Concert on March 8th by forum member Thatwamasi

coolkarni · Post by **coolkarni** » 01 Feb 2008, 05:57

Ganesh Athreyaa - Flute Recital

Accompanists

Padma Shankar - Violin
B.Sivaraman - Mridangam
B.Srisunderkumar - Khanjira.

The concert will be an all Syama Sastri concert and the venue is Jaya Mathuram Meditation Hall.Its in a lane off Desika Road. I shall confirm the address and route map shortly.

Ganesh Anthreya is a member here with an ID : Thatwamasi

gobilalitha · Post by **gobilalitha** » 01 Feb 2008, 06:25

under general discussionsm there is a thread CONCERT ON MARCH8TH BY KOOLKARNI,.immediately i felt very happy that our veteran has started giving performances, then only I saw that the concert is byGaNesh Atreya, our forumite, wish him all the best. also wish for a concert by coolkarni gobilalitha

coolkarni · Post by **coolkarni** » 01 Feb 2008, 08:06

That was a good one !
Reminds me of a Laurel and Hardy Movie where Hardy is singing a Lullaby (quite sweetly, though) and the baby is blissfully going to sleep.
Laurel, unable to hold himself back, joins in and starts singing.And he is so sincere in his efforts.
That must have lasted for just a couple of seconds and the baby wakes up howling.
I am one of a kind- Neighbours Horror -Owners Pride

:D
I will now request the mods to change the Title to
Concert on March 8th by forum member Thatwamasi

On a serious note we are contemplating a series of such concerts too.I will be inviting V Shivranjini (disciple of Sankaree Krishnan) (ranjini 33 here) to give the next one.Looking forward to featuring as many as possible. Forumites willing to perform for us, please contact me over email.We are not rushing this though.
Trying to Mix this up with our regular series and with some some Hindusthani concerts too , for 2008.

coolkarni · Post by **coolkarni** » 01 Feb 2008, 08:18

BTW
this is a comeback concert of sorts for Ganesh- Though he is too young to be making a comeback.But that only indicates how early he started ( I have heard him as a 7 year boy) .
it has taken a lot of persuasion to make him choose to perform again.
It will be wonderful if members come in good numbers to wish him the best.

vasanthakokilam · Post by **vasanthakokilam** » 01 Feb 2008, 08:25

I will now request the mods to change the Title to Concert on March 8th by forum member Thatwamasi

Done.

vijay · Post by **vijay** » 01 Feb 2008, 11:17

All the best to Thathwamasi! I will definitely be there if I am in town

thathwamasi · Post by **thathwamasi** » 01 Feb 2008, 22:38

Thank you to everyone in the forum who have supported me.

A special thanks to coolji for being such a great inspiration for me. Hoping to meet you all there.

T

Nick H · Post by **Nick H** » 05 Mar 2008, 22:36

A remionder for the full address details and directions please.

This is Desika Road that comes out on Luz Church Road by the Prestige Shop?

rbharath · Post by **rbharath** » 05 Mar 2008, 22:52

my attending the programme is not assured. have a function at home.

i wish to be excused, if i cant make it that day.

sureshjm · Post by **sureshjm** » 05 Mar 2008, 23:05

i can be there too

Nick H · Post by **Nick H** » 05 Mar 2008, 23:35

rbharath, what happens if we don't excuse you?

rbharath · Post by **rbharath** » 05 Mar 2008, 23:41

nick, if you dont excuse me, i would still not be able to come. however i would feel bad for not being excused.
oh come on, i dint know our group is SO mean to not excuse some genuine reasons...

vijay · Post by **vijay** » 06 Mar 2008, 01:53

Excuse me too...am in Mumbai. Thathwamasi all the best!

coolkarni · Post by **coolkarni** » 06 Mar 2008, 06:14

The venue for the concert on 08th is Jayamadhuram, a meditation hall for Pujyasri Mathioli Saraswathy. The address is door no 7, Desika Road, Alwarpet, Chennai 18.

Once we enter Desika Road near Trinity Hospital, we need to pass 2 or 3 buildings and then we will find a very small lane on the left. This building can be found in that lane. We begin the concert by 06.30 pm.

Please come in good numbers.Thanks in advance.

coolkarni · Post by **coolkarni** » 06 Mar 2008, 06:15

BTW
The Concert will be a "Shyama Sastri "Special .

thathwamasi · Post by **thathwamasi** » 06 Mar 2008, 10:56

Once we enter Desika road near trinity hospital, cross two or thre buildings and there will be a small lane. This lane is almost invisible, so please look carefully to find the lane. This lane ends in a two storeyed building. This hall is located in the first floor of this building. So, all one needs to do is to find this lane on desika road and hit the last building on this lane.

Vijay - Thank you so much.

T

mantra · Post by **mantra** » 06 Mar 2008, 11:20

What time is the concert?

thathwamasi · Post by **thathwamasi** » 06 Mar 2008, 16:51

06.30 pm

Thanks
T

Nick H · Post by **Nick H** » 06 Mar 2008, 18:23

rbharath, and others... I suppose, in that case we will just have to excuse you, and welcome you back for the next event!

Thank you for the directions, I know the road, but would never have thought to look for a small lane. Now I should find it without trouble.

sankirnam · Post by **sankirnam** » 06 Mar 2008, 20:44

wish I could be there, all the best!

cmlover · Post by **cmlover** » 06 Mar 2008, 23:00

Nick
Leaving excuses aside, this is an opportunity for you to accompany on the Morsing!
We will excuse you even if it is not all that perfect

I am sure coolkarni will obliige!

rshankar · Post by **rshankar** » 07 Mar 2008, 01:47

Good Luck thathwamasi!

Kji and Co: have fun! We will depend on you for our vicarious enjoyment.

rajeshnat · Post by **rajeshnat** » 07 Mar 2008, 14:08

thatwamasi
Sorry I will not be there ,I am out of town on Sat and Sun.

Cool,
Can this be considered as our first concert this year after 11 great concerts last year.

Nick H · Post by **Nick H** » 07 Mar 2008, 17:07

cmlover, I am a long way away from accompanying at professional level.

Even when I was playing regularly in London my ego was kept nicely in check by occasionally stepping into musical water too deep for me.

Now, if we have regular jam sessions, and I take some lessons this year, then next year might be a possibility.

Thank you for your encouragement

sbala · Post by **sbala** » 08 Mar 2008, 22:46

Thatwamasi - That was a great performance. There's no way anyone could have guessed that you had taken a break. Best wishes for the future.

thathwamasi · Post by **thathwamasi** » 08 Mar 2008, 23:30

<sbala> Thank you so much. Goddess's Grace!!!

Thanks
T

meena · Post by **meena** » 09 Mar 2008, 01:35

sbala
do pl. provide us the song list.

Nick H · Post by **Nick H** » 09 Mar 2008, 02:05

It was a delightful concert. Certainly, as commented, no sign of that break.

One of the best things about this concert was that there was not a mic in sight. Utterly acoustic.

OK, it is a shame that it didn't get recorded, of course, but even if we use mics for that, do lets leave the amp and speakers out again next time, please.

It was such a pleasure to hear the music as it actually is, straight from the instruments, the musicians able to balance themselves.

Of course, to some extent the possibility of this depends on the chosen venues, but here's hoping

Words for the accompanists. Padma Shankar, whose playing I have enjoyed before, was unobtrusively supportive, but also strong in her own contributions.

Sivaraman and Srisundarkumar played together like brothers. I love that feather touch on the kanjira, and just everything Sivaraman played, Srsundarkumar was right there with it.

The Thani was a good length too. Long enough to be a real contribution to the concert, but by nowhere near too long. Repeating myself: the interaction between the players was magic.

Just one complaint. I wanted another two or three items ---at least

coolkarni · Post by **coolkarni** » 09 Mar 2008, 06:56

As someone who had been goading Ganesh to play for sometime now,(and never heard him in a formal performance before) I must say that he has arrived .
It was a beautiful and soothing performance.
I normally compare Flute performances to rail journeys-predictability of ragas krithis (like stations enroute) , an overbearing rythm aspect (like the constant rythmic sounds from the railway track), a single quick movement bringing about an ecstatic Wow !(an image that arrives at the window side in a flash and vanishes-say like the lonely road stretching out against the backdrop of a golden sunset and a lonely farmer returning home with his pair of bullocks)

But this was pure meditation.Ganesh took some time to find his fingers moving about surely , but he does have that ability to reach out to ones heart directly.

Lovely performance.Amba Kamakshi(Bhairavi) Palinchu Kamakshi(madhyamavathi) , Parvathi Ninnu (Kalgada) ,Ninnuvina (Poorvi Kalyani - this alpana was a classic), Sankaree (saveri) ,not in that order though.I must have missed one krithi here.
Padma Shankar's violin was immensely sweet and powerful.I reached a stage where nothing more was expected of the artist.An absolutely graceful presence on the stage , in the hoary tradition of T Rukmini.
Mridangam and khanjira ....I enjoyed it thoroughly (but must confess I understand little).I could discern a bit of TK Murthys style popping out (when it starts looking like a African drum beat in places) and a bit of Raja Rao style when the climax is ushered in.But I could be wrong.
I will have a 5 minute camcorder clip uploaded later , but the concert was recorded on a mp3 recorder.will surely come up here.
As Nick said, accoustics was great.We did not have the distractions of a videographer.
Rajesh - Yes we start 2008 with this one but I will need more planned attendance , if I have to retain the enthusiasm to continue.

ram · Post by **ram** » 09 Mar 2008, 12:26

It was a nice concert. thathwamasi and the team of musicians played very well. thathwamasi never looked out of touch as he had claimed. The talented artists, the choice of Shyama Sastri kritis, the chamber music atmosphere and a mic-less setting contributed to a very enjoyable experience.

Nick H · Post by **Nick H** » 09 Mar 2008, 12:42

Padma Shankar's violin was immensely sweet and powerful.

Absolutely. I really did notice the supportive quality of her playing. I wanted to say more, though, but could not find the words.

Rajesh - Yes we start 2008 with this one but I will need more planned attendance , if I have to retain the enthusiasm to continue.

I do hope this does not mean that he enthusiasm is dying away. Even if its only you and me (and I unavoidably missed a couple last year) I'd rather share the cost of those concerts than attend a dozen during the season. But of course its not about money; its about artists having an appreciative audience.

thathwamasi · Post by **thathwamasi** » 09 Mar 2008, 12:46

Thanks everyone.

Here is the complete song list.

Sankari Sankuru - Saveri - Adi (3) R S
Mayamma - Nattaikurinji - Adi - R
Parakela - Kedaragaulai - Adi
Ninnuvina - purvikalyani - Viloma Chapu - R S
Kamakshi Amba - Bhairavi - M.Chapu
Parvathi Ninnu - Kalgada - Adi (3)
Palinchu Kamakshi - Madhyamavathi - Adi RST
Mayamma - Ahiri - Adi.

Nick H · Post by **Nick H** » 09 Mar 2008, 17:41

Kool,

I'm glad it did get recorded. I couldn't help noticing those dire words Low Battery on the vcr over your shoulder, right at the start of the concert. Perhaps a blessing in disguise: having to hold the thing and manage it is such a distraction. I used to dread my guruji giving me his camera and asking me to film a concert...

I never thought about it before, but I guess I sort of know what you mean about the typical flute concert. It seems to be an instrument that lends itself to tricks and stuff, and some very famous players have left me feeling I just witnessed an evening of light music. Not that I can't enjoy a little lightness!

However, I would have liked a thillana! Especially given the strength of the rhythm section. Perhaps you'll cry, oh no!

bilahari · Post by **bilahari** » 09 Mar 2008, 19:20

The songlist looks excellent. Thathwamasi, congrats on a job well done and best wishes for the future. Excuse my ignorance, but what is viloma chapu? And might we have audio clippings if the concert was indeed successfully recorded?

thathwamasi · Post by **thathwamasi** » 09 Mar 2008, 19:42

Nick - Since, it was a syama sastri only concert, I couldn't play a thillana as he never composed one.

Bilahari - Viloma Chapy technically is as same as misra chapu (7 beats). But where the thalam begins and ends are different. M.chapu is 'tha ki ta tha ka di mÃ'and V.Chapu is ''tha ka di mi tha ki ta''. Syama sastri is an expert in that thalam and basically V.Chapu is rendered at a higher pace than M.Chapu.

A friend of mine has also made a few videos. Will upload shortly.

cmlover · Post by **cmlover** » 09 Mar 2008, 20:37

Fine song selection. It will be a thrill to listen to SS melody through the Flute. Interesting to note both the mayammas with a sharp contrast. And did you finish on Ahiri rather than the madhyamavati? Pl post the audio as and when you can....

thathwamasi · Post by **thathwamasi** » 09 Mar 2008, 21:20

<cmlover> Yeah - Both Mayamma's are of sharp contrast to each other. I finished the concert with Ahiri. Actually Syama Sastri has written one mangala kriti in Sri Raagam which I haven't managed to learn. And more so, since I played madhyamavathi as main, I didnt wanna play Sri back to back. I wanted to play Brovavamma in Manji, but somehow it slipped my mind.

T

cmlover · Post by **cmlover** » 09 Mar 2008, 22:11

Next time perhaps, with coolkarni's courtesy!
We will be waiting for the audio (hungry of course) after we hear the ahiri

Nick H · Post by **Nick H** » 09 Mar 2008, 23:52

Nick - Since, it was a syama sastri only concert, I couldn't play a thillana as he never composed one.

Well, If I had hadn't shown my ignorance, I could never have learnt that!

Sorry and Thank you.

vasanthakokilam · Post by **vasanthakokilam** » 10 Mar 2008, 01:12

thathwamasi : Congratulations. That sounds like a great concert. Great song list. As mentioned by others, I am looking forward to the audio upload by Kji. Kji, thanks.

thathwamasi, this is a good opportunity to tell us about yourself on the musical side, who your guru is, when you started learning and other relevant background. Thanks.

cmlover · Post by **cmlover** » 10 Mar 2008, 06:41

I can understand the enthusiasm of VK who is an amateur Flautist!
Asa fellow member, dear thathvamasi, we would all appreciate your training background and techniques as well as CM expertise, if you may share them with us as time permits. For example that brief discussion of Viloma Chapu was quite educational!

Even a short lecdem will be most exciting! Thanks in advance...

bilahari · Post by **bilahari** » 10 Mar 2008, 08:30

Thathwamasi, thanks for the info on v. chapu. Can't wait for the audio!

vainika · Post by **vainika** » 10 Mar 2008, 09:02

I'm sorry to have missed this program, and really hope there will be other opportunities - both formal and informal - to listen to Thathwamasi!

mantra · Post by **mantra** » 10 Mar 2008, 10:34

The hall was cool and quiet, very peaceful atmosphere. Thatwamasi flute was excellent, didnt look like he was performing after a break. mikeless concerts are very good especially for chamber music. Wish we could have started atleast by 6 pm.
had to leave after purvi kalyani as my daughter was getting restless.
Shyam

thathwamasi · Post by **thathwamasi** » 10 Mar 2008, 23:03

VasanthaKokilam - Here is a small intro about myself.

My dad is an ardent ardent fan/devotee of Flute Mali and hence I have been listening to Mali since the time I was in my mom's womb. As a kid I learnt the basics of carnatic music near my home in a casual manner. When I was 12, I some how developed love for the flute and laid my hands on a small flute and started exploring it. And with in a few months I started playing a few varnams on my own. My dad then decided to teach flute formally. I did try learning from a few flautists but for some or the other reason it didnt work out all that well. However, I started playing concerts from when I was 15. Pallavi Venkatarama Iyer is the flautist from whom I learnt the longest. (8 months). During those times I used to have tremendous Nadaswaram influence in my playing. Then in 1999 when I was 18, I had the good fortune of learning from Vairamangalam Lakshminarayanan Mama for 3 years. That was very fruitful for me and I learnt quite a bit from him.

Then I met a mystical personality accidently in 2001 (from whom I later learnt a lot of other stuff) who asked me some questions about my music which completely changed the way I was looking at music. So much so that in 2002 I decided to quit concert playing completely and play only in temples. So I stuck on to my decision and never played a concert again till now. Then two great things happened in 2006. I met Pujyasri Mathioli Saraswathy (whom I consider as my Guru and Deivam. More info can be found at http://www.mathiolisaraswathy.org) at Her home (who also was present during the concert on March 08th) and since I met Her I have been playing music whenever I meet Her. And the same year I met our Coolji who rekindled my interest by giving me music that I never imagined I will ever get to listen to.

Then beginning of this year, Pujyasri Mathioli. Saraswathy Amma instructed me to start playing concerts again and suggested I can play at Her meditation hall and suggested the Syama Sastri theme.

I hope that answers all the questions and sorry if it was a bit too long.

Thanks
T

ramakriya · Post by **ramakriya** » 10 Mar 2008, 23:30

thatwamasi,

Great to hear about the concert (wow ! what a good list), and more about you too!
Congratulations, and wish you a great musical future!

-Ramakroya

vasanthakokilam · Post by **vasanthakokilam** » 11 Mar 2008, 04:44

thathwamasi, thanks for sharing your background info. Good luck and all the best in your spiritual and musical progress.

rajumds · Post by **rajumds** » 11 Mar 2008, 10:17

Oops.., I had to miss a great concert since I was not in Chennai . Cool, please don't take it as lack of interest. Let's continue what we had done last year.

cienu · Post by **cienu** » 11 Mar 2008, 11:53

Thatwamasi,

Congratulations! I can see a great future ahead for you.

prashant · Post by **prashant** » 11 Mar 2008, 12:21

Very nice to hear your musical and life story Thathwamasi. Best wishes for a bright musical future.