Sound experiment - U Srinivas & Hariharan - Page 2

Kumar this is the music festival time in Chennai and everyone is so hooked on to music. They call them culture vultures.😊From Diwali till Pongal its only music and music.

Originally posted by: amukta

Kumar this is the music festial time in Chennai and everyone is so hooked on to music.

Yes Akka, i wish i was in Chennai for the whole next week to savour the musical extravaganza.

Originally posted by: amukta

Mandolin Srinivas's guru is his father and I had the privilege to meet him and interact with him and heard him play.He is so humble and a very shy person

Mandolin music was used in the Indian Movies as far back as the 1940's by the Raj Kapoor Studios in movies such as Barsaat, Awara etc. Adoption of the mandolin in Carnatic music is recent and, being essentially a very small electric guitar, the instrument itself bears rather small resemblance to European and American mandolins. U. Srinivas has, over the last couple of decades, made his version of the mandolin very popular in India and abroad. Many adaptations of the instrument have been done to cater to the special needs of Indian Carnatic music.

This type of mandolin is also used in Bhangra, dance music popular in Punjabi culture.


Mandolin players
Renowned modern mandolinists include Chris Thile, Bill Monroe, Ricky Skaggs, Marcus Linton, David 'Dawg' Grisman, Mike Marshall, Sam Bush, Yank Rachell, and Tim Ware - all of whom revolutionized the use of the instrument through the incorporation of various styles such as rap, techno, classical, rock and jazz. U. Srinivas (popularly known as mandolin Srinivas) was a child prodigy who plays Indian Classical Music on the mandolin.

Amukta ji, Lucky you thanks for sharing your personal experience.

Originally posted by: trishanku3

Anu apart from the jugalbandi of these two fabulous musicians there is whole lot music goodies on offer in Chennai starting from NOV 10, in the form of The Hindu music festival 2007. The details of the program schedule are as under.

Go ahead and enjoy if you are in Chennai😛

Thanks Anna.. I happened to go to this site and found the Ads.. I will definitely try to make it up.. But how much is it possible cant say.. I do have a Chennai trip pending.. Lets see how lucky I am 😊

Life at 50

"But my vocal chords are not more than 25," says Hariharan in an interview to CHITRA SWAMINATHAN

MORE OFTEN than not, life is about the art of reinvention. And the pony-tailed ghazal singer, Hariharan, excels in it. While you wait to meet the versatile crooner, thinking that he will walk in clad in the usual churidhar-kurta and shawl, Hariharan arrives looking dapper in jeans, T and a jacket. One can't miss noticing his stylish pair of shoes either. "Actually I was planning to come in shorts but my wife thought it was too much," he laughs. In town recently to participate in "Isaiyodu Pirandhein" (born with music), a music programme organised by Vijay TV to celebrate his 50th birthday, Hariharan quips, "It is just another occasion to sing for you all. What better way to mark my life's golden jubilee than walking down musical lane! Listen, I may be 50 but my vocal chords are not more than 25," Hariharan smiles mischievously. Besides many young singers, senior artistes such as SPB and Chitra joined the celebrations by participating in the programme. "Over the years, many positive things have happened to me — good music, fame and fans. Life's journey would not have been possible without the love and trust of my co-singers and musicians. So, any celebration would be incomplete without them. And it's always exciting for an artiste to perform for a live audience. Even today, when I go up on stage, I can feel butterflies in my stomach." Though he sings ghazals, classical, pop, fusion and film music, when you quiz Hariharan about his first love, "it's obviously ghazals," he says. "It comes through quite strongly in my singing. Besides, if you are trained in classical, it's easier to handle any kind of music. The weight of the swaras, the technique and calculations make you a methodical singer, who can infuse soul into singing." Road to success But success didn't happen to him overnight. In his own words: "It was like walking through a dimly lit passage at the end of which there was so much light." In 1977, after winning the All India Sur Sangeet competition, he got his first playback singing assignment from music director Jaidev for the film "Gaman". His ghazal "Ajeeb saane hai mujh par qarar" in the film got him instant recognition. By then he had also started giving ghazal concerts and cutting successful albums such as "Absaar-e-ghazal' with Asha Bhonsle and "Gulfam". Exciting collaboration "Recently, I recorded an album in Lahore with Pakistani composers and musicians. It was an exciting collaboration." The stylish crooner does not agree that in this age of Djing and remixes, audiences at ghazal shows are thinning, "I still do at least four shows a month. There are die-hard ghazal lovers, who tell me to stick to ghazals. Personally, I feel stifled to limit myself musically. Because it's melody that drives me, not the form." Going into a rewind mode, he adds, "With a pucca Tamilian name it was not easy to establish myself. My first exercise was to perfect my language, particularly Urdu for ghazal singing. The real challenge was to get the correct diction. I would practise for hours together. Today, when you draw an audience of 10,000 while performing in London and Germany, you feel like patting yourself for all the hard work" If ghazals made him a connoisseurs' delight, films (Rahman opened the floodgates) paved the way for mass appeal and fusion (Colonial Cousins) made him Gen Y's favourite.

Crooning flory: Hariharan. Pic.K.V. Srinivasan. "I have sung several hit songs in Hindi films ("Lamhe", "Border"), but singing for Naushad sahab for Akbar Khan's forthcoming film "Taj Mahal" was a great opportunity. At 84, the legendary music composer's dedication actually makes you emotional." More than Bollywood, Hariharan has sung several songs that have become chartbusters in Kollywood, starting with "Roja" in 1993. Remix trend Surprisingly, he is uncritical of the remix trend. "It's okay if due credit and respect are accorded to the original. At least, it will connect youngsters to a bygone era. May be grandfathers and grandsons can now listen to the same songs but I hope they don't watch the video together," he laughs heartily. On a more serious note, he adds, "Remix is not as easy as it sounds on the ear. It is not just about adding new rhythms to an old tune. The beauty is in retaining the essence of the song and the feel of the period." It's not remixes, but the overdone dappankoothu pattu in films that puts off a singer. "Earlier 3 out of 20 songs were dappankoothus, sadly now it is 18. There is only orchestra and no emotions. So, imagine the plight of popular music. Luckily, without my demanding it, I get to sing melodious numbers with decent lyrics. I have grown up listening to the bhava-laden music of stalwarts such as Ramnad Krishnan, Mali, T. Brinda, Ustad Amir Khan and of course, my mother Alamelu (also his guru)." But one song that turns him on is Lionel Ritchie's "Hello". "That's the way I am. I can dream about dating Julia Roberts, at the same time, the plight of the poor moves me." His two teenaged sons, Akshay and Karan, though musically inclined, have not made a foray into the field. If not his art, do they try aping their father's style? "My elder son wanted to grow his hair but I said no. Not when you are studying." Experimenting with looks The showman-singer personally loves to experiment with his looks. "When you are in the show business, you can afford to do so. I think I always had it in me. But success and popularity gave me the confidence to exhibit it. I love to shop for trendy outfits, accessories and spectacle frames. And what about his much written about hairstyle?

"When I realised it was getting more mileage than my vocal chords, I started pampering it with the help of my hair dresser. Doesn't it look healthier now?" he laughs running his fingers through his bushy ponytail.

The instrument veena is associated with Veena Balachander, likewise, mandolin is associated with U Shrinivas.

He was born at Palakol in West Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh February 28, 1969. At the age of six, his parents found him playing on his father's mandolin. Inspired by the boy's interest in music, Satyanarayana, his father, taught him to play the instrument and Shrinivas began playing light music.

Subbaraju was a disciple of the famous musical stalwart Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavathar. He had no experience on the mandolin, so he would sing Carnatic music and Shrinivas would play it on the mandolin. The young musician developed his own style.



Shrinivas got his first big break in Gudivada in Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh at the age of nine during the Sri Tyagaraja Aradhana festival.

He first performed a concert at the Indian Fine Arts Society in Chennai during the musical festival in December 1981.

In the year 1983, at the West Berlin Jazz festival, he had the privilege of giving a repeat performance, which was telecast live by a German TV.

At the invitation of the Sydney Tamil Sangham, he went to Australia in 1984, and then to south east and south west Asia, the US and Canada. At the festival of India in Paris, he was allotted one hour to play on the instrument. But when the concluded the concert, the audience forced the organisers to extend his programme by another hour.

In 1983, the Music Academy honoured him with the 'Special TTK Award'.

The boy reached dizzying heights in mastering the mandolin, far surpassing what he learnt from his guru. Listeners were swept away in the flood of neatly executed touches and rhythmic patterns coming from the prodigy's fingers. Everyone forgot the instrument he was playing and gave themselves up to the sensation, the sheer joy of listening to the mellifluous melody that flowed out of the instrument!

At Mexico and Cuba

In October 1987, Shrinivas toured Mexico and Cuba and participated in the Cevantino Festival at Mexico. He was the first Carnatic musician to visit Cuba and the first south Indian Carnatic musician to have participated in this festival. Paloma, the wife of the Mexican President, who had intended to make a brief 10-minute appearance for the sake of formality, was so captivated by the music that she stayed back for an entire hour.

Olympic Arts Festival at Barcelona

There were artistes from 60 countries and Shrinivas was the only one from India. The duration of the concert was 45 minutes. One has to stop at the 44th minute, but the minute Shrinivas stopped, the 9,000-strong audience started clamouring "once more" and he was accorded a standing ovation. So, the organisers relented and gave him another 10 minutes.

Fusion Albums

Dream

Dream, a mix of classical Indian music, electric mandolin and soaring electric guitar creates a worldly fusion of ragas, progressive rock and ambient/techno, a musical fever dream accented with other oddities, from violin and cello to drum loops. It is highly improvisational, with Michael Brook contributing King Crimsonish guitar against Shrinivas' nimble runs on the mandolin.

Shrinivas, with his depth of musical skill and knowledge, has brought forth his own composition, 'Srujana' (Sindhu Bhairavi - Tisra Nadai), which is a lively 'Note', resembling the western noted structure.

His goal in life is to popularise Carnatic music all over the world through his mandolin. With his rich classical background, he also aims at propagating music globally through mandolin concerts.

He made his own music

The instrument veena is associated with Veena Balachander, likewise, mandolin is associated with U Shrinivas.

He was born at Palakol in West Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh February 28, 1969. At the age of six, his parents found him playing on his father's mandolin. Inspired by the boy's interest in music, Satyanarayana, his father, taught him to play the instrument and Shrinivas began playing light music.

Subbaraju was a disciple of the famous musical stalwart Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavathar. He had no experience on the mandolin, so he would sing Carnatic music and Shrinivas would play it on the mandolin. The young musician developed his own style.

Shrinivas got his first big break in Gudivada in Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh at the age of nine during the Sri Tyagaraja Aradhana festival.

He first performed a concert at the Indian Fine Arts Society in Chennai during the musical festival in December 1981.

In the year 1983, at the West Berlin Jazz festival, he had the privilege of giving a repeat performance, which was telecast live by a German TV.

At the invitation of the Sydney Tamil Sangham, he went to Australia in 1984, and then to south east and south west Asia, the US and Canada. At the festival of India in Paris, he was allotted one hour to play on the instrument. But when the concluded the concert, the audience forced the organisers to extend his programme by another hour.

In 1983, the Music Academy honoured him with the 'Special TTK Award'.

The boy reached dizzying heights in mastering the mandolin, far surpassing what he learnt from his guru. Listeners were swept away in the flood of neatly executed touches and rhythmic patterns coming from the prodigy's fingers. Everyone forgot the instrument he was playing and gave themselves up to the sensation, the sheer joy of listening to the mellifluous melody that flowed out of the instrument!

At Mexico and Cuba

In October 1987, Shrinivas toured Mexico and Cuba and participated in the Cevantino Festival at Mexico. He was the first Carnatic musician to visit Cuba and the first south Indian Carnatic musician to have participated in this festival. Paloma, the wife of the Mexican President, who had intended to make a brief 10-minute appearance for the sake of formality, was so captivated by the music that she stayed back for an entire hour.

Olympic Arts Festival at Barcelona

There were artistes from 60 countries and Shrinivas was the only one from India. The duration of the concert was 45 minutes. One has to stop at the 44th minute, but the minute Shrinivas stopped, the 9,000-strong audience started clamouring "once more" and he was accorded a standing ovation. So, the organisers relented and gave him another 10 minutes.

Fusion Albums

Dream

Dream, a mix of classical Indian music, electric mandolin and soaring electric guitar creates a worldly fusion of ragas, progressive rock and ambient/techno, a musical fever dream accented with other oddities, from violin and cello to drum loops. It is highly improvisational, with Michael Brook contributing King Crimsonish guitar against Shrinivas' nimble runs on the mandolin.

Shrinivas, with his depth of musical skill and knowledge, has brought forth his own composition, 'Srujana' (Sindhu Bhairavi - Tisra Nadai), which is a lively 'Note', resembling the western noted structure.

His goal in life is to popularise Carnatic music all over the world through his mandolin. With his rich classical background, he also aims at propagating music globally through mandolin concerts.

He has already performed with renowned artistes like Ustad Zakir Hussain, Ustad Sultan Khan, Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma, Hariharan, Shankar Mahadevan, and international stars like John McLaughlin, Michael Brook, Nana Vasconcelos and Nigel Kennedy.

Shrinivas hopes to realise his dreams through the organisation that he has set up - 'Shrinivas Institute of World Musique' (SIOWM).