Sunday, January 12, 2020
4:00 pm - 7:00 pm
Warm Springs Community Center
47300 Fernald St, Fremont, CA 94539

Event Highlight

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Performers:

Gaurav Rajan Veena Solo (student of Smt. Anuradha Sundar)
Kaashyap Balaji (student of Sri. Anil Narasimha)
Pranav Satyadeep (student of Sri Paduka Academy)
Preetika Ashok (student of Smt. Vasudha Ravi)
Rajeev Devanath (student of Sri Paduka Academy)

  Special performances by Alumni to celebrate 11th Anniversary:
Geeta Shankar (student of Sri. Neyveli Santhanagopalan)
Kaushik Hariharan (student of Smt Jayanthi Umesh)
Priyanka Chary & Hrishikesh Chary veena (student of Sri Srikanth Chary)
SanjaySriram Garimella flute solo (student of Sri. Ashwin Krishnakumar)
Shrikrishna & Shrikanth Shivakumar vocal duet (student of Sri. Neyveli Santhanagopalan)
Ajay Gopi (mrudangam) (student of Sri Gopi Lakshminarayanan)
Srivatsan Tennathur (mrudangam) (student of Dr. T V Gopalakrishnan)
String accompanists: Aishwarya Anand (student of Smt. Anuradha Sridhar)
Ananya Devanath (veena) (student of Sri. Srikanth Chary)
Aparna Ganapathi Basavapatna  (student of Smt Sandhya Srinath)
Vaishnavi Ravinutala (veena) (student of Smt Anuradha Sundar)
Mrudangam accompanists:

Anirudh Rao (student of Sri. Srinath Bala)
Sachin Venkat (student of Sri. KV Gopalakrishnan)
Shreyas Balaji (student of Sri. Ravindrabharathy Sridharan)
Sriram Subramanian  (student of Sri. Tiruchur Narendran)
Vivek Arvind  (student of Sri. Ganesh Ramanarayanan)

 

Dear members,

Happy MakaraSankaraanthi to all our member families! It was indeed a gratifying Eleventh anniversary event Sunday and thank you all for joining us.

 

We had a total of 10 performances, 5 by our current K-12 students and 5 by our alumni students (who are in college or beyond), all of which received well deserved applause for their performances, from our ever encouraging audience. Kaashyap’s auspicious start and Thiruppavai, Rajeev’s brilliant Begada, Pranav’s impactful Shankarabaranam, Gaurav’s superb rendition of Simhendra Madhyamam and Preetika’s RTP in 11th Melakartha Kokilapriya added more festivity to the event. All the accompanists including Vaishnavi whom we introduced on the veena, did a great job supporting their respective performers, kudos to each of them.

 

Since Alumni will be our focus in 2020, we showcased 9 alumni students (Hrishikesh, Priyanka, Ajay, Sanjay, Geeta, Kaushik, Shrikrishna, Shrikanth and Srivatsan) in our January event, and all of them did a fabulous job presenting 11th (Rudra) Chakra ragams. Each one made it crisp yet power packed and it was refreshing to hear them after a long time. Some of the alumni students had just returned from India and it was incredible how they pulled off the performances while still in jetlag J We are also planning a grand Alumni show in July 2020 with a LOT of our alumni, please stay tuned for more details.

 

We acknowledged the students who attended all monthly events in 2019 as Gold Circle winners and those who attended all but one event earned Silver Circle recognition. Our hearty congratulations to both groups of students, and the lists are posted on our CCC’s FaceBook page (we encourage you to like the page if you haven’t already done so!).

 

Our sincere thanks to our core volunteer team for helping with all of the event day logistics, rain or shine, sick or well! I’m sure you’ll enjoy what’s below!

Pictures from the Pictures from the event (courtesy of Murali S.)     (courtesy of Murali S.)   

Video excerpt from the event (courtesy of Vidya A)

 

Many thanks to the parents who helped with setup, cleanup, logistics and special thanks to Radha Lakshmikanthan, Akila Shankar, Gomathy Gopi, Jayashree Sunder, Nithya Ashok, and Anitha Murthy for providing snacks/tea to our volunteers.

 

Please save February 16th Sunday (4pm to 7pm) for our next event at the Warm Springs Community Center and your favorite emcee Mohan will run the show as I’ll be India then.

 

Go 49ers!

Regards,

Padma Mohan

 

Comments

  • Carnatic Chamber Concerts – January 2020 CCC Event
    Authored By: Anirudh Ramadurai, Pranav Satyadeep, Prahlad Saravanapriyan, Shreya Virunchipuram, and Mahathi Shankarram

    The first CCC program of the new year commenced with a vocal performance by Kaashyap Balaji, accompanied by Vaishnavi Ravinutala on the veena and Shreyas Balaji on the mridangam. Kashyap began the performance in his bright voice with a composition of Shri Mysore Vasudevacharya, ‘Varalakshmi Namosthute,’ in the ragam Gowrimanohari, set to Rupakam Thalam. Kashyap’s rendition of this krithi was meticulous with clear pronunciation, very nice raga bhavam, and steady kala pramanam. Vaishnavi’s veena faithfully shadowed Kashyap’s voice and was a treat to listen to. Following the krithi in Gorwrimanohari, Kashyap sang the 28th Pasuram from Andal’s Thiruppavai, in ragam Kambodhi, set to Adi Thalam. The Thiruppavai is a Tamil devotional poem composed by the poet-saint Andal in the glory of Lord Vishnu. The clarity in Kashyap’s singing was commendable for a young performer. Vaishnavi’s close following of both the compositions on the veena and Shreyas’ consistent support on the mridangam thoroughly enhanced this performance.

    Following Kaashyap’s performance was Rajeev Devanath on the vocals. He was supported by his sister Ananya Devanath on the veena, and Vivek Arvind on the mridangam. Rajeev commenced his performance with an energetic alapana in the ragam Begada, in which he included various key phrases of the ragam. Ananya also played a short sketch of the ragam that followed Rajeev’s alapana. Rajeev went on to perform a composition of Spencer Venugopal, “vA murugA vA,” set to Rupakam thalam. Rajeev also rendered several elaborate kalpanaswarams at the Pallavi line, in which Ananya replied aptly with her swarams. To conclude the slot, Vivek played a short mohra korvai.

    Next was a vocal performance by Pranav Satyadeep accompanied by Aparna Ganapathi Basavapatna on the violin and Anirudh Rao on the mridangam. Pranav started with an alapana in the ragam Shankarabharanam. He incorporated many traditional phrases as well as phrases that highlighted his vocal strengths. Aparna shadowed him attentively and followed with a soulful and classic alapana of her own, with great clarity in the phrases of the ragam. The team then presented a popular composition by St. Thyagaraja, Bhakti Bicca Meeyave, in Rupakam Thalam. Pranav chose to render swarams at the Pallavi line, “Bhakti Bicca.” He sang many elaborate swarams in sarvalaghu style, and incorporating abhiprayams and porutthams here and there. Aparna followed the swarams closely and provided quick responses for Pranav’s swarams. Anirudh further emphasized the layam and the gait of both the krithi and the swarams well and concluded the slot with a brief mohra korvai.

    Following Pranav Satyadeep’s vocal performance was Gaurav Rajan’s veena solo accompanied by Sachin Venkat on the mridangam. Gaurav started with an alapana in the ragam Simhendramadhyamam (57th Melam) before presenting “Asaindhaadum Mayilondru” by Sri. Oothukadu Venkata Subbaiyar, set to Adi Thalam. Following the kriti, Gaurav presented manodharmam swarams for the Pallavi. His swaram patterns included chatusra and tisra nadais. Then he played a koraippu before the korvai, which included chatusram in the poorvangams, and thisram and mel kalam thisram in the uttarangams. Sachin concluded with a mora and korvai. Sachin’s synced percussion was pleasing throughout the program.

    Following Gaurav was a Ragam Thanam Pallavi in Ragam Kokilapriya performed by Preetika Ashok. She was accompanied on violin by Aishwarya Anand and mridangam by Sriram Subramanian. Preetika began with a captivating ragam in the 11th melakarta, which was cleverly chosen since it was marking CCC’s 11th Anniversary! Although Kokilapriya is a relatively rare Ragam, she was able to produce a remarkable illustration of the ragam. Aishwarya echoed Preetika closely and subsequently played her own portrayal of the ragam. Preetika then skillfully presented an intricate Thanam and frequently exchanged rounds with Aishwarya. Both musicians performed this difficult feat handily and effortlessly. The team proceeded to deliver a thematic Pallavi composed by her Guru, Smt. Vasudha Ravi. This Pallavi was special to this occasion because it was set to Misra Jathi Triputa, which has 11 aksharams for the 11th Anniversary! The Pallavi had the sahithyam “Sri rAma nAmam javam sei manamE nI” and started two matras eduppu from sama. After establishing the Pallavi line, Preetika segued into her Neraval and sang both kizh kalam and mel kalam neraval. Sriram’s modulated mridangam playing emphasized and illuminated both Preetika and Aishwarya’s phrases. After a few rounds of this, she moved onto singing trikalam nadais. She started with kizh kalam chatusram, then kizh kalam tisram, madhyama kalam chatusram, mel kalam tisram, and then a mix of kizh and mel kalam chatusram. She finished with a combination of madhyama kalam chatusram, madhyama kalam tisram, and mel kalam chatusram. After this ambitious and skillfully rendered piece, she advanced to swarams. She sang a wide variety of swarams, starting with kizh kalam sarvalaghu swarams, tisram swarams, and then mel kalam chatusram swarams. Following this trikalam, Preetika took up the challenge of incorporating yet another 11 into her performance – she sang 11 different Ragams in her Ragamalika Swarams! She sang brief swarams in each ragam while still maintaining excellent sarvalaghu demonstrations throughout. The eleven Ragams were Behag, Rasikapriya, Hindolam, Varali, Amritavarshini, Vasanta, Mohanam, Shanmukhapriya, Kapi, Surutti and finally back to Kokilapriya. After this outstanding task, she concluded her swarams with a two after samam Edam to Edam (132 aksharam) korvai. To end the performance, Sriram played an elaborate and mathematical Thani Avarthanam. Overall, Preetika and her accompanists delivered a fabulous and thematic concert that will be remembered by the audience.

    Following the RTP by Preetika and her team was a special alumni segment. This segment commenced with a performance by Hrishikesh Chary and Priyanka Chary on the veena and Ajay Gopi on the mridangam. Priyanka commenced the presentation by playing an alapana, which showcased two melakarta ragams, Lathangi and Kanthamani. Both of these ragams are part of the Rudra Chakra, which is the eleventh chakra on the melakarta ragam scale. The only difference in these two ragams is the Nishadam; Kakali Nishadam is played in Lathangi while Suddha Nishadam is played in Kanthamani. This was followed by a short thanam, which was performed by Hrishikesh, in both of these ragams. Following the alapana and thanam, they went to present a medley of two popular krithis, Patnam Subramaniya Iyer’s “aparAdhamulanniyu” in the ragam Lathangi and Saint Tyagaraja’s “pAlintuvO pAlimpavO” in the ragam Kanthamani. They exchanged kalpanaswarams by playing sarvalaghu swarams in the ragam Kanthamani at the line, “paramAtmagu nija mArgamuna.” They concluded with an interesting korvai, which had both ragams. Following this, Ajay played a short but dynamic mohra korvai, which ended the presentation with a bang and made it enjoyable for the audience overall.

    The next performance in the alumni category was Sanjaysriram Garimella’s flute solo, accompanied by Ajay Gopi on the mridangam. Sanjaysriram started with a short but sweet alapana in the ragam Kalyani (65th melam). Then he followed the alapana with Shyama Sastri’s “Himadhrisuthe Pahimam” set to Rupaka thalam. While this kriti is usually set to Adhi Tisra gathi, some patantharams do use Rupaka thalam. Ajay provided proactive support on the mridangam adding beauty to the rendition.

    Next was a performance by Geeta Shankar, whose performance was one of the many astounding 11th anniversary special performances at CCC this month. She was accompanied by Ajay Gopi on Mridangam and Priyanka Chary on Veena. Geeta started off with a ragam in the fascinating 62nd Melakartha, Rishabhapriya. Despite the scarcity of krithis in this ragam, she was able to mellifluously render a superb alapana. Priyanka mirrored Geeta dexterously, and followed with a short but equally superb sketch. The team proceeded to present Tyagaraja’s krithi, Mahima DaccincukOvayya, in Ragam Rishabhapriya set to Desh Adi Thalam. Their presentation of this krithi was wonderful, with Ajay’s adept mridangam playing highlighting and enhancing the krithi. Geeta chose the Anucharanam line “TanivitIra Nammi nADanucu” for swarams. Her swarams consisted of sarvalaghu, kanakku and poruttham combinations and flowed effortlessly. Priyanka and Ajay also responded easily, providing a pleasant aural experience for the audience. Geeta ended with a long sarvalaghu swaram sequence followed by a gopucha-yati kanakku. Ajay concluded with a short kannaku on the mridangam. Overall, the team’s performance was beautiful, melodious, and was greatly enjoyed by the audience.

    Next was a vocal performance by Kaushik Hariharan, accompanied by Hrishikesh Chary on the veena and Srivatsan Tennathur on the mridangam. For his rendition, Kaushik chose the ragam ‘Vachaspathi’, the 64th Melakartha and the 4th ragam in the 11th Chakra (Rudra), in commemoration of CCC’s 11th Anniversary. Kaushik began with a brief and melodious alapana in the ragam Vachaspathi, highlighting the key phrases in this soulful ragam. After Hrishikesh’s very sweet and graceful alapana on the veena, Kaushik sang, Shri Papanasam Sivan’s popular krithi, ‘Parathpara Parameshwara’ set to Adi Thalam, in praise of Lord Shiva. The energetic and fast paced rendition of the krithi was followed by several rounds of kalpana swaramas on the charanam line ‘Ariyayanum KaaNa ariya Jyothi’. Hrishikesh’s melodious playing on the veena and Srivatsan’s skillful support on the mridangam enhanced this performanced thoroughly.

    Following Kaushik was a vocal duet performance by brothers Shrikrishna Shivakumar and Shrikanth Shivakumar. They were accompanied by Hrishikesh Chary on the Veena and Srivatsan Tennathur on the Mridangam. They started off with an alapana in the rare melakartha, Chithrambari, taking turns to sing soulful and bhavam-filled phrases in the ragam. Hrishikesh shadowed them closely and expressively rendered his own, amplifying the nuances and the beauty of the raagam. The team then presented Chithrambari Siva Raja Gowri, a composition written By Sri Suddhaananda Bhaarathi and set to tune by Sri. Neyveli Santhanagopalan in Adi Thalam. They decided to render swarams at the pallavi line “chithrAmbari” in one speed. They effortlessly sang several swarams in sarvalaghu style, capturing many beautiful aspects of this rare raagam. Hrishikesh provided apt support on the veena and responded with captivating swarams. Srivatsan further enhanced the layam intricacies and the of the swarams and the flow of the krithi. The team then concluded with a popular mangalam in the ragam Sourashtram.

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