Gaanaamrutham

Attended a concert titled "Gaanaamrutham", performed by local Abu Dhabi artists. This concert was organised by Ragamalika as part of 13th Annual festival 'Swara Raga Sudha 2018' on 4th May 2018 at Sudanese club Abu Dhabi. I attended the concert with Jayant. 

The singers were Raga Mayuri, Shalini Kumar, Poornima Iyetal, Radhika Duggirala, Urmila Santosh, Mruduvani, Divya, Sharanya, Subha Harish. Shriram Sundaram on Mridangam and Sujith Warrier on keyboard accompanied the ladies. 

They presented following songs:

1. 'Jaya jaya swamin' in Raag Nattai and Aadi tal composed by Narayana Theerthar in Sanskrit. 

2.  'Devi Neeye Thunai' in Raag Keeravani and Aadi tal composed by Papanasanm Sivan in Tamil.

3. Kriti 'Ayye methakadinam' in Ragamalika and Aadi taal in Tamil.

4. 'Rakshchu rakshimchu' in Raag Shanmukhapriya and Aadi taal in Telgu.

5. Annammacharya krithi 'Meluko sringara raya' in Malayamarutam in Telgu.

6. Purandaradasa's 'Nara janma badhaga' in Raag Kapi and Aadi taal in Kannada.

7.  Tillana in Raag Hamsanandi and Aadi taal.

8. Purandaradasa's 'Hanumantha deva' in Raag Poorvikalyani in Aadi taal in Kannada.

The concert was supposed to have ended there. But upon request by the organizers, the group sang famous and my favourite 'Bhagyada lakshmi' in Raag Madhyamavati and Aadi taal to conclude the concert. 

If one reads through carefully,  the common theme of the concert was Aadi taal (Aadi talam), which is the most common taal and has Trital as it's twin in Hindustani music. 

All the ladies sang all the songs in chorus. They created good sound waves and positive energy. It was very pleasing to ears and created a divine atmosphere.

These ladies are presenting Gaanaamrutham for last 13 years in the same festival. It's a great achievement and deserves applause. One or two of them were good enough to be given a chance to perform solo. 

It goes without saying that Abu Dhabi has got talent.  

Entertainment rating 8/10 

Shashank Subramanyam (Flute)

Attended flute recital of Kalaimamani Sri. Shashank Subramanyam (Flute). He was accompanied by H. N. Bhaskar (Violin), Jayachandra Rao (Mridangam) and Ojas Adhiya (Tabla). This concert was organised by Ragamalika as part of 13th Annual festival 'Swara Raga Sudha 2018' on 3rd May 2018 at Sudanese club Abu Dhabi. I attended the concert with Jayant. 

Shashankji asked the audience what they would like to hear. Someone from first row suggested (I could not hear) and he started the concert. Concert started with Flute and Violin. Mridangam joined in soon after and shortly Tabla followed suit. 

Second composition was a known composition. Flute and Violin played beautiful solo pieces at the start. Tabla and flute concluded this composition. 

Now it was violin's turn. Bhaskar played with Mridangam. Flute and Tabla then joined in. Then they played in alternating combinations of  Flute-Tabla and Violin-Mridangam. Violinist played very well. Shashankji played very well too. I especially liked when he played alternate notes in komal and teevra octaves seamlessly. It appeared as if two flute players were playing. 

He then gave audience a choice between Raag Nasikabhushani and Dharmavati. Audience chose 70th Melkarta raag  over 59th. So it was Nasikabhushani. He played some very delicate and stable notes and received audience applause. He then played  some solo very fine, fluid and fast as well as slow flute. It was followed with Violin solo. Flute then took over again. There was neither Mridangam nor Tabla for this Raag.

He then presented Tyagaraja composition 'Mara vairi ramani' again in Raag Nasikabhushani.  It has two variations. One in Adi taal and another in Rupak. He chose Rupak taal. Here Violin-Tabla and Flute- Mridangam played in combinations. 

He then presented a short composition in Raag Dhenuka. It wad a beautiful composition and sounded very similar to Bhairavi.

He then presented Raag Mohanam. He played Ragam Tanam Pallavi (RTP). He changed his Flute to a longer one that provided richer tone initially.  This Raag sounded like Bhoop Raag.

He then made a fabulous demonstration. First he played in two octaves alternately and then he played in two octaves simultaneously. Amazing! Don't know how! Tabla and Mridangam joined in for Pallavi 'Mana mohana'. Ojas got some freedom to play during this composition. The crescendo was so good that they got standing ovation. 

It was followed by 'Tani avartanam',  a section designed for the Purcussionists to show their prowess. This time, though it was a Carnatic concert,  it was a rare occasion to watch Mridangam Vs Tabla. Both of them are masters and displayed what they can do given freedom. Paltas of Ojas were very good today. One of them was simply awesome. He won the audience with this brief opportunity.  Both off them merged in Mohra and played Korvai together. Audience clapped with the Percussionists. Rani avartanam came towards the end of concert. 

There was a short break to felicitate the artists. The power went off during felicitation. So the break extended but audience remained. There was dinner after the concert,  which I didn't partake,  as incentive. :) This break was uncalled for and broke the flow of the concert. 

Concert ended with three short compositions played by all the artists together. 

I have heard Shashank earlier in duet concert with Kushal Das. This time it was solo. He is an amazing flutist. He flew from Los Angeles for this concert and was flying back after. 

Violinist sass good and applauded his cci artists. Rap and Ojas were also excellent. 

Every year thus festival is house full. Today the hall was not full. It may be because of a combination of working day and current market situation. The hall has good acoustics.

The stage had a backdrop of a temple. This  is the image of the temple that will be  built in Abu Dhabi and will open in 2020.

A good concert. 

Entertainment rating 8.75/10 

'Tarangini (तरंगिणी)

Attended an instrumental fusion concert titled 'Tarangini (तरंगिणी)' by band 'Shanti fusion (शांती फ्यूजन)' anchored by Dr. Girish Oak (गिरिश ओक) and led by Pt. Yograj (पं. योगराज), disciple of Utd. Shahid Parvez. Pt. Yograj (Sitar), Sargei Gudinho (Base Guitar), Surjit Thali (Tabla), Vishnu Shirodkar (Keyboard) and Santan Carvalho (Octopad ) were the performers. This concert was organised by Maharashtra Mandal Abu Dhabi as part of the Annual General Gathering on 20th April 2018 at Hotel intercontinental, Abu Dhabi. I attended the concert with Thangaokar family, Oka family, Mane family, Patil family and Chitrao family.

Concert started with a small piece in Raag Yaman kalyan (यमन कल्याण). Dr. Girish Oak explained his role in the concert in an interesting way. He said he was the khboos that is needed to eat hummos. The Arabic connection.

The band presented a composition in Raag Jhinjhoti (झिंझोटी). 'Norwegian wood' by George Harrison of Beatles was based on same Raag. They then presented another composition in same Raag and ended with song 'Koi humdrum na raha (कोई हमदम ना रहा)'. Anchor then presented a famous poem of Mangesh Padgaokar 'Tumche Kay gele (तुमचं काय गेलं)'

They next presented a composition in Raag Ahir Bhirav (अहिर भैरव). It had some similarity with Arabic folk and keyboard was the predominant instrument. They continued to song 'Ye sham mastani (ये शाम मस्तानी)' from film Kati Patang. Anchor presented a  week known poem of Kusumagraj 'Prem kar bhilla sarkhe (प्रेम कर भिल्ला सारखं)'

Next composition was based on Raag Hamsadhwani (हंसध्वनी) and continued into song 'Ja tose nahi bolun sanwariya (जा तोसे नाही बोलूं सावरीया). Girishji then presented famous poem of Shankar Vaidya 'Chatri (छत्री)'. 

The band then presented Marathi song 'Konacya khandyawar (कोणाच्या खांद्यावर)' based on Raag Natbhairav (नट भैरव). Girishji then presented a Marathi gazal of Vinda Karandikar titled 'Sathi (साठी)'.

They then presented A.R. Rahman composition 'Tu hi re (तू ही रे)'. Pt. Yograj played this excellent composition, almost without accompaniment, equally well. Wow!  This was the best piece of the concert. Audience demanded 'Once more' but the wish was not granted. Girishji then presented a poem of Mangesh Padgaokar 'Mi tila wicharle (मी तिला विचारलं)'.

They presented another composition on Raag Alhaiya Bilawal (अलहैया बिलावल) and continued into song 'Hum the jinke sahare (हम थे जिनके सहारे)'. Girishji presented his own poem in muktachand 'Pananche prakar (पानांचे प्रकार)'. This was a very good poem and enumerated so many types of pan (leaf) in staccato burst that audience enjoyed it and applauded him. Infact his poem drew more applause than that of great poets. 

They then presented medley in Raag Pilu (पिलू), which is favoured by cinema music, of 'Suramayee akhiyon mein (सूरमयी अखियों में)' and 'Ae jindagi gale lagale (ऐ जिंदगी गले लगाले)'.

Concert ended with a famous composition  based on Raag Tilak kamod (तिलक कमोद) that i have heard before. 

I liked the format of the concert. A Raag based composition followed by a film song based on same Raag so that general audience can connect and identify with it. However, they did not announce the name of all Raags.

Dr. Girish Oak was sort of an odd man out in a instrumental fusion concert. However, he managed his role decently with the help of his wit, poems, presence of mind and his star value. 

Pt. Yograj and Vishnu were outstanding. I would like to listen Yograj play solo classical. Other musicians supported them ably. The coordination between them was noteworthy. 

Audience, however, was not attentive. Some were interested and listened carefully. Others were in festive mood and were chatting in the back rows.  Children were running around. Girishji subtly expressed his displeasure but no avail. If the audience had been keen, out would have turned out to be much more enjoyable. 

A good concert in a wrong setting.

Entertainment rating 8/10 

Kadri Gopalnath (Saxophone)

Attended a concert titled 'Grand saxophone concert' by Dr. Kadri Gopalnath (Saxophone) accompanied by V.V. Ravi (Violin), K.M.S. Mani (Mridangam), Rajendra Nakod (Tabla) & Venkatachalam, a disciple of Kadri Gopalnath on Talam on 6th April 2018. This concert was organised by Consulate general of India, Dubai in association with Indian fine arts, Dubai as part of 'India @ 70'. The concert was in the Indian Consulate auditorium, Dubai & I attended with Jayant & Sameer.

Concert started with a composition of Papanasanam Sivan in raag Tilang (तिलंग). I think it was Sri Ganesh charanam in Adi taal. He then presented a kriti of Tyagaraja. I missed the name. Next was a composition in Raag Hamsadhwani in Rupak taal. Was it Pavanaguru?

He then started next composition without announcing it. Nevertheless, it was good. I think he said it was Raag Senavati. He then played a composition in Raag Dhenuka.

Composition of Tyagaraja in raag that I could not get was the next presentation. Was it Karaharpriya? V.V. Ravi then played a solo piece without accompaniment. It was good. 

This was followed by light music. Audience welcomed it with rhythmic clapping. This section also contained Sawal-Jawab. Tabalji new exactly what Kadriji will play note by note and played Tabla beat-by-note. This is possible only by long association. This was followed by Mridangam solo and Tabla solo alternatively followed by Sawal-Jawab between them. Tabaji played very good relas. Percussionist enthralled the audience with their skills in this section. 

Kadriji then presented a composition of Raag Ahir Bhairav. It was followed by another composition, the name and Raag  was again lost.  It sounded like raag Pilu. It was followed by another composition. He then played a movie song and another composition.

Concert ended with my favourite Bhairavi and to to it up famous and another favorite of mine 'Bhagyada Lakshmi'. Needless to say there was a long standing ovation.

Kadriji plays every note very clearly but does not speak clearly. He mumbles. So it was difficult for someone like me, who does not know Carnatic music and raags, to catch and understand words. So if I have written name of some raag wrongly, kindly excuse.

Tabla and Mridangam accompaniment (together) is not very common in Carnatic music concerts.  Here we had that combination. The effect was excellent. V.V. Ravi played very well and supported the main instrument aptly. Kadriji plays very well, we all know it. To see him play was an opportunity. Concert lasted more than two hours. 

Credit to consulate for starting the  program at 7.30 sharp. Although consulate has a good auditorium, the seats are not fixed, chairs were placed. It's not a  sloping arrangement, so people at the back could not see the artists seated on stage clearly. It is not a wonder that there was a full house. Additional chairs were placed and yet some were standing. These are real rasiks. Attendance was more than 375.

Sound system and acoustics of the auditorium were excellent. Volume of Tabla should have been a bit low, at times it masked finer notes of main instrument.

Saxophone and Violin Are western instruments now well entrenched in Indian classical music. Idea of playing Carnatic music on Saxophone is exotic. Watching such a concert live is rare. Watching this living legend perform is bliss. We enjoyed it thoroughly. It was worth the 300 km travel. 

Entertainment rating 9/10 

Amjad Ali Khan (Sarod)

Attended a concert of titled 'The Sarod  master: Amjad Ali Khan'. Ustad Amjad Ali Khan (Sarod) was accompanied by Vijay Ghate (Tabla) and Sridhar Parthasarthy (Mridangam) on 25th March 2018 in Emirates Palace auditorium. This concert was part of Abu Dhabi festival 2018 presented and organized by ADMAF. I attended the concert with Jayant.

A beacon of cross cultural understanding, Abu Dhabi festival 2018 unites, empowers and inspires humanity. Each year Abu Dhabi festival brings audiences together to share unique experiences that testify to our shared humanity and deep bonds we share.

The word Sarod comes from Persian word Sarood which means melody. Sarod is a present day modification (made by Ustadji's ancestor) of the Rabab, a folk instrument from central Asia. The Sarod has a steel fingerboard and a belly covered with goat skin. Over this are placed 19 strings, 11 out of them are not played directly. The body is made of teak.

Amjad Ali Khan is sixth generation musician from Senia Bangash gharana. His sons continue the tradition. 

Concert started with a melody as homage and tribute to Sheikh Zayed, founding father of U.A.E. it was a composition played in Arab style and lasted for about 7 minutes.

He then presented Raag Durga (दुर्गा) in 16 beats. It is a very famous composition and lasted another 7 minutes.

Amir Khusru, 13th century Sufi poet, created 'Tarana (तराना)' a form of singing that does not require language or words. Ustadji presented two Taranas. First one in Raag Telang (तेलंग) in 9 1/2 beats. Second was in Raag Bahar (बहार) in 16 beats.

He then played a composition in Raag Darbari (दरबारी) in tritaal. It was followed by a folk based composition of Rabindranath Tagore, the very famous, 'Ekla chalo re (एकला चालो रे)'.

 He then played Melody in Raag Charukeshi (चारूकेशी). It comes from Carnatic music. It had Jugalbandi of Tabla and Mridangam. It also included Sawal-Jawab. Both of them displayed fine percussion. Parthasarathy was too good. Concert ended with a three way Jugalbandi and three way Sawal-Jawab.

Ustadji thanked Abu Dhabi government for agreeing to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's request to build a temple in Abu Dhabi.

Concert started 40 minutes late. It was a short concert that lasted about one hour without a break. 

Emirates Palace auditorium is a beautiful and spacious auditorium that seats around 800 to 900. It had excellent acoustics. However, volume of Purcussionists was on lower side. Photography was not allowed in the auditorium, so no photos of the program.

The concert was probably designed for non Indian audience (Although most of the audience was Indian) with short  compositions rather than traditional Bada Khyal and Chota Khyal. The build up,  the development,  the peeling of layers of Raag and it's rendition, aalap, jod, jhala was missing. 

So although it was a good performance, I did not feel content at the end of concert.

Entertainment rating 6.5/10.

Sukhan (सुख़न)

Attended a concert of titled 'Sukhan (सुख़न)'. Jaydeep Vaidya, Mukta Joshi, Abhijit Dhere (Vocals), Ketan Pawar (Tabla), Mandar Bagade (Dholak & Sarangi), Devendra Bhome (Harmonium), Apoorva Petkar (Harmonium and Santoor) Nachiket Deosthali and Om Bhutkar (Anchoring and Shero-Shayri). The concert was organized by  Maharashtra Mandal Abu Dhabi and ISC at ISC, Abu Dhabi on 1st Mar 2018. I attended the concert with Aditi, Mihika, Sucheeta, Jayant, Prakash, Swati, Vijay, Jyoti, Sameer, Rucha and Pooja.

It was a program that can be termed as a melange of Urdu Shero-Shayri, Stories, Poetry, Gazal, Najm and Hindustani music.

Concert started with song 'O husna (ओ हुस्ना)' that explores similarities between Pakistan and Hindustaan. 

Om Bhutkar and Nachiket Deosthali then presented some Sher (शेर) and narrated an interesting story of a Deemak (दीमक) and it's commentary on Urdu Shayari written by Mujtaba Hussain. Nachiket narrated a good Hindi Gazal.

Mukta presented 'Aapki yaad aati rahi raatbhar (आपकी याद आती रही रातभर )'. Om and Nachiket presented more Shero-Shayri.

Jaydeep and Abhijit presented a qawwali 'Hai kahanka irada (है कहाॅका ईरादा)' and 'Janejan dil dukhana buri baat hai (जानेजां दिल दुखांना बुरी बात है). That was interval. 

Mukta started post interval session with Abeeda Parveen's very famous 'Chhap Tilak (छाप तिलक)'. It's not an easy song. Her's was a softer version as compared to Abeeda.

Jaydip and Om then presented 'Sare jahan se accha' in an interesting confluence of prose and song. Om and Nachiket engaged audience in more Shayri. Nachiket then sung a song with only tanpura to accompany. 

Jaydeep presented Sargam followed by 'Raat bhi neend bhi (रात भी निंदा भी)' with only tanpura to accompany. Om narrated Magloob Poonawala's gazal. Nachiket presented Jan Nisar Akhtar's gazal 'In jakhmonse sharmaye Kya (इन जख्मोंसे शरमाए क्या)' followed by his Nazm 'Dhundle saye (धुंदले साएॅ)' presented by Om.

Program ended with a qawwali 'Sadgiko hamari jara dekhiye (सादगीको हमारी जरा देखिए)' by Abhijit and supported by other two singers. There was a very long applause that did not die easily as well as standing ovation at the end. 

They presented compositions of Nida Fazli, Allama Iqbal, Amir Khusru, Faiz Ahmed Faiz, Mirza Galib, Sahir Ludhianvi, Javed Akhtar, Magloob Poonawala etc.

Om and Nachiket's passion for Shayri was evident and they did a good job of holding the program together. Their diction was very good. It was also Om's 27th birthday. 

It was first time I saw an artist (Mandar) playing a string instrument and percussion instrument in a concert. He was very good. 

Stage and seating arrangement was good with anchors in center, singers on either side, Purcussionists behind and Harmonium wallas elevated in two corners. However, elevation of Purcussionists should have been increased as most of the time they were obscured by the artists in front. 

Sound system was flawless. Lighting was mostly realized with focus or spot lighting. Entire stage was lit for very limited time. 

There was a melancholy of regressing Urdu in India in this program and also its celebration. It reminded me a statement made by Aatish Taseer in one of his book where he argues that with partition, India handed over Urdu to Pakistan whereas more people spoke Urdu in India than Pakistan. 

It was a very off the track program. It not only demonstrated the various aspects of Urdu but also was a step in preserving and revitalizing the receding language. The program has created it's own niche. Artists deserve an applause for the effort. 

Entertainment rating 8.5/10.

The magic of fusion - Vikku Vinayakram

Attended a concert of titled 'The magic of fusion'. Team Saptakshara was lead by Vikku Vinayakram (Ghatam), U. Rajesh (Mendolin) and Selvaganesh Vinayakram (Kanjira / Drums). They were accompanied by N. Ramakrishna (Mridangam), Umashankar Vinayakram (Ghatam), Mahesh Vinayakram (Vocal), Pravin Narayanaswami (Tabla), A. Ganeshan (Morsing), N. Rajaraman (Gethu vadyam) and Swaminathan Selvaganesh (Kanjira). The team had three generations of Vinayakram family. 

The concert was organized by Asthika Samaj events at ISC, Abu Dhabi on 8th Feb 2018. I attended the concert with Jayant. The concert was publicized as once in a life time experience. 

An AV, a song (Guruvandana) on U. Srinivas, the Mandolin maestro, was played before the concert started. Vikkumama (75) received a warm standing ovation when he made an appearance on stage. 

Rajesh, Umashankar, Pravin and Ramakrishnan started the concert with Ganapati prayer 'Vatapi Ganapati (वातापी गणपती)' in Raag Hamsadhwani (हंसध्वनी).  I have heard this song many times. This was a different rendition. 

Selvaganesh and Mahesh joined in for a song sung by Mahesh. Since I don't understand the language, the words were lost on me. 

'Love within' composed by U. Srinivas was the next peshkash. Sawal-Jawab in this section were very good. Ramakrishnan then played solo. Umashankar then attached pickup mic to a stack of three paper cups and played on them with Selvaganesh. He then continued with Ghatam solo. This Ghatam performance sounded very sweet. He even played Ghatam from inside. Now it was Pravin's turn to play solo.  He played a number of Tukdas. It is not easy to play with stalwarts but he did well and created a small niche for himself. 

This was interval. Audience was getting restless as the main attraction was still missing. 

Vikkumama, Selvaganesh, Ganeshan, Rajaraman and Swaminathan started after interval. Vikkumama played with four Ghatams. It was like Ghatam tarang. They played 'Shiv Tandav (शिव तांडव)'.

Selvaganesh then demonstrated language of rhythm. He involved audience in the game of rhythm and made his point. He and his son presented vocal syllable beat. Ganeshan played Morsing solo beautifully. I did not know that so many sounds can come out of Morsing. Rajaraman then played Ghetu vadyam (I hope i have got the spelling right) solo. This curious instrument looks like a Tanpura, but is kept horizontal and played with sticks like Santoor. There are only two musicians in India who have kept this tradition alive.

Vikkumama them played Ghatam tarang. His dexterity, variations and demonstration of finer nuances won the audience. He made audience clap to the rhythm. Audience got so immersed that after one point of time there was no need to guide them. The claps came in rhythm volunterely. He got another standing ovation. 

Same ensemble then played another piece followed by solo Kanjira of Swaminathan followed by Selvaganesh solo. Selvaganesh then played sound of train in normal coach, in AC coach, on bridge, in a tunnel etc. on Kanjira.

All the artists who went away after interval, returned on the stage for final composition. It was a composition in Aaditaal (आदी ताल) and Raag Sindhubhairavi (सिंधू भैरवी). Although this was also good, it did not reach the peak. 

This ensemble was a family affair. Except Rajesh and Pravin all others were from the same family. What a talented family!

It soared as of these were two different concerts. One before interval and one after with Selvaganesh being the common thread. Thus it did not appear homogeneous. 

It was an event where entry was only by invitation. This ensured that only the really interested were present. The auditorium has a capacity of 1000, but it was only half filled. 

Organizers had announced that concert will start at 7 pm sharp. But it started 45 minutes late. Was it because of lack of audience (working day) or something else?

Once during the first half of concert, the microphone emitted a shrill noise. Rajesh, who also anchored the first half, showed presence of mind by taking the opportunity to introduce the sound engineer and thanking him for reminding. Vikkumama's ear piece kept troubling him in the second half that was anchored by Selvaganesh.

Umashankar's hilarious moves, Rajesh's presence of mind, conductor Selvaganesh, legend Vikku, rhythmic clapping of audience & very good music by all the players. These were the highlights of the show. 

It was a good concert. It was a special occasion to watch the legend Vikku Vinayakram. But I left with a feeling that there was not enough of Vikkumama.

Thanks to Asthika Samaj for bringing a rare program to Abu Dhabi. It gave me a chance to watch Vikku Vinayakram live.

Entertainment rating 8.5/10.