N Ramani - Nagai Muralidharan - Guruvayur Durai - E M Subram

srikant1987 · Post by **srikant1987** » 13 Aug 2008, 23:45

Clasfest 2008, Music Club IIT Madras, CLT
12th August 2008. 6:45 pm

sAmi ninnE - srI rAgam - Adi - Karur Devudu Iyer
vAtApi gaNapatim - hamsadvani - Adi - MD (S)
gurulEkha - gauri manOhari - kaNDa cApu - T (S)
gOvardhana girISham - hindOLam - rUpakam - MD (RS)
mAmava mInAkShi - varALi - misra cApu - MD (RNS)
manasu viShaya - naTTAikuranji - Adi - T (RS)
tani
parulana mATa - kApi - rUpakam
sUrdas bhajan - janasammOdini - Eka tALam (R)
tillAnA - sindhubhairavi - Adi - LGJ
mangalam - saurAshTram - Adi - T
madhyamAvati short sketch

After the TMK concert, so full of energy, this concert explored another dimension to our vast tradition of Carnatic music, serenity. This was especially marked in the masterly rendition of the varNam and vAtApi. This varNam was also rendered in two speeds, this vAtApi also had mERkAla svarams and a kOrvai, and yet, there was such serenity! A perfect blend of youthfulness and serenity.

Vidwan Ramani gestured to Shri Muraleedharan to give a svaram reply after the last round of svarams. He did that for all svarams.

Ramani mama's music is always rich with kOrvais, and I don't follow the kaNakku. This time, I tried to ignore that (beyond putting tALam invisibly, as I was so close to the stage!), and I could see how much melody is present in the kOrvais. Oh, and this is a nice place to mention the percussion department's able support to the kOrvais (if I need to do that despite already telling you it consisted of Vidwans Dorai and EM Subrahmaniam!).

I was somehow thinking about gauri manOhari on way to the concert, and although relatively brief, the gauri manOhari was very satisfying.

The hindOLam was energetic, with brighas, janTai notes, and also a large-range exploration including two flutes. Shri Muraleedharan's hindOLam AlApanai was extremely good.

Both varALi AlApanais were full of bhAvam. I hear varALi is tough to play on flutes, but it also sounds especially beautiful on it ... flute just has that tone, and the great accoustics of CLT didn't bring it down (though I noticed that there was something wrong during the long stops at tAra Shadjamam). The neraval for it was superb, and need I say anything about the svarams?

Vidwan Ramani's nATTaikuRinji was very moving; I forgot myself several times during his AlApanai. The svarams matched the AlApanai's beauty.
In the hindOLam and the nATTaikuRinji AlApanais, Ramani mAmA hit the atitAra sa.

parulanamATa was good. The tukkaDA in janasammOdini and the sindhubhairavi were rendered very well with rAgabhAvam.

The mangalam and madhyamAvati brought Classfest 2008 to a great end. Onward to the next adventure, the artists, the Music Club!

mridangamkid · Post by **mridangamkid** » 14 Aug 2008, 00:06

I too attended this concert. May I ask where you were sitting srikant because I too was very close to the stage (second row), perhaps I saw you.

It was a very good concert, I especially enjoyed the rendition of Vatapi.

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 14 Aug 2008, 04:29

mridangamkid,
Seems as though you are doing all the right things in India, learning, attending concerts and taking part in discussione too on the forum. You are heading back soon to the US, no doubt. I bet you are a much better student of mrudangam now.
Happy school year!

rbharath · Post by **rbharath** » 14 Aug 2008, 12:16

It was an amazing concert. Sri Ramani's initial short sketch of srI rAgam was so soulful that one felt it was going to be a great concert. The varNam was rendered effortlessly. The next number, which has become rare these days, was rendered beautifully with all its sangatis and some nice svarams as well. gauri manOhari was awesome, the svarams were just flowing.

The first AlApanai was a very elaborate hindOLam. Sri Ramani traversed across the octaves with utmost ease. I m told that it is very tricky to play tAra sthAyi notes in a flute. However, hearing Sri Ramani reach the notes up to the atitAra shadjam with ease dint seem so. The seasoned veteran he is, he knew how to get what he wanted to play. The varALi (another toughie for a flautist) was marvellous and rendered beautifully. The main nATTaikuranji was completely binding. One could easily get lost in the music. Sri Ramani weaved magic, with phrase after phrase. The kriti, another rare entity in the concert circuits, was rendered beautifully with elaborate round of svarams. The kApi jAvaLi, the bhajan and the tillAnA were all rendered beautifully. The janasammodhini AlApanai was surprise and very enjoyable.

Sri Ramani also used the base flute in some parts of the hindOLam and nATTaikuranji AlApanais. It was tooo good a concert to end in 2 hours. One wanted more. What i enjoyed beyond the rAga bhAvam was the not-so-intricate and yet beautiful kaNakku which he played in all his svaraprasthArams.

Sri Muralidharan on the violin was totally accomodative and played everything gelling with the main artist's renditions. Sri Durai was playing for the kritis, as he must have been playing for them, for decades now. His playing for each sangati and for the manOdarma parts was very inspiring. Sri Subramanian ably supported him. The tani they shared was good as well.

rbharath · Post by **rbharath** » 14 Aug 2008, 12:16

mridangamkid wrote:I too attended this concert. May I ask where you were sitting srikant because I too was very close to the stage (second row), perhaps I saw you.

It was a very good concert, I especially enjoyed the rendition of Vatapi.

srikant and i were sitting in the first row.

mridangamkid · Post by **mridangamkid** » 14 Aug 2008, 14:22

rbharath wrote:
mridangamkid wrote:I too attended this concert. May I ask where you were sitting srikant because I too was very close to the stage (second row), perhaps I saw you.

It was a very good concert, I especially enjoyed the rendition of Vatapi.
srikant and i were sitting in the first row.

I see, were you part of the commitee that organized this (Music Club I think it is?), because if you were, perhaps you know Varun. I was sitting next to him and another boy with glasses. We were pretty much right in the middle, second row like I said before.

gardabha_gana · Post by **gardabha_gana** » 14 Aug 2008, 14:30

Hey guys - any chance of getting a recording of the concert ?

srikant1987 · Post by **srikant1987** » 14 Aug 2008, 14:54

@Mridangamkid

You obviously know Professor TTN -- the gentleman who "introduced" the artists. I was sitting to his left and rbharath was sitting to his right.

We are part of Music Club. (Though in this Classfest I did nothing for it other than sitting in these concerts and writing down these reviews!) We both know Varun too â€” and do you learn from Vidwan Dorai too, like Varun?

mridangamkid · Post by **mridangamkid** » 14 Aug 2008, 14:58

Yes I learn from Dorai sir, that is how I know varun

rbharath · Post by **rbharath** » 14 Aug 2008, 14:59

@mridangamkid

i think i know you now. I do know varun, who happens to the secretary of the music club.

as srikant already mentioned, we were sitting in the middle of the first row. i dont quite remember exactly as to which seat i was sitting. The other guy with glasses was naveen from NJ i guess.

mridangamkid · Post by **mridangamkid** » 14 Aug 2008, 15:02

exactly

gardabha_gana · Post by **gardabha_gana** » 14 Aug 2008, 16:49

Good to know the music club is flourishing in IIT-M
When I was @ IIT (86-90) we did have a concert a month but not to the extent I see these days. It is great to see the upswing!
Is TTN - TT Narendran from Humanities and Social Sciences ?

rbharath · Post by **rbharath** » 14 Aug 2008, 17:02

gardabha_gana wrote:Good to know the music club is flourishing in IIT-M
When I was @ IIT (86-90) we did have a concert a month but not to the extent I see these days. It is great to see the upswing!
Is TTN - TT Narendran from Humanities and Social Sciences ?

we have about 9 or 10 concerts a semester these days. august has the annual series called clasfest and jan has the youth series. both of these have 4-5 concerts. other working months we have a couple of concerts.

and yes, Prof TT Narendran is the president. He has moved to the newly formed Management Studies Dept from HS Dept.

srikant1987 · Post by **srikant1987** » 14 Aug 2008, 22:04

Mridangamkid wrote:It was a very good concert, I especially enjoyed the rendition of Vatapi.

So did I!

Like I said, virtually everyone plays this song with more or less the same sangatis, with some quick svarams in the end, and yet it was so special in this concert!