Carnatic International

It felt nice inside when I came across this write-up on the BBC about Patrick Ngcobo, a South African who came down passionate about South India's classical music and learnt music from Yesudas. [article]

As a child growing up in Calicut, I remember being amazed along with many friends, neighbours and elders, by a musician called Isabella Clinquart (I forget the spelling, I was very little) who performed an hour long carnatic music concert at the annual Tyagaraja Aradhana. Wonder what became of her.

John Higgins has to be one of the most well known and most loved of all non-Indian musicians who learnt and performed carnatic music with so much commitment. (He was born in Masachussets, US, and not in England like I had earlier thought.) I still try and close my eyes when I listen to him. The accent is hardly discernable.

Remarkable people.

Bharatiyar on Velavan

Some songs are timeless. Subrahmanya Bharati's villinai otta puruvamazhai tannai vElavA is one such for me. It is easy to listen to MSS's version of it over and over. Despite having learnt it, I am still trying to identify the name of the rAgam.

It appears to have the ArOhaNam and avarOhaNam of a kAkaLi niSAdam version of suDhaDhanyAsi along with chatuSruti dhaivatam in its avarOhaNam.

[Listen]

North of the Vindhyas

For any Hindustani music technicality on rAgas, rAginis and thAts, I now refer to Swarganga and Sangeeth Research Academy.

Haiku: Carnatic Music Season

My colleague Liz conducted a haiku workshop last year and these were the ones I came up with her encouragement.

rAgam tANdavam

Extremely captivating. It seems like a kAkaLi niSAdam counterpart of valaci (sa ga pa dha ni sa). Not sure if I am missing a ri. Heard it for the first time in a Sanjay Subrahmanyan kacheri. Composition by Dandapani Desikar

[Listen ]