Tracking the nightingale
CULT FIGURE M.S. with Gowri Ramnarayan, who provided the doyenne vocal support for years
The Bangalore International Centre is presenting a unique program titled “The Shy Girl from Madurai- Homage to M.S. Subbulakshmi” – a lecture demonstration by Gowri Ramnarayan on Saturday, August 25, 2007, at the Bangalore Gayana Sa
maj, Sri Krishnarajendra Road, 6 p.m.
The two-hour presentation will showcase the consummate artistry of M.S. Subbulakshmi though music tracks of her immortal songs interspersed with commentaries by Gowri Ramnarayan on her music and her unparalleled life.
This will be followed by a 11-minute black and white film on M.S. by Avinash Pasricha.
Madurai Shanmukhavadivu Subbulakshmi, the “nightingale” of Carnatic music, was one of the best-known artistes in her field during her lifetime, enthralling audiences all over the world, including at the Carnegie Hall in London and the United Nations.
Born in Madurai, Tamil Nadu, on September 16, 1916, Subbulakshmi received her early training from her mother Shanmugavadivu, a leading veena player and later from Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyengar and Pandit Narayan Rao Vyas.
She was the first woman to be honoured with Sangitha Kalanidhi by the Madras Music Academy, a title, which every Carnatic musician dreams of attaining. Amongst the numerous awards she received were the Ramon Magasasay Award and the Bharat Ratna.
A cult figure of her times M.S. was admired by national and international leaders, fellow artistes and celebrities from every walk of life. Her peerless voice was marked by a transcendental quality, which matched the humility and grace of her personality.
Grand niece of M.S. Subbulakshmi, Gowri Ramnarayan, provided vocal support to her for 17 years between the years 1981 to 1997. Schooled at Kalakshetra, Gowri had her early training in music from P.S. Narayanaswami.
Gowri has scored music for several plays including the ones that she has scripted and directed – Dark Horse, Rural Phantasy, Flame of the Forest. “Dark Horse”, a play on the poet Arun Kolatkar won two national awards.
The Bangalore International Centre founded in 2006 is a premier non-official organisation, developed as a hub of cultural and intellectual activities in the city.
It provides an opportunity and a platform for interaction across professions that would collectively foster intellectual activity, cultural enterprise and innovation in development, representative of what Bangalore stands for.
For further information please call Bangalore International Centre, 080-25359680
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