay area concert is going on right now

[kvchellappa]

Rajeshnat has finally disproved Kannadasan, 'இரண்டு கண்கள் இரண்டு காட்சி காண முடியுமா?' (Seeing Akkarai with left eye and Ananta with right eye). (Can 2 eyes see 2 different things?)

[Sindhuja]

Rajeshnat, thanks for the very detailed review! The list looks great. I wanted to drive up from San Diego but couldn't... (And yes - in San Diego, so looking forward to hearing from mahavishnu on the bay area concert!)
(And moving to LA soon, so hopefully can make up for the lack of reports from the region here )

[Rsachi]

"my left eye was on akkarai strings and my right eye on anantha left."
Your third eye was bang centre on Abhishek and his khanjira!
Good detail as usual from you, Rajesh! Thanks.

[vsarmaiitm]

Abhishek Raghuram@Los Angeles On Apr 18th,2015

teliyalEdu rAmA (RS,S) - dhenuka - T

teliyalEru rAma

........ Tatvamaria tharama in garadudhwani in garadudhwani is a kind of extended.... -

Tatvameruga, you meant !

[rajeshnat]

teliyalEdu rAmA (RS,S) - dhenuka - T

teliyalEru rAma


........ Tatvamaria tharama in garadudhwani in garadudhwani is a kind of extended....

Tatvameruga, you meant !

Tx vsarma - corrected teliyalEru rAma. On the garudadhwani in the song list i wrote it right , but now corrected it even on the subjective review part.

[shankar vaidyanathan]

Lovely review, rajeshnat, rich with so many details. It felt as if we were there in person!

I have been to CM concerts in New Jersey and Texas. I lived in the U.S. East Coast for 12 years. I am in Texas now for 8 years. IMHO, I would like to say that Vidwans seem to put a little extra effort in Texas concerts. To some extent, this may be due to the additional energy they derive from the Rasikas, as well as the hot, humid weather here which must remind them of home!

As to hearing the deep bass voice, I felt the same at Houston. I couldn't tell if indeed it was the voice or enhancement from the audio system. We had professionally managed audio for the Houston concert. I have several CDs of Abishek, I have been to his concerts, but he definitely sounded deeper in this tour.

I personally believe that given the air time and starting on time, all visiting artists will want sing the "full Kutcheri format" that you outlined. More often than not, the external constraints and formalities imposed on them by the logistics of the venue and the organization seem to be the issue. It is also true that not all audience arrive on time and seated at the venue to enable starting on the clock.

[rajeshnat]

The pattern I have noticed (over the last 9 years) is that LA gets the Saturday concert and Bay Area gets the Sunday concert. The artists finish the concert late and rush down the next morning here and as a result, their voice is either strained or takes time to recover. For once, it'd be nice if Bay Area could get the Saturday concert.

All
I see in bay area the concert start is 04:00 and in LA the concert start is 05:00 . Can I assume if the concert starts at 05:00 pm it would only be a 3+ hour concert , in the sense I am making an assumption the cindrella close time in US is 08:00 pm.

Shripathi
Perhaps we must have two week end concerts in California . One biggie for LA in a week end and another one Biggie for BayArea in another week(4 hours )and two smaller 3 hours on next day or previous day? .