December 22, 2012 - Charsur Arts Foundation (NGS Mini Hall)

violin - avaneeswaram s.r. vinu
mrudangam - srimushnam v. rajarao
ghatam - n. guruprasad

venue: narada gana sabha mini hall, alwarpet
445-7pm

varnam - mohanam - ata - harikesanallur muthiah bhagavathar
swaminatha - nattai - adi - muthuswami dhikshitar (s)
marivere - anandabairavi - misra chapu - shyama shastri (r,s)
varanarada - vijaysri - adi - thyagaraja
endhukupedhala - sankarabharanam - adi - thyagaraja (r,n,s,t)
kanavendamo - sriranjani - tisra nadai ekam - papanasam sivan

Myself accompanied by Avaneeswaram Vinu, Srimushnam Rajarao, and N Guruprasad

I'm not sure where to begin with my thoughts on this concert. It's always a different, and special experience to be on stage with some of the field's most leading artists such as Srimushnam Sri Rajarao Sir. Having known him since I was a kid, there usually is a very casual relationship between us, but I still get nervous sitting next to him on stage. No matter how casual, jovial, and encouraging he is, he's also one of the best and most experienced mrudangam vidwans. When I called him a few days ago to confirm the sruthi and main item for the day, he was happy and just said "All the best, sing well." I knew he was very busy with his season concerts and didn't want to take up his time, but that was all I needed to hear. His encouragement continued last night on stage as well with his playing and lifting of the songs and concert. I can rest assured that if I ever forget a sangathi, or a line to a song, he will remind me... Not by telling me, but by showing me on his mrudangam! The tani avarthanam between Rajarao Mama and Sri Guruprasad was mind blowing. We couldn't tell the time had gone by so quickly. The audience's continuous applause for their tani showed their appreciation of these great artists, as they applauded for nearly 2 minutes after the tani finished.

Avaneeswaram Sri S.R. Vinu is another artist who I love to sing with but don't get the chance often as he is busy year round, and stays in Kerala most of the time. I'll share a couple things here which I told him last night. One was that his support, especially when I sang raga alapanais, was outstanding. At some times it was as if he could read my mind, playing where I really wanted him to help fill in some gaps, and supporting however appropriate in that moment. His own alapanais and kalpanaswarams were a great complement to whatever I was trying, and his sankarabharanam especially was a favorite of mine. Another thing is that I really hope to perform more with him in the future. Artists of his calibre and humility are something I really admire and strive to achieve.

Thanks to the Charsur team as always, and the overwhelming support of the rasikas :).