Concert on September 8 at Auckland Grammar Boys School
Venkat Raman
If you have not had an opportunity to dwell in the world of melody created by one of the most prolific singers of Carnatic Music, you would have a chance to do so in Auckland early next month.
Rasikas New Zealand and Sangeetha Bharathi School of Music are organising an evening of Carnatic Music by Sumithra Vasudev as a part of their quest to invite artistes of varied talent to perform in New Zealand.
Sumithra will be accompanied by Ganapathyraman on the Mridangam and H M Smitha on the Violin on Saturday, September 8, 2018 at 530 pm at the Centennial Theatre of Auckland Grammar Boys School, located at 55 Mount Road, Epsom.
Tickets to the Concert, priced at $30 (Reserved), $20 (General) and $15 (Seniors and Children) are now on sale. Please contact Priya Srinivasan on 021-613155; Padma Govardhan on 021-265008; Sankaran Pattabhiraman on (09) 5791556.
About Sumithra Vasudev
A prime disciple of the legendary Sangita Kalanidhi R Vedavalli, Sumithra Vasudev is a Carnatic Music veteran with more than 25 years of performances. Her grandmother and parents recognised her passion for Carnatic music when she was at a tender age of five and encouraged her to sing with beginners’ notes and care.
Three years later, when she was eight years old, Sumithra came under the tutelage of Vedavalli, who remains her sole Guru to date. She presented her first full public concert when she was eleven years of age.
Critics and admirers consider Sumithra as a singer of classicism and depth.
Doctoral Studies
Apart from being a performing artiste, she is an active researcher pursuing her doctoral studies in Music. She has a deep interest in languages and literature, particularly in Sanskrit and Tamil. She has set to music many slokas and verses from Sanskrit literature and has popularised them through presentations and demonstrations in various musical and Sanskrit gatherings.
Sumithra has presented exclusive Divya Prabandha concerts and has accompanied her Guru in CD renderings of these verses of the Vaishnava saints known as Alvars. As a logical extension to music, she has also learnt the art of Harikatha from Kalyanapuram Aravamudachariar.
Sumithra teaches at the Advanced School of Carnatic Music, the Music Academy as a guest faculty, at which students receive intense training for performance of the genre of Carnatic vocal music. She was involved in the Sangita Sampradaya Pradarshini Translation project undertaken by the Music Academy.
About H M Smitha
H M Smitha started learning Violin and Vocal Music when she was five years old, under the tutelage of respectively H K Narasimha Murthy and H N Rajalakshmi. With such masters as her mentors, Smitha has been able to achieve a unique blend in both forms of the fine arts.
She is a popular Violinist, currently accompanying leading vocalists and instrumentalists along with her sister H M Sindhu.
About B Ganapathyraman
B Ganapathyraman is a well-known name in the Carnatic Music circles. He hails from a prestigious lineage of musicians and has inherited music from his father Sedhalapathi R Balasubramanian, fondly adored as ‘Balu Mama’ among the musicians and connoisseurs.
A child prodigy in laya, he took to Mridangam when he was seven years old and was trained by Nagai Soundararajan.
Later, he was trained by the renowned Kumbakonam Rajappa Iyer and Srirangarajapuram Jayaraman.
Master Class by Sumithra Vasudev
Sumithra Vasudev will conduct a Special Master Class on ‘Sumithra Guruguha Vibhakthi Krithis’ (compositions of Muthusamy Dikshitar) for senior singers and Intermediate and Advance Level vocal students on September 4, 2018 at 645 pm at the Three Kings Tennis Pavilion, located at the Corner of Mt Eden and Mt Albert Roads in Three Kings.
Prior to visiting New Zealand, she will be in Australia on a teaching assignment for The Madras Music Academy, conducting Master Classes in Melbourne for two weeks.
