Yashwant Vaishnav (Tabla)

 Yashwant Vaishnav (Tabla)

Attended Tabla Solo concert of Yashwant Vaishnav. He was accompanied by Nilay Salvi on harmonium. This concert was organized by Maharashtra Mandal Abu Dhabi at Embassy of India auditorium. I attended the concert with Aditi, Jayant, Sucheeta, Nandu, Deepa, Manish and Trupti.

This concert was divided into two parts. First part was composed of five songs by MMAD local artists Sachin Raje, Siddhi Chonkar, Adwait Gokhle, Girish Pande, Yuvraj Kochale. They were accompanied on Tabla by Adwait Gokhale and Nandkishor Banchhode. Nilay Salvi was gracious enough to accompany the local artists on harmonium.

The selection of the songs was very good. Sakhi mand zalya taraka (सखी मंद झाल्या तारका), Yad piya ki are (याद पिया की आप), Kata rute Kunala (काटा रुते कुणाला), Jhanak jhanak tori (झनक झनक तोरी), Kanada raja Pandharicha (कानडी राजा पंढरीचा). These are all famous, good songs with classical base. They covered most of the categories. Be it Bhav geet, Thumri, Chitrapat Sangeet, Abhang.

Classical music is expertise of Siddhi and Girish, Sachin's voice is most suited for Bhavgeet, Advait demonstrated his versatility with singing and rhythm, Yuvraj and Bhajan are made for each other. The gajar (गजर) gave goosebumps.

This first half by the local artists was excellent. It was of professional quality and high grade. It felt like the first half ended quickly and a couple more songs would have been nice. And there lies the success of first half. This set the stage for what was to come next.

Yashwant ji chose Teen taal for the concert. He presented Peshkar, several Kaydas from Punjab, Delhi and Ajrada gharana, various types of Rela and Chakradar.

He has lightening fast fingers. His fingers danced like a lightening and he enthralled the audience. Even those who have never attended a classical concert came out with a smile on their face.

Yashwant ji is a very soft spoken and humble gentleman. His humility was evident. He involved the audience asking them to clap in rhythm and audience complied spontaneously.

Audience was in the awe and couldn't stop clapping. They loved him. Needless to say that he got a Standing Ovation at the end.

Nilay was very good on harmonium. He kept up with the main artist and provided a very good accompaniment. I should appreciate him for being nice enough to a accompany the local artists with just a practice of couple of hours with them.

The sound system was very good but the mike of Dagga  was a little low, so the finer notes were hard to hear.

This was a very unconventional concert. There was no build up. Nothing Vilambit. Nothing Madhyalay. Direct dive to Drut, and continue in Drut. A storm on Tabla.

Either the artist chose to play for the audience, knowing that most were not connoisseurs of classical music, or that was all that he could present in one hour. Would the format have changed to a conventional one if two hours were allocated?

A very unconventional but good concert.

Swar Deepotsav 2024 (स्वर दीपोत्सव २०२४)

Attended Swar Deepotsav 2024 (स्वर दीपोत्सव २०२४), a concert celebrating Diwali morning. Main singer of the concert was Hrishikesh Ranade and Swapnaja Lele. He was accompanied by Vikram Bhat on Tabla, Abhijeet Made on Octopad, Kedar Paranjpe (he was also the arranger) and Yash Bhandare on Keyboard. This program was anchored by Madhura Velankar. This concert was organized by Maharashtra Mandal Abu Dhabi (MMAD) on 2nd Nov 2024 at Al Jaheli theater, Armed Forces Club, Abu Dhabi. I attended it with Thangaokar, Banchhode, Mane, Patil, Sambhaji, Kamble and Oka families.

Diwali early morning or morning concert is a tradition of Maharashtra. The content varies from instrumental to classical to light music. But unless you send Diwali Pahat or Diwali Sakal concert, Diwali is incomplete. MMAD has kept this tradition alive in Abu Dhabi for all these years.

Pre-concert performance was by  MMAD member, Manas Jain. He played solo guitar and enthralled the audience.

Concert started with Ganesh vandan "Sur niragas ho (सूर निरागस हो)". The audience got involved in the concert from this first song and started clapping. It was appreciated by the artists.

Hrishikesh started with a medley. Nij roop dakhva ho (निज रूप दाखवा हो), Zala mahar Pandharinath (झाला महार पंढरीनाथ) and Kanada raja Pandharicha (कानडी राजा पंढरीचा). This medley was a tribute to Sudhir Phadke (Babuji). His next tribute was to Srinivas Khale with his immortal and difficult song "Bagalyanchi malphule (बगळ्यांची माळफुले).

Hrishikesh sang all these songs very well with additions with his variations. Not too many to make the song unrecognizable but enough to stamp his individuality.

Then entered Swapnaja Lele and presented two songs "Ka re duraavastha (का रे दुरावा)" and "Ruperi walut (रुपेरी वाळूत)". Singing Asha Bhosale songs is never an easy job, but Swapnaja did a decent job in first one. She sung second one very well.

Hrishikesh then sung his original song "kadhi tu rimzim zarnari barsat (कधी तू रिमझिम झरणारी बरसात)". Audience applauded as soon as he announced it. This was worth a 'once more' and they got it. Since this song from movie Mumbai-Pune-Mumbai was appreciated he sung two more songs from the sequels of this movie. "Saath de tu mala (साथ दे तू मला)" and "Tula pahta (तुला पाहता)". Audience was mostly quiet for these two songs as they are not as famous as the first one.

Madhura then presented a beautiful poem about Radha. But she didn't name the poet. Since Radha is a special topic next two songs had the same theme. First was "Radha hi bawri "(राधा ही बावरी)". The audience sung these lines in unison as chorus to the main singer. It created very good vibes. Second was the song that won multiple awards "Jeev rangla (जीव रंगला)". It's such a beautiful song. The singers did full Justice to it.

He then sung his own song that got him the Mirchi award. "Jata jata tipur chandne (जाता जाता टिपुच चांदणे)". It was a lesser known song, the audience response was Luke warm. However, he doing very well.

Swpnaja then presented a lavni "Reshmachya reghani (रेशमाच्या रेघांनी)". The opening dholki piece was played by Vikram on Tabla and was hugely applauded. Audience made him play it again after the song ended. Lavni always draws big applause and whistles in any concert. This one was no different. Although it was difficult to match with Asha Bhosale, the original singer, Swapnaja did well. Lavni is a rhythmic Marathi genre that everyone likes to listen but is frowned upon socially. 

That was interval.

First song after the break was "Swaye Shri Ram Prabhu aikati (स्वये श्री रामप्रभू ऐकती)" from Geetramayan. MMAD member Girish Pande joined them on stage for this song. MMAD member Sachin Raje joined in for next song "Prem he (प्रेम हे)". It was a nice gesture to involve the local talent by MMAD and kindheartedness by Hrishikesh.

Hrishikesh then sung the song "O Rama (ओ रामा)" that he had sung for the Hindi version of movie "Seeta Ramam". It was a little known but good song. They then presented a Kishore Kumar songs Yeh Jo mohabbat hai (ये जो मुहोब्बत है) , kehna hai (कहना है). Audience expected more of Kishore Kumar, but that was it. Madhura presented a beautiful Vaibhav Joshi poem on Lata Mangeshkar. It was followed by Piya rose naina lage re (पिया केले नैना लागे रे). It's a difficult song.

Madhura asked for a choice of audience between Sufi and Gazal. Greedy audience refused to choose and demanded both, so couple of Mukhda of each were presented. Gazal was Ghulam Ali's "Awargi (आवारात)". The Sufi song was "Teri deewani (तेरी दीवानी)". It's impossible to match the pitch of Kailash Kher but he did well. Hrishikesh sung these songs from a genre, that I haven't seen him sing much, with dexterity. 

Penultimate song was "Nigahein milane ko jee chahta hai (निगाहें मिलानेको जी चाहता है)". Although Swapnaja sung it technically correctly, the attitude of the original was missing. Final song was "Mauli mauli (माऊली माऊली)". Very meaningful words, excellent composition and the Bhaktiras make this song unique and difficult to replicate the recipe. This song is so good that it makes audience sway even when an average singer sings it. And when Hrishikesh sings it, it becomes a fitting finale for the concert.

It was an excellent concert in first half. Somehow, the break broke the flow. Although second half was good, artists appeared to be interested in wrapping it up. Although all songs were good and liked by the audience, what was missing was theme. There was no theme for the concert. Hence it appeared like a collection of beautiful flowers but not as a bouquet. Chance for improvement?

Al Jaheli theater Is a very good auditorium. Excellent acoustics, spacious, good layout and out of the city, so no parking issues. Stage lighting could have been better. Madhura and one keyboard player were in partial shadow.

Audience left the auditorium with contented smile on their faces and serene expressions. Such a concert gives satisfaction and sense of belonging. Congratulations to MMAD for the same. 

A very good concert.

Yadnesh Raikar (Violin)

 Attended an Indian classical music concert of Yadnesh Raikar (Violin). He was accompanied by Arindam Chakravarty on Tabla. This private concert was organized by ADICM in Abu Dhabi on 25th Aug 2024.

Concert started with Bada khyal. Chosen raag was Raag Lalat (ललत). Lalat is a 4th prahar of night (4am to 7am) raag from Poorvi thaat. 

Yadnesh started on a serene note that instantly touched the audience. Tabla joined-in in about three minutes. A little too early for me considering such fine and delicate serene notes were played. He played first in Vilambit and then in Madhya lay and then in Drut lay (लय). I especially liked the vilambit portion. Yadnesh was immersed in the Raaga and immersed the audience with him. I liked his style of telling Tabalji what lay (लय) he wanted through violine. 

Chota khyal presented by Yadnesh was Raag Bilaskhani Todi. Bilaskhani Todi is a 2nd prahar (9am to 12pm ) raag from Bhairavi thaat. He presented a Bandish ‘Sajani kawan des’ composed by Gaan Saraswati Kishoritai Amonkar.

He then played another Chota Khyal, Rag Hansadwani. Hansadwani is a Carnatic raaga. It is a 2nd prahar (9am to 12pm ) raag of Bilawal thaat. Later he presented a beautiful composition 'Ganapati vighnaharan gajanan' of Gaan Saraswati Kishoritai Amonkar.

Both these Raags were appreciated by the audience and applauded at the right places.

Audience suggested Bhairavi to end the concert but since Yadnesh had presented Bilaskhani todi, he chose to end the concert with Hansadhwani.

Yadnesh performed with his father Milind Raikar for Anubhooti in Abu Dhabi in 2016. Yadnesh was 15 at that time. In last 8 years he has grown and matured as a musician and has become an accomplished young artist. I had goosebumps wile listening to him. I also liked his thehraw (ठरवावं). It felt really satisfying to see his progress. We have a future start in the making.

Arindam ably supported Yadnesh on tabla. Probably they haven't performed together earlier. It was a small but knowledgeable audience encouraging the artists. 

A very good concert.

Saylee Talwalkar (Vocal)

​Attended concert by Saylee Talwalkar. She was accompanied by Bhushan Rao on Tabla and Amit Oak on Harmonium. Abhay Samant on Taal (टाळ). This private concert was organized by Anubhooti in Abu Dhabi on 8th Oct 2023. I attended with friends and family.

This concert was slightly different than usual pure classical Anubhooti concerts. This one was a bouquet of variety of genres to satiate all the tastes of audience because of lack of concert in last three years.

Concert started with Raag Ahir Bhairav (अहिर भैरव). Ahir Bhairav is a Mishra raag with Raag Bhairav in Purvang and Raag Kaafi (काफी) in Uttarang. It belongs to Bhairav thaat (भैरव थाट). It’s known as Chakravakam in Carnatic music. First bandish was Kishiriji’s Nainava Barse sajni (नैनवा बरसे सजनी). Audience applauded twice in this first peshakash. Second one was Albela sajan ayo re (अलबेला सजन आयो रे). Sayali sung the Sargam beautifully.

After the pure classical performance she moved to semi classical with Thumri (ठुमरी) / Dadar (दादरा). Today’s choice was the immortal Rangi sari gulabi (रंगी सारी गुलाबी). Needless to say that audience liked it very much.

After semi classical, it was Bhajan. She presented bhajan penned by Pt. Narendra Sharma, composed by Shrinivas Khale in raag Patdeep (प्रदीप). Sung by Pt. Bhimsen Joshi and Lata Mangeshkar. You guessed it right. Of course it was Baje muraliya baje (बाजे मुरलियाँ बाजे). 

She then presented Abhang Bolawa Vitthal (बोलावा विठ्ठल) composed by Pt. Jitendra Abhisheki and sung by Pt. Jitendra Abhisheki, Prabhakar Karlekar and Kishori Amonkar; separately. At the end of the Abhang when she started the gajar (गजर). Oh! the goose bumps! Some of the audience had tears in their eyes. It was pure bliss!

After the bliss, she presented speciality of Marathi sangeet, Bhavgeet. Written by Nitin Akhwe. Sung by Arati Anklikar-Tikekar. Composed by Shridhar Phadke. Album Tejomay Nadbrahma. Mi Radhika (मी राधिका). Very enjoyable.

She then wanted to present Bhairavi, but audience demanded Natyageet (नाट्यगीत). So she presented a natya geet on public demand.

Concert concluded with a Bhiravi. It was Bhairavi Dadra (भैरवी दादरा) “Sun Yashoda mai dungi duhai, tere Kanhane dhoom machayi (सुन यशोदा मैं दूंगी दुहाई, तेरे कान्हाने धूम मचाई)”.

Audience was starving for good music. Sayali is an accomplished singer. Bhushan and Amit are well known names in UAE music circle. Anubhooti is known for organizing quality concerts without charging any ticket from the audience. The ingredients were all there, the recipe was perfect.

This was an Anubhooti concert after a gap of three years. It was also the first at someone’s home, all previous concerts were in auditoriums. 

All in all, a very satisfactory experience.

Disclosure: I am founder member of Anubhooti.

Amol Nisal (Vocal)

​Attended an Indian classical music concert by Shri. Amol Nisal (Amol Gandharva). He was accompanied by Bhushan Rao on Tabla and Amit Oak on Harmonium. This private concert was organized by ADICM in Abu Dhabi on 29th Oct 2023. I attended with Nandu.

Concert started with Bada khyal. Chosen raag was Raag Lalit (ललित). Lalit is a 4th prahar (3am to 6am) raag from Poorvi thaat. He presented Bandish  ‘Ka se kahun’ in vilambit Ektaal.

Then he presented another Bandish of Pt. Rajan Mishra, “Jane na doongi Kanha” in Madhyalay Ektaal. Bandishes are known more for Gayaki than the lyrics. However, this one has beautiful lyrics and the singing made it even better.

He then presented a special bandish “Sadarang” in Teen taal written by Shankar Abhyankar. The speciality of this bandish is that it’s a tribute to all the famous bandish writers of past.

Chota khyal presented by Amol ji was Raag Shuddha Sarang. Shuddha Sarang is a 2nd prahar (9am to 12 noon) raag from Kalyan thaat. He presented a Bandish of Bade Gulam Ali Khan ‘Beg daraswa dewo saja wa ’ in Teen taal.

On the farmaish of the audience he then presented Raag Jaunpuri. Jaunpuri is a 2nd prahar (9am to 12 noon) raag from Asawari thaat. He presented bandish “Prabhu mohe bharosa” in Teen taal followed by “Payal bajan lagi re” of Bade Gulam Ali Khan. Amol ji honestly informed that this was the first time he was singing Raag Jaunpuri in a mahfil.

Next presentation was a Kabir Bhajan of his Guru Anoop Jalota “Zini re zini”. In this Bhajan he sung one line in various raags. It was a medley of Raag.  Audience loved it. It was a fantastic idea of introducing raags and showing their differences to the audience. Predictably and aptly, medley ended with Bhairavi.

He then presented a Marathi Gazal written by Vaibhav Joshi “Sukhat ahes aikato”. A slow, delicate one.

Concert ended with famous Bhajan sung by Pt. Bhimsen Joshi and Lata Mangeshkar, composed by Srinivas Khale “Baje muraliyan baje”.

Singer was quick to establish rapport with the musicians. As a result their confluence became enjoyable. Amol ji even appreciated the accompanists who form a base for his musical sorties.

Amol ji has a mellifluous voice that has the smell of earth. He covers the entire range effortlessly and sings boldly.

Bhushan on Tabla and Amit on Harmonium complemented the singer very well. They are well known in Abu Dhabi musical circle.

It was a small but knowledgeable audience who applauded the performers at all the right places. Such audience gives real pleasure to the performer.

As confirmed by the organizers, concert started on time. Credit to the organizers and audience considering it was a Sunday morning.

All in all, a satisfactory experience.

Swaralaya: Symphony on strings by Rahul Sharma

​Attended a Indian classical music concert titled “Swaralaya: Symphony on strings” by Rahul Sharma (Santoor). He was accompanied by Mukundraj Deo on Tabla, Avinash Chandrachud on Keyboard, Barkha Sharma on Tanpura. This concert was organized at Emirates International School auditorium, Dubai, on 7th May 2023. I attended with Jayant.

This concert was a tribute to the great Late Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma, Guru and father of Rahul Sharma.

Concert started with Aalap, Jod, Jhala in Raag Rageshwari. This set the tone of the concert. It was followed by two compositions. First in Rupak taal and then a fast one. The section ended with Chakradhar. This section only had Tabla and Tanpura for accompaniment. 

For the second section Avinash joined on Keyboard. Rahul presented Pahadi dhun in light classical. This dhun reminded audience of natural beauty back home and freshened up the mood. He played first in madhya lay and then in drut lay. Avinash mainly played chords. Then Rahul played second dhun. It’s the one on which film song Dholna is based. 

Third section of the concert was Jazz. This was my first time to enjoy Santoor jazz live. The absence of drummer was compensated by Tabla and Keyboard compensated for saxophone. Avinash did very well in this section. I liked this section very much and so did the audience. It was a novelty. Would like to listen to more of it. 

Concert concluded with tribute to Shiv ji with famous Shiv-Hari song ‘Ye kahan aa gaye hum (ये कहॅां आ गए हम)’ from movie Silsila.

It was neatly organized concert with classical, light classical, jazz and film music. There was variety. Technically they played very well. No complaints. But somehow I felt that the soul was missing from the concert. Was it so or it was only I who thought so?

Rahul is a very good Santoor player. He is carrying forward the legacy of his father ably. He doesn’t hesitate to experiment with Santoor. Mukund Raj Deo hails from Banaras and Ajrada gharana and is a well known name in Indian classical music. Avinash Chandrachud has composed background score and music for several films with Vishwajit Joshi. They have also composed the wedding song for latest Hollywood movie Murder Mystery 2. Barkha is Rahul’s wife. She’s a fashion designer, author and classical dancer in addition to being a Tanpura player. 

Since this concert was a tribute to Shiv ji, I was expecting that Rahul will share some anecdotes and memories of his father. That was not to be. His tribute to his father was purely musical. It would have been appreciated either way. 

It is a good auditorium with good acoustics. Concert started half an hour late. 

“Surtaal 3” by Kaushiki Chakraborty, Bickram Ghosh and Rajesh Vaidya

Attended a Indian classical fusion concert titled “Surtaal 3” by Kaushiki Chakraborty (Vocal), Bickram Ghosh (Tabla) and Rajesh Vaidya (Veena). They were supported by Anay Gadgil on keyboard, Arunkumar on drums, Debopriya Chatterjee on flute. This concert was organized at Emirates International School auditorium, Dubai, on 4th March 2023. I attended with Aditi, Sucheeta and Jayant.

Concert started with Saraswati Vandana ‘Aao sajao mandir aaj (आओ सजाओ मंदिर आज)’, a Bandish in Rag Bageshree in Teen taal composed by her father, Pt. Ajay Chakraborty. Everyone excelled. Audience applauded multiple times to the sawal-jawab of all six artists. This start raised the bar for what was to come. While this was going on the curtain started to close. An apparent malfunction! It was a hilarious moment. But rather than getting annoyed Kaushiki and Bickram took it gamely and cracked a couple of jokes about it. A sign of great artists!

Next piece was led by Rajesh. It was a composition of Bickram Ghosh from album Rhythm Scapes. This rhythm riot transposed into ‘Baat chalat nayi chunari rang dari (बात चलत नई चुनरी रंग डारी)’ in my favorite Raag Bhairavi from 1957 movie Rani Roopmati.

Kaushiki (and all others) then presented two compositions. First was ‘Sajanwa kab aaoge (सजनवा कब आओगे)’ in Raag Mishra Pahadi. It’s a slow delicate composition of Kaushiki’s father. She then changed the mood with ‘Rangi Saree Gulabi chunariya re’ (रंगी सारी गुलाबी चुनरिया रे), a Dadra Originally sung by Shubha Gurtu.

That was interval. 

Second half started with ‘Little Krishna’, a composition from Bickram’s album Rhythm Scapes, loosely set on Raag Kalawati. This was a Tabla and Drums jugalabandi. Arun matched Bickram stroke-by-stroke, beat-by-beat. It was a rhythm riot. This was Arun’s show! No wonder Bickram rates him as India’s best drummer. Bickram played some innovative rhythm using his chest and face in sawal-jawab with drums. As if this was not enough, so they got down to sawal-jawab of bol. Sawal-jawab with audience clapping. Completely crazy!

Although it was not rehearsed, Kaushiki honored Farmaish from organizers by singing ‘Salonasa sanjan hai aur main hun’ (सलोनासा सजन है और मैं हूं). Originally sung by Asha Bhosle. 

Then they played a piece called ‘Gokul’ (गोकुल) from new, yet-to-release, album of Bickram and Rajesh. Everyone, except Kaushiki, contributed. Anay excelled with keyboard and drew applause. He is a talented artist. 

Upon audience’s insistent Farmaish Kaushiki sung ‘Yaad piya ki aye (याद पिया की आए)’, a Thumri of Bade Gulam Ali Khan, founder of her Patiala gharana. Her variations of ‘kuuk’ were awesome!

And then the concert ended. I was expecting a predetermined composition to end the concert but they ended it with a farmaish. It appeared like an abrupt end. 

Kaushiki is confluence of the beauty, the music and the beauty of music. Today she was wearing a Sharara and not a Saree. Bickram Ghosh, who recently received Sangeet Natak Acadami award, is a famous percussionist and is known for his innovative ideas and energy. Rajesh is a very well known name in Carnatic music. His Veena is a joy to watch and listen. Although they have performed with each other, this was the first concert of three together. 

Bickram held the concert together and controlled the pace, accelerating and decelerating as per the intended mood. Kaushiki was the soul of the concert. She has an impressive stage presence. Rajesh’s Veena brought an exotic touch to the fusion, giving that something extra, every time. Debopriya, Anay and Arun had a Herculean task of standing up these three stalwarts and complimenting them. They did admirably well. 

It was a rare occasion where Tabla was at the center and vocalist on the left. Bickram was sitting between Rajesh and Kaushiki. He was blocking line of sight (an essential element) between Rajesh and Kaushiki. He should have been little behind forming an arc rather than line. 

The graphics and focus lights behind the artists gave a mystic touch to the atmosphere but at the same time robbed the audience of clear photo opportunities.

All in all, it was an enjoyable concert.