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Kiranavali Shares her high and low points of the 2004 Aradhana
 The Cleveland
Tyagaraja Aradhana never fails to impress me. This was my third
time there and I realized that it only gets to be more fun with
every visit! It is too challenging to describe all the great
things about the festival. I will content myself with
enumerating what were some of the high low points for me.
Highpoints:
1.The
enthusiasm, dedication and cheer with which V V Sundaram,
Toronto Venkataraman and Cleveland Balasubramaniam organize the
Aradhana. They handled every situation with patience and a
smile.
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Cleveland 2004 - Sibling Rivalry! |
2.V
V Sundaram's vote of thanks after every concert and his appeals
to the (pretty indifferent) audience to contribute generously in
the form of donations. There was a sincerity and suavity to
every one of the speeches, which only a person with his level of
musical interest in music and his corporate experience can
bring!
3.The music
competitions in which all the children delighted their parents,
gurus and the musicians present. It was a very clear indication
that there are numerous competent and dedicated gurus all over
the US, and that there is no dearth of talented and hard working
sishyas.
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Singing Pancharathnas |
4.The
weekends, especially the first one brought in people from all
over the US. The atmosphere on the first Saturday) was simply
electric!
5.While many of
the senior concerts touched great heights, most of the
sub-junior and junior concerts were well above average.
6.The selfless
and indefatigable services rendered by the volunteer group
throughout the festival; ever with their "service with a
smile" manner.
7.The
sound system provided by Dr. Venkatachalam of San Diego. He was
there well before each day began and well after the last concert
was over. He got some much-needed breaks when Charubala and
Suresh of Charsur Digital Workstation took over.
8.Seeing Gomati
Balu actually attending many of the concerts!
9.Breakfasting
at the Comfort Inn with friends and co-musicians.
10.Food
prepared by ex-Pittsburgh Temple cook, Ganesan. All the meals
were memorable for good reasons!
Low points:
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Kiranavali reads ChennaiOnline at the CSU Cafeteria |
1.The
passing away of Sri. Venkatadiri on April 15, the 7th day of the
Aradhana. Sri. Venkatadiri was working tirelessly until a few
hours before he passed away peacefully in his sleep. This
definitely cast a damper on everyone's mood.
2.The rather
thin crowds at the concerts of veterans like Sri. R K Srikantan,
Sri. S R Janakiraman and B Rajam Iyer.
3.Sri. V V
Sundaram's sad expression on the penultimate day after another
desperate attempt to move people into contributing generously to
the festival.
As you can see,
the highpoints overtake the low points by a good number. This
year's festival was certainly another wonderful success!
Kiranavali
Vidyasankar
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| Kiranavali--in-the-CSU-Cafe |
Kiranavali comes from a lineage of well-respected Carnatic musicians. Her grandfather was the legendary Gotuvadyam Narayana Iyengar Kiranavali has also had the benefit of training intensely under her older brother Ravikiran for several years.
She has been performing regularly since the age of five. In her quest for excellence, Kiranavali pursued advanced vocal music training under the late T Brinda. Under her guidance, Kiranavali has matured into a sensitive musician with a deep commitment to highly refined musical values.
True to her family tradition, Kiranavali also plays the Chitravina. She has performed solo, and has accompanied Ravikiran. In fact, she is the first artiste to be graded in both Vocal and the Chitravina by All India Radio and Doordarshan. Her music is regularly featured in their broadcasts.
She and her husband now make their home in San Diego. She travels widely in order
to teach and to give concerts. She readily agreed to write an article for ChennaiOnline about the Cleveland Aradhana. |
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