Drive with caution

Thanks for attending this event even in bad weather. See you at the next one in January.

Nov 21, 11.35AM - Event is still on. Drive safe and slow!
Nov 21, 11.10AM - Check back by noon for the final update on whether today's event is on.

There is a freezing rain advisory till noon on Sunday, November 21 as per www.weather.com.

Upcoming Event on November 21

The upcoming event is scheduled on Sunday, November 21, 2010.

Venue: 7100 Nicollet Ave, Richfield, MN 55423

List of the performers is given below:

2:00 pm to 2:40 pm Shruthi Rajasekar (Carnatic Vocal)

2:45 pm to 4:00 pm Pallavi Dharwada (Carnatic Vocal)

Shruthi Rajasekar and Pallavi Dharwada are accompanied by the very experienced percussionists in the twincities area

Sri Sriram Natrajan on Mridangam and

Sri Balaji Chandran on Ghatam

Shruthi Rajasekar is a newly minted 14 year old a 9th grader at Wayzata High School in Plymouth, Minnesota. She has always been deeply interested in the arts particularly in writing, music, theater and dance. She has been studying and training in Carnatic (South Indian Classical) Music at the Naadha Rasa Center for Music, Plymouth for about 8 years with her mother and guru, Smt.Nirmala Rajasekar, an accomplished musician, composer and teacher.

Among some of her achievements in Carnatic music are the runner up prize at the 2010 Carnatic Star Competition conducted by Carnatica India and SV Temple Golden Valley MN. Shruthi has sung as a soloist and led her groups at many Carnatic Indian Music performances at the Festival of Nations, the Minnesota State fair ,The Minneapolis Institute of the Arts ,the annual Aradhana and several Hennepin County Libraries events. She most recently has performed for Geetmala TV.

Shruthi has been learning Western Classical Music for the past 8 years with Ms.Susan Myers. She has won trophies for her performances at the Upper Midwest festival.

As a young composer she was chosen as the youth category winner for her original composition ‘A Memory’ in the annual Eric Stokes Contest for the year 2008. She has been performing and singing in middle school for three years as a member of her school touring choir.she continues to sing in High school under the guidance of Mr.Dahl.

Shruthi is a fine actress and loves the theater. She has appeared as Fatima in the Children’s Theater Company production Iqbal in March 2009. She played Ruth in the biblical play Dessert dreams a story about Ruth and Noami produced by the Jewish Community Theater and composer Miriam Gerberg in April/May 2010. Her other acting credits include playing the ‘Pirate King’ in the famous operetta by Gilbert and Sullivan ‘Pirates of Penzance’ and as ‘Machli’ in the Asian Indian play ‘Khel Khood ‘ that premiered at the Indian Diwali event in November 2008.

Shruthi is grateful to MICMC for inviting her to perform and Sri Sriram Natarajan and Sri Balaji Chandran for supporting her in this event.

Pallavi Dharwada (Carnatic Vocal)

Pallavi Dharwada comes from a musical family deeply rooted in both Carnatic and Hindustani Styles of Indian Classical Music. Pallavi learnt Carnatic vocal music from Dr.Pantula Rama, a TOP grade artiste in All India Radio in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh. Pallavi won several prestigious awards and prizes in India at both state and central level including the south central zone thirty-minute concert-competition conducted by the Government of Karnataka in the year 1999 (with particpants in Hindustani and Carnatic Styles of Music from the states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu). Pallavi was awarded the Senior-level scholarship for the period 1998-2000 by the Government of India, Ministry of human resources. Pallavi represented Andhra Pradesh in the National Youth Festivals conducted in Ahmedabad in the year 2000.

Pallavi performed concerts at various prestigious venues in India such as Kala Samithi, Saraswati Gana Sabha, N.Ch.Parishad and in U.S. at Nashville, TN, Atlanta, GA and Columbus, OH. She received the best concert award for the performance rendered during the mini-music festival conducted by Visakha Music Academy, Visakhapatnam in 1999. Pallavi performed in rare musical projects such as Nowka Charitram and Prahlada Bhakti Vijayam - the two Musical Operas of Sri Tyagaraja. Pallavi is the co-founder of Minnesota Indian Classical Musicians Club (MICMC) that promotes local talent in the Minneapolis twin-cities area and actively volunteers for Indian Music Society of Minnesota(IMSOM), the premier Indian arts and cultural organization in Twincities. Pallavi currently works for Honeywell in Minneapolis.

Sriram Natarajan on the Mridangam

Sriram is a versatile Mridangam artiste and collaborative world musician.

Sriram started training on the Mridangam at the age of 9, under the veteran Guru Sri K V Maniappan in Mumbai. Presently under the able guidance of Tanjavur Sri Murugaboopathy, Sriram has had advanced training from Sangeetha Kalanidhi Padma Sri Palghat Raghu.

His style of accompaniment is very adaptive to both instrumental and vocal music. Sriram regularly accompanies renowned and upcoming artistes in India during the December music season in Chennai. He travels around the US and has performed at several venues in the cities of Chicago, Madison, Boston, Columbus, Philadelphia and across the state of Minnesota. His world music collaborations include the St Olaf Jazz Band, Northfield MN, Kora Artiste Mamdou Diabate at the Festival of Nations in St Paul MN and the Brass Kings.

Sriram is a resident of Apple Valley MN and is the founder of the Layyasaaram school of music.

Balaji Chandran on Ghatam

Balaji Chandran started his Carnatic percussion studies in Mridhangam under Sri.Kovai Mani and Sri. Kadayanallur Narayana Iyer. He is a disciple of Sri.Ghatam V.Suresh from whom he learns Ghatam for the past 5 years. He brings with him an energetic style of playing the Ghatam bestowed upon him by his guru. He has provided his percussive support to many artists in America and in India. He considers himself very fortunate to have had the opportunity to lend support to stalwarts like Sangeetha Kalanidhi Sri.R.K Srikantan, Prof. Ramakanth, Isai Peroli Sri. Neyveli Santhanagopalan and stars of current generation like Smt. Nirmala Rajasekar, Smt. Sikkil Mala Chandrashekar, Sri Suryaprakash, Sri. Mullaivasal Chandramauli, Sri. Mysore Chandan Kumar. He has been part of the Aradhana celebrations in Minnesota, USA for the past 8 years, and has performed in many venues across America. He also features in the first Carnatic Audio album released by an Independent American record label Innova Records called “Song of the Veena”. He was part of an ensemble that won the top honors in the recently conducted carnatic music competition held by “International society of Laya awareness” in Chennai. He has collaborated with St.Olaf Collage Jazz band and “Brass Kings” an American Blue Grass Jazz band. He is also adept in playing the Kanjira and has also lent his support in both Mridhangam and Ghatam for Bharathanatyam Arengetrams.

Event photos

Upcoming Event - September 19

The upcoming event is scheduled on Sunday, September 19, 2010.

List of the performers is given below:

2:00 pm to 3:30 pm

Vinod Krishnan (Carnatic Vocal)

Vinod Krishnan has been a student of carnatic music since his childhood. Initiated by his mother, he has had the opportunity to learn from great teachers like Neyveli Santhanagopalan and Madurai TN Seshagopalan. Currently, he is receiving training from Madurai R. Sundar, who is also a disciple of TN Seshagopalan. Vinod has also forayed into Western classical music on the keyboard and often composes for fun. This is his first classical concert in the US.

Event photos

Upcoming Event - Sunday, July 18, 2010

The upcoming event is scheduled on Sunday, July 18, 2010.

List of the performers is given below:

2:00 pm to 3:00 pm Hindustani Sarod
Dr. Praful Kelkar on Sarod
accompanied by Dr. Subhabrata (Suvo) Ganguli on Tabla
Dr. Praful Kelkar grew up in a musical family and learnt tabla & sitar for a number of years. He has been studying Sarod under the guidance of renowned Sarod maestro Ustad Amjad Ali Khan. He has played concerts at various venues in the US and in india including for IMSOM.

Suvo has been playing tabla in the Twincities area for the last 10-12 years. He has accompanied various solo artists and has also been involved with several musical bands. In addition to percussion instruments, he also enjoys playing the keyboard and the saxophone.

3:00 pm to 4:00 pm Carnatic Vocal
Master Ganesh Raman (Vocal) accompanied by Sriram Natrajan on Mridangam
Born to a traditional and culturally oriented family, Master Ganesh started his vocal training under Smt. Aparna Balaji, at the tender age of 6, in Boston, USA. When he subsequently moved to Minnesota in 2003, he came under the tutelage Smt. Nirmala Rajashekar. Simultaneously, Ganesh also started learning from his aunt in India, Smt Bhargavi Ganesh, and is currently under the tutelage of Chitravina maestro, Shri N Ravikiran, and is receiving advanced training.
Ganesh gave his vocal debut performance in Raga Sudha Hall, Chennai, in 2006, at the age of 12, and was blessed by many great musicians such as Umaiyalpuram Shivaraman, Chitravina Narasimhan and Smt Kalpakam Swaminathan, who graced the occasion.
Ganesh performed concerts at several venues in the US and India including the Maple Grove Community Center in Minnesota in Chembur Fine Arts in Mumbai, Hindu Temple of Minnesota, a lecture demonstration series in the Hennepin county libraries in 2004 with his Guru Nirmala Rajasekar and played the role of vocal support for his guru Sri Ravikiran in a concert in New York in November 2009. He also participated Twin Cities Tyagaraja Aradhana and in the Cleveland Thyagaraja Aradhana festival. He won several prizes at prestigious carnatic music competitions held in Detroit, Cleveland and recently he also won the title of Carnatic Star of Minnesota 2010.
Master Ganesh has currently finished the 11th grade at Wayzata High School and also learns the western violin and was a lead part of his school orchestra for two years.

Sriram Natarajan on the Mridangam
Sriram is a versatile Mridangam artiste and collaborative world musician.
Sriram started training on the Mridangam at the age of 9, under the veteran Guru Sri K V Maniappan in Mumbai. Presently under the able guidance of Tanjavur Sri Murugaboopathy, Sriram has had advanced training from Sangeetha Kalanidhi Padma Sri Palghat Raghu.
His style of accompaniment is very adaptive to both instrumental and vocal music. Sriram regularly accompanies renowned and upcoming artistes in India during the December music season in Chennai. He travels around the US and has performed at several venues in the cities of Chicago, Madison, Boston, Columbus, Philadelphia and across the state of Minnesota. His world music collaborations include the St Olaf Jazz Band, Northfield MN, Kora Artiste Mamdou Diabate at the Festival of Nations in St Paul MN and the Brass Kings.
Sriram is a resident of Apple Valley MN and is the founder of the Layyasaaram school of music.

Post-event update

Thanks to Dr. Praful and Ganesh for performing. The tidbits of information they provided before each piece were interesting and educational for the listeners. It was a full house with people standing. We hope to see the same enthusiasm and support for future events.

These are some pictures from the event -

First event on May 16

The first event has been scheduled for May 16,2010 (Sunday).

List of Performers (The performers for this event will present Carnatic Music)

1. Janani Narayan and Jeyani Narayan: Violin Duet (30 min)
Janani Narayan and Jeyani Narayan are taking carnatic music violin lessons from Shri Mullaivasal Chandramouli for the past three plus years. They performed a mini concert on July 4th,2009 at Gandharvaghana sabha, Chennai, India. They have also performed at Twin cities Thyagaraja Aradhana and sangeetha sevas at our temple. They also play western classical music on violin and play for Minnesota Youth Symphonies. They enjoy playing at senior living and assisted living homes. They are seventh graders at Math and Science Academy.

2. Dharini Nagarajan Loknath: Vocal Solo (30 min)
Dharini Nagarajan Loknath started her Carnatic music training with Shri Maaduri Mangalam Ramachandran, and later on continued lessons with Dr. Radha Venkatachalam for over 7 years. She has performed as a junior artiste in All India Radio and has won numerous music competitions hosted by the Gayathri Fine Arts in New Delhi.

3. Rohini Balachandran: Vocal Solo (45 min)
Rohini has been trained in classical carnatic music for eight years under the guidance of Mrs. Champa Kumar and Mrs. Sita Rajan. She has rendered several performances in temples in Chennai.


See the Calendar page for more details.

UPDATE: Thanks to all the performers. These are some pictures from the event -