Emory OSRL organizes Carnatic concert by Siva Subramaniam on March 23, 2023 at Cannon Chapel. , photo credit: Becky Stein
A recent Carnatic concert in the southeastern US city of Atlanta depicts a beautiful mix of cultures, faiths, diaspora and demographics.
Organized by Emory University’s Office of Spiritual and Religious Life and Telugu Studies, the event took place at Cannon Chapel within Emory’s campus. The chapel hosts at least 20 diverse religious and philosophical gatherings weekly.
Accompanied by Chappelle’s organ and a piano and drum set, the artists presented themselves for a 90-minute program in front of a diverse audience.
The singers were Siva Subramaniam, a student of PS Narayanaswamy, Vani Satish and Lakshmi Balasubramaniam. A PhD in Sanskrit and Comparative Literature from Columbia University, Shiva is an assistant professor of religion at Emory University. Shruti Sarathi on violin, a native of the San Francisco Bay Area, a student of Anuradha Sridhar of the Lalgudi lineage, and was directed by Kala Ramnath, a Hindustani violinist from the Mewati gharana. Arvind Narayan, on mridangam, who has lived in Atlanta for most of his life, is a regular performer in the region. He learned Mridangam from Santosh Chandru, Guruswami Iyer and Subra Viswanathan.
The team made its concert debut with Muthuswami Dikshitar’s ‘Brihadishvaro’ at Ganasamvarali with Kalpanaswaram. Shiva introduced each song with a brief English description. An alapana by Ritigaula was followed by Kriti ‘Dwaitamu Sukhma’ and Kalpanaswaras.
Tyagaraja’s ‘Niku Tanaku’ in Begada depicts the main theme, Alpana, Niravala, Kalpanaswaras and Tani Avataranam. Shiva explained how Tyagaraja views his relationship with the Lord as a debtor and a debtor. Emory, being a premier institution in the US for the study of Telugu literature and culture (with a department devoted to Telugu studies), Siva and Sruthi discovered Telugu masterpieces with intriguing lyrics that captured the beauty and harmony of Carnatic music. Will also express attractive features.
After this Shruti Sarathi was composed in raga Bindumalini. Shruti tells. “In 2020, after the death of George Floyd, I had several conversations with my Karnataka colleagues here: Siva, Roopa Mahadevan, and others. We felt a desire to express our sorrow over the events that had occurred, and also, more than ever, a responsibility to articulate the values our music should speak for: oppression, plurality, friendship, community-building. and resistance to justice. The starting point for me, ‘Tedde Manme’, which is traditional in form and contemporary in message, derives from thinking through these issues. The song uses language and references that are typical of traditional creations (such as prasadam), but says: ‘O mind, do not seek equality and sameness in the world. Instead, use your voice to sing and celebrate the difference.’
It is an expression, through Carnatic music, of solidarity with Black Lives Matter.” Siva says, “Shruti and I believe that many Carnatic compositions are devotional, there is no need to restrict the repertoire to devotional themes. We have included this song to share our understanding that Carnatic music is for our world and our times. The song appeared particularly fitting for Atlanta, a city with a roughly 50 percent black demographic.
A medley of Tamil pieces including Viruthams by Kulasekara Azhwar and Arunagirinathar and C Rajagopalachari’s ‘Kurai Onram Illai’. Shiva’s crystal-clear diction of the songs was commendable. Shiva, Shruti and Arvind stood up and applauded at the end.
The author is Kalpalata Fellow for Classical Music Writing for 2023.