Umayalpuram K. Sivaraman

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TN5OlSbbgfM


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C1XIEioSv9U
Umayalpuram K. Sivaraman -Mrudangam Vidwan
Born on 17-12-1935,in Tanjore. His father, a medical practitioner and himself an accomplished musician, had with insight and intuition nurtured the inborn talents of his son and got him rightly initiated into mrudangam .
Sri Sivaraman learnt this divine art under four great and illustrious masters: Sri Arupathi Natesa Iyer, Sri Tanjavoor Vaidyanatha Iyer, Sri Palghat Mani Iyer, Sri Kumbakonam Rangu Iyengar. The pursuit of this art under the gurukula system for well over fifteen years did not deter him to qualify for law. He is a double graduate of The University of Madras (B.A., B.L.).
Behind the professional glory and mastery of Umayalpuram Sivaraman lies a massive substratum of toil and training. Even as a three year old kid, Sivaraman revealed his ‘laya sense’ playing his fingers on whatever objects they chanced to touch upon and producing diverse ‘talas’ and such an act fetched him the gift of a kanjira from his grandmother. As a boy of ten, Sivaraman had his ‘arangetram’ (first concert) and the debut was held in the precincts of Kalahastheeswaraswami temple in the temple town of Kumbakonam.
His new techniques, innovations and creative ability in accompaniment, solo renditions, and jugalbandhi programmes with his North Indian counterparts have earned him a special place in the world of art, worthy of emulation by other artists. Having made his debut at a tender age of ten, Sivaraman has been in the field as a ‘top notcher’ for half a century now, accompanying a galaxy of maestros of recent past and artistes of great merit today, both vocal and instrumental.
His percussion career has been a colourful spectrum of accompaniment to a legion of musical maestros in Carnatic music – Sri Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar, Sri Musiri Subramania Iyer, Sri Palladam Sanjeeva Rao, Sri Mysore Chowdiah, Sri Rajamanickam Pillai, Sri Papa Venkataramiah, Sri Dwaram Venkataswami Naidu, Sri Mudikondan Venkatarama Iyer, Sri G. N. Balasubramaniam, Sri Madurai Mani Iyer, Sri Maharajapuram Viswanatha Iyer, Sri Alathur Brothers, Sri Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavathar, Dr Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer, Dr M. Balamuralikrishna, Sri Nedunuri Krishnamurthi, Sri Voleti Venkateswarulu, Sri S. Balachander, Sri T.R. Mahalingam, etc. He has to his credit several jugalbandhi concerts with the top artistes of Hindustani music like Pt. Ravishankar, Sri Hariprasad Chaurasia, Pt. Ram Narain and top tabla artistes like Pt. Kishen Maharaj, Pt. Samta Prasad, Ustad Allah Rakha, Mr. Zakhir Hussain and others. In these concerts, Sivaraman has won great approbation from his North Indian Counterparts and the audience.
Besides his professional career, he had undertaken the very laudable task of doing original research in the art of mrudangam. This resulted in his highly acclaimed lecture demonstrations done in all important centres in India and abroad, which enabled him to disseminate knowledge of this divine art to art lovers, music conferences, music seminars and the like. He is the only mrudangam vidwan who has explored and placed before the world of art lovers authentic information on the techniques and nuances of mrudangam for more than two decades. He has introduced the fibre glass mrudangam to Carnatic music for the first time, improvised a mechanical jig to eliminate human error in the moulding of skins for both sides of the instrument and has done research work on tanned and untanned skins for the mrudangam. His analysis of the ingredients of the black patch has given much insight on the overtones produced by different strokes on the mrudangam.
Sri Sivaraman has contributed informative articles on mrudangam in Sri Shanmukhananda Sabha's (Bombay) Journal, Bhavan's Journal; Vadya Kala - a publication of the Development Centre for Musical Instruments, Madras (Ministry of Commerce - Handicrafts, Govt. of India) and to several other journals and publications. He has played mrudangam in several professional recordings and in the special feature 'The Drums of India', in the United States. He has also planned and played in the cassette ‘Garland of Rhythm’ which has given a new dimension to the concept of thani avarthanam (mrudangam solo). He had the unique honour of playing Tala Vadya Kutcheri-s in the Annual Film Fare festival in 1973 and 1975. He also participated in the ‘Tala Vadya Utsav’ at New Delhi in 1985 and played a jugalbandhi concert. He played mrudangam in a special programme known as ‘Mrudangam Drum Set Jugalbandhi’ in Max Muller Bhavan, Madras, along with two leading drummers from West Germany. He has served as a judge in the panel constituted by the Ministry of Education and Culture, Government of India. He has served as a judge in the All India Radio panel, for selection of artistes. He was invited to play mrudangam in the popular and successful Tamil movie 'Mrudanga Chakravarthy'. Sri Sivaraman is a ‘A’ Top Grade artiste in All India Radio and Doordarshan Television. He has presided over the Annual Music Conference of the Indian Fine Arts Society, Madras, in 1984 and was conferred the title of Sangeetha Kala Sikhamani. Sri Sivaraman has been appointed as the Director for ‘Tanjore Vaidyanatha Iyer School for Percussion’ recently started by the Music Academy, Madras.
His innovations include analysis of the ingredients of the black patch on the right side of the mrudangam, on the overtones produced from the right side drum head, synthesis of the traditional and the modern approaches in playing on the instrument, research in using tanned and untanned skins and hides of the instrument, evolving new patterns of rhythmic designs (mora-s and korvai-s), has improvised and is using a mechanical contrivance to eliminate human error in the moulding skins for mrudangam on both sides and he has made a fibre glass mrudangam and used it in concerts.
He has given lecture demonstrations at The Music Academy, Madras; Tamil Nadu Isai Kalluri; University of Madras; National Museum, New Delhi; Sri Shanmukhananda Sabha, Bombay; Karnataka Gana Kala Parishat, Bangalore; Music College, Madurai; Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Coimbatore; Indira Kala Viswa Vidyalaya, Khiragarh; The Conservatorium of Music, The University of Sydney; and in the United States of America etc. He has gone abroad several times on concert tours and special programmes. He has visited the USSR, USA, Canada, UK, France, West Germany, East Germany, Poland, Malaysia, Singapore, Japan, Indonesia, Bangkok, Ceylon, Muscat, Bahrain, Australia, etc. In his visit to the U.K., he participated in the Tala Vadya Kutcheri for the Festival of India, 1982, and again for the same festival in New York and Washington D.C., U.S.A., in 1985. He has also been invited to perform concerts and jazz concerts in Sri Lanka and Belgium.
When Sri Sivaraman completed 50 years of service to Carnatic music in 1996, His Excellency Shri K. R. Narayanan, Vice-President of India, honoured Sivaraman at a public function held at Madras on 10th March 1996.
He has been working for the upkeep of the traditional way of playing without sacrificing the modern impact, greater understanding, and wide appreciation for the instrument, dedication to the art of mrudangam, its propagation, and scientific improvisations in the construction of mrudangam. His mrudangam playing is considered to be in a class of its own, winning critical acclaim from the top-most musicians and music lovers.
CD's/Audio Cassettes featuring Umayalpuram Sivaraman:
1. CD recorded in Tokyo, Japan. Title: "Percussion of India" presented by Umayalpuram K Sivaraman -
World Music Library; Seven Seas; KICC 5168, King Records Co. Ltd. 2-12-13 OTOWA BUNKYO-KU TOKYO 112.Japan
2. CD recorded at Stuttgart, Germany Title :" Who's to know" - L.Shankar, Umayalpuram Sivaraman, Zakir Hussain.
Recorded by ECM Stereo 8272692 ECM records, GLEICHMANN STRABE 10 MUNCHEN 60
3. CD recorded in India Title:" Garland of Rhythm" ( By Magnasound & OMI Inc) - Solo by Umayalpuram Sivaraman.
Manufactured and marketed by OMI Music Inc, 71 Rosedale Avenue, Unit A-10, Brampton, Ontario-L6X1K4, Canada.
This CD has been produced as Ist edition and later as 2nd edition.
4. CD recorded in Brussels Title:" AKA Moon- Ganesh" , a CD dedicated by the famous Jazz band AKA Moon to
Umayalpuram Sivaraman. Sivaraman has played and composed a few pieces in this
CD. Produced and marketed by CARBON 7, 23 Eisenhower,1030, Brussels, Belgium Telephone: 32-2-2429703. Fax: 32-2-2453885
5. CD recorded in India Title: "Drums of India". Mrudangam Solo by Umayalpuram Sivaraman.
Produced and marketed by HMV(RPG Group).
The Gramaphone company of India, 6B- Nungambakkam High Road,Chennai 600034. Phone 044-8273449, 044-8274526.
e-mail: Southrm.mad@gcil.sprintrpg.ems.vsnl.net.in
6. CD Titled: "Masters of Percussion". Mrudangam Duet by Umayalpuram Sivaraman and Zakir Hussain.
Produced and marketed by Moment Records.
Moment Records, 237 Crescent Road, San Anselmo, CA 94960
7. CD recorded in Brussels Title:" AKA Moon- ELOHIM " with Umayalpuram K. Sivaraman as a guest artist
CD. Produced and marketed by CARBON 7, 23 Eisenhower,1030, Brussels, Belgium Telephone: 32-2-2429703. Fax: 32-2-2453885
8. CD Titled:" BIG BANG" - featuring a duet by Umayalpuram K. Sivaraman and Zakir Hussain
CD. Produced and marketed by Ellipsis Arts, 20 Lumber Road, Suite 1, Roslyn, NY 11576-9894

The Feelings Factory

Elsa Zylberstein in The Feelings Factory: Directed by Jean-Marc Moutout.
http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=26938043
Synopsis
Eloïse, 36, is a property lawyer in Paris. Young, good-looking and successful, she is nonetheless single. To end her solitude, and because deep down she desires a love-life that she initiates and controls like her career, she signs up with a speed-dating club. After all, isn't that all about being fast and efficient, too? Seven men, seven women, seven minutes to work their charm. Then the bell rings.

Review

A thirtysomething singleton turns to speed dating as an answer to her emotional emptiness in "The Feelings Factory," a quizzical relationships dramedy elevated by a terrif central performance by Elsa Zylberstein. Not so much an examination of the speed-dating phenom -- whose touchstone pic remains last year's shamefully ignored "Shoppen" by Ralf Westhoff -- this is more a look at New Millennium me-culture, but played sympathetically without grandstanding its social subtext. It's a solid bet for upscale auds on the foreign arthouse circuit.
Main titles reminiscent of '60s pop-art pics establish a light mood as Eloise Hautier (Zylberstein), 36, is seen in confident work mode as a property lawyer at a venerable firm where she's a junior partner. However, outside work, she has little personal life beyond other professional types, so decides to try out a speed-dating agency run by the smooth Sonia (Nathaly Coualy).
Each session, held in a sanitized, retro-'60s cocktail bar, involves seven men and seven women, each getting seven minutes with each other before a bell rings. Script has some sharply written fun with these mini-encounters, with Eloise as nervous and overeager as the men she meets. But whereas "Shoppen" was almost entirely concerned with the actual speed-dating process, it's only the starting point of the main story in "Factory."
The most promising candidate seems to be Jean-Luc (Bruno Putzulu), a handsome, confident business-type who meets Eloise's vague demands of "the same intellectual standing." Lunch leads to dinner, which leads to great sex, and Eloise confides in a girlfriend that she's fallen in love.
Meanwhile, script slowly makes clear that Eloise herself is not all she seems. She's seeing a doctor (Palestinian actress Hiam Abbass, wasted in a cameo role) about her dizzy spells and chronic amenorrhea, and is worried she may never be able to have kids.
Parallel to this, she bumps into the seemingly least promising candidate at her speed-dating sesh -- the shy, self-critical, balding Andre (Jacques Bonnaffe). Unknown to her, he follows her back to work after their chat in a bookshop.
As she learns more about her medical condition, and the relationship with Jean-Luc starts to go cold, she spends time with the depressive Andre, who also -- in a scene that traverses an entire emotional spectrum in a few minutes -- turns out to be much more complex than she imagined.
From a very different perspective than his first feature, downsizing drama "Work Hard Play Hard" (2003), writer-director Jean-Marc Moutout shows an acute eye (and ear) for the emotional pressures on ambitious 21st-centurers who want it all on plate, now. "We've never been freer, but never more analyzed and told what to do," says one. And in one of the pic's most tender scenes, Eloise is gently told by her sick grandmother that, for her generation, marriage was always been more about family and affection than just sex and me-me self-analysis.
Pic's theme is less fresh than the way Moutout treats it, keeping the viewer as unsettled as its central character in what will happen next and juggling several emotional balls at the same time. Unexpected coda contains a neat throwaway twist.
On-screen chemistry between all the players is easy and convincing, with Zylberstein deftly maneuvering her way through the film's quicksand moods and avoiding playing simply a ditz. Technical package is thoroughly pro.

FRATRICIDE

Through its careful accumulation of details and the rough truths of its handheld camera movements, FRATRICIDE creates a poetic dimension to balance and illuminate its dire narrative. Xewat Gectan, as Ibo, is heartbreaking in a way that American child actors never manager to be. Rather than confront racial intolerance on the glib level of an American treatment such as CRASH, it cuts straight into the heart, with crisp direction and a profoundly human eloquence.” – Steve Dollar, The New York Sun“In its particulars – the director’s feel for character and space, as well as the sterling, naturalistic performances – it’s an absorbing drama about cultural alienation that sheds light on an underclass unfamiliar to most audiences.”–
New York Magazine

A cycle of both vengeance and redemption is what Yilmaz Arslan’s film Fratricide offers anyone willing to sit down and watch. Recipient of the Locarno Film Festival’s Silver Leopard award, the film examines both the cultural isolation and tribal feuding experienced by immigrants attempting to make their way in Western Europe. Released by Koch Lorber Films, Fratricide is yet another examination of Europe’s new melting pot and the inner strife that may result accordingly.
The film follows the journey of two young Kurds attempting to survive and hopefully make their fortune in modern Germany. Azad (Erdal Celik) is Kurdish teenager who at the film’s beginning departs from his rural home in order to make his living in Germany; his journey paid for by his older brother who works as a pimp. Upon arrival in his new environment, Azad is taken in by a local youth hostel ran by local Kurdish community leaders. The hostel essentially acts as an oasis for new immigrants trying to adjust to the rather unwelcome social environment the city presents. While staying at the hostel and earning a living as a barber, Azad meets Ibo (Xevat Gectan), a young Kurdish boy whose parents were murdered in their home country.
A fast friendship soon develops between the pair as Azad looks after Ibo like a younger brother, in stark contrast to the combative relationship he has with his own older brother. Fate rears its cruel neck in however when one night the pair run into two Turkish brothers on a commuter train. After getting into a heated argument, Azad and Ibo escape but are not forgotten by the pair. Coincidentally, one of the brothers Ahmet (Oral Uyan) stumbles upon the pair again one day. A scuffle breaks out and before anyone has a chance to stop it, a murder is committed. From that point onward, the story spirals uncontrollably into a vortex of revenge and despair.
Both sides swear vengeance against the other and retribution naturally ensues, driven not only by loss but ancient tribal tensions as well. In the end, everyone loses and no one is left unscathed. While there is a glimmer of hope at the end of the tunnel, it is bittersweet at best. Like Head-On, Fratricide exists within the new Europe, a contentious melting point of diverse cultures stemming from the recent waves of immigration from the Middle East and Africa. While America has often contended with its multicultural existence, it is nowhere near as difficult as in Western Europe where centuries-old homogenous cultures now find themselves being forced to adapt outside influence.
The tension and distaste that the native societies bring upon the immigrants creates the isolated environment that only fuels further strife. In their own way, Azad and Ibo are pursuing the American Dream in trying to reinvent themselves in a new land and strike out for their own fortune. However, they also contend with taking care of their families back home financially, which the film makes a rather acidic point about. Whether it is earned working as a butcher or prostitute, money is still money and for that reason alone the families at home nor the Europeans who exploit them have no qualms over how they earn it. Despite the inflicted cruelty, Fratricide still maintains a rather innocent, humanistic core in the relationship between Azad and Ibo. Their bond is forged in the harshest of times and the love they feel for one another is palpable and touching. It only shows that no matter how horrible things can get, love is still capable of beating the most poisonous hatred.