Meera Srinivasan@Kartik Fine arts-10-12-2007

Meera Srinivasan-Vocal

Vittal Rangan-Violin

Vignesh Rajagopalan-Mridangam

Song List:

1)Sidhi Vinayakam-Shanmuga priya-Rupakam-Dikshithar

2)Brova bharama-Bahudhari-Adi-Thyagaraja

3)Maa ramanan-Hindolam-Rupakam-Papanasam sivan

4)Idadhu Padham-Kamas-Adi-Papanasam sivan

5)Ethavunara-Kalyani-Adi-Thyagaraja

Meera Srinivasan sang an excellent concert for Kartik Fine arts. Her strong points are free flowing voice,Good manodharma,good laya control. She has truely imbibed the essence of her guru the Violin Maestero Sri.Lalgudi Jayaraman. His teaching methods are brilliant and each sangathi of a song will be differnet and will have a meaning. Meera sang Brova bharama with embellishments in each sangatis and Lalgudi’s stamp was evident in each line.

Young 12 year old Vital Rangan on the violin astonished the rasikas with his impeccable gnanam in sruthi,talam and manodharma. He was able to appreciate each sangatis of Meera and was able to reproduce them at ease. Iam sure he is going to  make a great mark in the music world in the years to come. Meera sang two beautiful pieces of Sri.Papanasam sivan,”Maa ramanan” in Hindolam and “Idadhu padham” in Khamas.

Meera’s detailed kalyanai ragam was brilliant and had lot of manodharma.Vittal also played superbly and the song,”Etavunara” was very well handled by her. The neraval and swaram at “Sri Karudaku” was very good and the mridangam by Vignesh was good throughout.

Meera’s presentation,her sruthi sense,and classical depth are note worthy and she will occupy the main slots in the years to come.

Papanasam ashok ramani 

T N Seshagopalan @ kartik fine arts-06-12-2007

TN SeshagOpalan@NGS(karthik fine arts) on Dec 06th,2007

Accompanied by

M.Chandrasekaran – violin

Mannargudi Easwaran -mridangam 

Anirudh Athreya – kanjira

List of Songs

1. Ninnu kori (varnam)  – Mohanam – poochi

2. shri mahaganapate dehi shivam – malahari – HMB

3. Meenakshi Me Mudham-Poorvikalyani- Dikshitar-Adi

4. Enduku dayaraaduraa -Todi – Thyagaraja-Misra chapu

5.Viruththam – simmendramadhyamam,Khamas,Revati,basanth bahar

6.BarusE savinniki mannu bhAvanukki ” – basathbahar – meera bhajan

7.Thirruppugazh – ragamalika – arunagirinathar

TNS started the concert with varnam in mohanam, followed by the krthi mahaganapathe in malahari by Muthiah bhagavathar.  Then came the poorvikalyani aalaapana and the krthi Meenaakshi me mudham of Dikshithar.  TNS is the musician who uses his full throated voice and sings akaram very well.  The poorvikalyani raga imagination is brilliant and the fast sangatis are amazing. TNS is famous for his todi raga because it suits his nadaswara pidi style.  The song was “Enthuku daya” and the neraval and swaram were treat to the rasikas.  Then came the virutham,the “Best of the season” in the ragams Simmendramadhyamam,Khamas,Basanth bahar. This was followed by a meera bhajan.  It is always refreshing and a new experience listening to TNS concerts.

Papanasam Ashok Ramani

PRIYA SISTERS @KARTIK FINE ARTS

PRIYA SISTERS @ KARTIK FINE ARTS at NGS on 05-12-2007

VIOLIN-M.A.KRISHNASWAMY

MRIDANGAM-NEYVELI SKANDASUBRAMANIAM

KANJIRA-SUNDERKUMAR

SONG LIST:1)KORINA VARA-RAMAPRIYA-RUPAKAM-

2)ENTHA NERCHINA-SUDHA DHANYASI-ADI-THYAGARAJA

3)AADUM DEIVAM-KOMBOJI-ADI-PAPANASAM SIVAN 

It was a wonderful concert by priya sisters. Of the two, the elder one Shanmukhapriya displayed a kind of sobriety and serenity. As for the younger sister Haripriya, the way she carries herself shows how dashing and knowledgeable she is. And the two make an excellent combination with complementary qualities. While Shanmukhapriya sang with aplomb reflecting erudition, Haripriya was vivacious and took risk whenever displayed her manodharma, especially while building the raga and swara. In rich ragas, she displayed her urge to bring out the best with an authoritative touch. The fact that none in the well-packed auditorium moved out even while the tani avartanam was on explains how good the concert was. Every raga they rendered and shared was itself a sumptuous essay worth remembering.

The repertoire was a combination of Tamil and Telugu compositions. The initial part of the concert was marked by a pleasant Ramapriya, for which they chose “Korina vara” song.  That was followed by a quickie Entha Nerchina  in Sudha danyasi.

Haripriya rendered the main raga Kombhojii exclusively, which took a good time, and each phrase of the melody was decorated with nuances of high order. They chose Papanasam sivan’s excellent piece “Aadum  Deivam” in chowka talam , along with a well-measured swarakalpana.  The swarakalpana was built with utmost care and retained the melodic mood intact.  

They were supported bySri.M.A.krishnaswamy on the violin ,Neyveli Sri.Skandasubramaniam on mridangam.

The tani avarthanam presented by both Skandasubramaniam and Sunderkumar was a thrill that made the audience sit and enjoy every bit of it.  

 PAPANASAM ASHOK RAMANI

N.VIJAY SIVA @BRAHMA GANA SABHA-11-12-07

VIOLIN-SMT.LALGUDI VIJAYALAKSHMI

MRIDANGAM-NEYVELI SRI.NARAYANAN 

SONG LIST;Nadha thanumanisam-Citharanjani-Adi-Thyagaraja

Vidhulaku-Mayamalava Gowlai-Adi-Thyagaraja

Sankari Neeve-Begada-Rupakam-Subharaya sastri

Amba Vani Nannu-Keeravani-Adi-Patnam Subramania Iyer

Nambi ketavarillavo-kalyani-Misra chapu-Purandaradasar. 

The list is partial only.

In Vijay siva”s concert for Brahma Gana sabha,the bakthi  rasa was embedded in the compositions he presented , soothing the senses and hearts of the rasikas. 

Vijay’s presentation of Tyagaraja’s composition, “Nadha thanumanisam”, in the raga Chitaranjani, was emotive and portrayed the rich sahitya contents.  In yet another of Tyagaraja’s composition, “Vidhulaku” in the raga mayamalava gowlai , apart from presenting the composition aesthetically, Vijay siva  made the swaraprastara that followed very lively through his imaginative swara combinations. The two elaborate compositions he then presented were Subharaya  sastri’s “sankari neeve’”, in the raga Begadai, and patnam Subramani iyer’s  “Amba vani nannu” in Keeravani.  These was an  outstanding alap of Kalyani  by Vijay and on  the violin by Smt.Lalgudi Vijayalakshmi. The kriti was “nambikettavarillavo” composed by Purandaradasr.

 Neyveli Sri.Narayanan’s accompaniment was superb and it lifted the concert to great heights. I had to leave at this point of the wonderful concert to prepare myself for my today’s concert at Brahma Gana sabha. 

 Papanasam Ashok ramani 

Sanjay @kartik fine arts on 05-12-07

Sanjay Subrahmaniam @ Karthik Fine Arts on 05-12-2007

Violin – S.Varadarajan
Mridangam – Neyveli Venkatesh
Ghatam – Thirupanithura Radhakrishnan

Songs list:

1. Thapakane – Suddha Bangaala – Rupakam – Thyagaraja

2. Sadha Paalaya – Nalina Kanthi – Adi – Swati Thirunal

3. Nannu vidachi – Ritigowlai – Misra chapu – Thyagaraja

4. Saravana bhava – Madhyamavathi – Adi – Papanasam Sivan

5. Theril erinan – Kalyani – Adi – Papanasam Sivan

6. Sahana – RTP- Adi

Another outstanding concert by Sanjay. His concerts are always enjoyable. Consistency in maintaining the standard of the kutcheri is his hallmark. His ragas are full of Manodharma and Bhava. His rendition of Nalinakanthi raga was superb and it is amazing that he has control over fast speeds with gamakas and slow sangatis. He is definitely one musician who has worked tirelessly with his techniques and mastered the art very well. Sanjay is a musician who is always keen presenting new songs – Tamil songs, especially of Sivan in every concert. His Ritigowali raga was scintillating and Nannu vidachi was very good. Varadarajan’s violin was excellent and absolutely soaked with perfect sruthi. What a Madhyamavathi raga Sanjay sang! It was so satisfying and the song was Saravanabhava. This song is a masterpiece of Sri. Sivan and the neraval at “pannirandu kangalal adimaiyai” was so beautiful and I felt that Sivan himself would have written “Kaana kan kodi vendum” to listen to Sanjay’s concert. Sahana raga was very emotive and raga alapana by Varadarajan was superb. Neyveli Venkatesh was very vibrant in his style and with Radhakrishan on ghatam they lifted the concert to great heights. The pallavi in Sahana was just great! Kudos to Sanjay. 

Papanasam Ashok Ramani 

P.Unnikrishnan @Kartik fine Arts -04-12-2007

P.UNNIKRISHNAN @ KARTIK FINE ARTS ON 04-12-2007

ACCOMPANIMENTS:R.K.SRIRAM KUMAR-VIOLIN   

                                   PATRI SATISH KUMAR-MRIDANGAM

                                   DR.KARTIK-GHATAM 

LIST OF SONGS 

1)VADERA-PANTUVARALI-ADI-THYAGARAJA

2)RAJAGOPALAM-MOHANAM-RUPAKAM-MUTHUSWAMI DIKSHITHAR

3)SRI RAJA GOPALA-SAVERI-ADI-M.DIKSHITHAR 

The above list is partial only. 

P. Unnikrishnan, one of the few artists who enthralls both the Purists and the laymen alike, presented a wonderful concert for kartik fine arts. His brisk rendition of vadera in pantuvarali and neravl were very good.Sriram kumar’s sruthi sudham was amazing. Unni sang a exciting Mohana raga and the kriti was rajagopala in rupaka talam.

The highlight of the concert was saveri ragam and Unni’s manodharma ranged far and wide to produce an alapana of deep brilliance – it was truly original and sriram replied brilliantly.  The song was Sri raja gopala of dikshithar and the neraval at ‘Dheera agraganya” was neat.

Satish kumar’s mridangam was vibrant thoughout the concert and with kartik, they lifted the concert to great heights. The tani was very good. 

Papanasam Ashok ramani

Lalgudi Sri GJR Krishnan and Lalgudi Vijayalakshmi @kartik Fine Arts-04-12-2007

Violin Duet: Sri. Lalgudi G.J.R. Krishnan &  Smt. Lalgudi Vijayalakshmi

Mridangam: Sri. Mannarkudi Easwaran

Ghatam: Sri. Vaikam Gopalakrishnan

Sri. Lalgudi G.J.R. Krishnan & Smt. Lalgudi Vijayalakshmi presented a melodious, thoroughly enjoyable violin duet concert for Kartik fine arts on 04-12-2007 at Narada Gana Sabha. What was most impressive was the way they played the compositions so beautifully as though they were singing it with full bhava rather than playing it on the violin.  If you knew the compositions, you could just sit there, sing along if you wanted and note what all beautiful sangathis could be put.  If you didn’t know the kritis, you could simply sit there and enjoy the melodious journey.Lalgudi Vijayalakshmi played a superb Natakurunji raga. The alapana was full of manodharma and the sangatis were chaste and both played “Kuvalaya” of Thyagaraja very beautifully. The swaras were well sturctured and the podi kanakkus were exemplery. The Lalgudi school is famous for imagination and every moment of their concert will be a fruitful exercise.  I still refer to Sri.Lalgudi’s Jayaraman’s Todi,Kalyani,Natakurunji before my concerts. By mere listening  to his raga,it will give us enormous scope for imagination and elaboration. Undoubtedly,Lalgudi sri.Jayaraman he is THE MUSICIAN  of the century.

Lalgudi Krishnan played a soulful Ranjani ragam and the Pallavi was in tisra jati jampa talam,misra nadai. There were days when pallavis were sung as kirtana itself but over the time giants like Lalgudi,TRS and others showed way for innovative pallavis. Krishnan and Viji handled this tough pallavi very well and Viji did anulomam and pratilomam.

Sri Mannargudi Easwaran  was in top class form and he played a gem of a taniavartanam along with SriVaikam Gopalakrishnan for the ragam tAnam pallavi. Sri.Easwaran’s   mastery over layam is amazing and this was evident in his accompaniment as well as thani.

Papanasam Ashok Ramani

T.V.Sankaranarayanan @Kartik Fine Arts on 03-12-2007

A lawyer turned musician, Sri.T.V.Sankaranarayanan is one of the few classical exponents of an art form that he has carefully nurtured and preserved in all its pristine beauty.  His concerts, meticulously planned and modelled on the debonair style of his illustrious uncle and guru, Madurai Mani Iyer, have mesmerised audiences with his rhythm, grace and melody.  It could be a raga alapana, neraval or swaraprastharam – they all have the special TVS stamp.  An unaffected technique he has honed to perfection.

TVS gave an excellent performance for Kartik Fine Arts on 03-12-2007 with Sri.Nagai Muralidharan on Violin,Srimushnam Raja Rao on Mridangam and Sri.V.Suresh on Ghatam.  

TVS started with Jaya jaya  which was a good appetizer that triggered the longing for more food to the ears and we really had a treat!
 
It was a complete bhava oriented concert and had sweet memories of Madurai Mani Iiyer style. TVS  sang ”Oh!Jagadamba song  very well and  took Poorvikalyani for alapana. Alapana had a lot of pleasant sangathis.  Sri.Nagai Murali’s playing was brilliant and  it was full of essence. After a brief alapana in Abogi,TVS took Charukesi as the main raga.  TVS sang prachina sangathis of the ragam along with his amazing creativity and brugas and presented “Adamodi”in a spicy kalapramanam. The song, niraval,swaram,  everything was good.

Sri Raja rao and Suresh performed an efficient thani avardhanam.Sri Raja rao  played classical gumkis and filled the auditorium with charming chapus and arai chapus.

Papanasam Ashok Ramani                                                                            

T.M.Krishna @ kartik fine arts-02-12-2007

T.M.krishna at Kartik fine arts at Narada Gana Sabha

accompaniments-Sriram Parasuram-Violin

                             -Sri.Umayalpuram K.Sivaraman-Mridangam

                             -Sree Sunderkumar-Kanjira

TMK gave an excellent concert for Kartik fine arts today.His Begada and Bhairavi raga alapanas were of high standard.TMK is one musician who is quality conscious and his unhurried style of singing is very unique.Each sangati was brimmed with bhava and totally sruthi oriented.His voice was so good and flexible that he could reach thara sthayi panchamam in Begada very easily.Sri UKS gave acknowledgements for each sangati and was so involved throughout the concert.Sriram’s violin was so perfect in sruthi and technique and the whole team gave a memorable  concert.There was so much silence in their total concert.I meant the silence of listener’s mind when listening to such a soulful music.Sri.UKS gave so much pauses for TMK to finish phrases and he joined with the sruthi with his chapu with perfect sruthi and nadham.What a fingering,speed,control sri UKS has at his age?It is unbeleivable.He is really a Kaliyuga nandhi.

The unhurried Thyagarajaya namaste by TMK was very good and the swaras by him and Sriram was very sweet and crisp.

The bhairavi raga alapana by TMK was SSI style and the akarams brought nostalgic moments.The Upacharamu in two kalai was rendered very well and the neravl at “kapata nataka” was so good and the swara exchanges between him and sriram gave ample scope for UKS and Sunder to give an electrifying effect to the whole excercise.Sri. UKS played a tani which was an extension of the song TMK sang.His nadham, “Gumiki” and speed “solkattu” with precision was joyful and one could feel that sri.UKS is becoming younger and younger in his playing.Sunder’s kanjira was very good and his style suited UKS style.

   -papanasam ashok ramani

Why Papanasam Sivan’s Compositions are very Popular?

 

As a musician, Sri.Papanasam Sivan has great creative flair. He springs surprises on his listeners every moment. All art, as we know, is a perennial quest for beauty and so Sri.Sivan’s music has nothing in common with the stale dressed-up stuff the professionals purvey for mass consumption with an eye on the box office.

Sri Sivan has been trying to keep the flag of Vaidyanatha Ayyar flying in two ways:

1) His singing is an exact pattern of the great veteran’s and

2) All that was great in Vaidyanatha Ayyar’s music has been immortalized in Sivan’s own compositions.

The creative and aesthetic genius that Sri.Sivan is, he is able to interpret the Carnatic Trinity in a most thrilling manner. There is nothing stereotype in his rendering of classical gems.

We are familiar with pundits stringing together a few words and looking about for someone to find music for them. There are also musicians who borrow words for their tunes. It is scissor and paste work, piecing together music phrases torn from songs and words equally plagiarized. These pseudo-composers seem to have been there all along!

 In contrast to these stands the genuine composer. In moments of contemplating the Divine, he is in a sort of trance. Word and sound flow from his mouth through inspiration. There is perfect concord between the theme of the song and its scale. Only such songs bear the seal of immortality. Sri Sivan is an ornament to this galaxy of composers.