RIP Mandolin Shrinivas

|| Mandolin U Shrinivas (1969 - 2014) ||

If you ask me whose recent death has left me bereaved....

I would answer "Mandolin Srinivas".

U Shrinivas was unique in many ways. He was a gifted child. He started playing Mandolin when he was just six years old. He gave his first concert at age of nine. He was awarded Padma Shri at a young age of 29. He is regarded as one of the geniuses in Indian classical music arena.

Before mandolin stepped into Carnatic music, only violin was considered to be comparable with the vocal sound. This is because of the fret less freedom it gives the player to make transition from one note to another, also called Gamaka. But when Mandolin came into picture, Shrinivas jaw-dropped skeptics with awe and wonder. Everyone asked "How can a child play like that?".

There is a great saying, "Fear not the weapon but the hand which yields it". Same applies here. initially this European instrument was considered fit just to play harmonics and film music. The stringent requirements of Carnatic music made even violin take close to 200 years to get adopted into it. But Shrinivas made it for mandolin under 50 years. 

I came across this person in my ninth grade when my mother bought a CD collection set featuring famous Indian artistes. One of them had well known kritis played on mandolin. My interest in him started and also I came to know that he is the one who brought and modified mandolin, a western instrument by making it five-stringed, electrified it by adding pickup and a custom amplifier.

Links: (http://www.carnatica.net/sangeet/mandolin.htm) (http://www.carnatica.net/sangeet/mandolin2.htm )

I listen to his mind blowing solos for Remember Shakti band. Most of the time I feel a form of electricity like ecstasy flowing through my body. Here I close my eyes and spiral towards heaven thinking "This is music of Gods, This is music of Gods".

Here are few links I suggest:

Bombay Makossa, probably the last album recorded featuring Mandolin Shrinivas:

http://mio.to/album/Chingari,+Etienne+Mbappe,+Ranjit+Barot,+Mandolin+Srinivas/Bombay+Makossa+%282014%29 

I get chills watching this:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=jB95clOd6v0

Just lie down and listen;

www.youtube.com/watch?v=5__bzQ8oDuE

Shrinivas leads the band with fast paced mandolin:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1lWRfiSVls

Upcoming stuff

Yes

I wanted to mention about things that went on for last two months.

I listen Remember Shakti, a band which plays Indian classical Jazz(watch this full concert at the link http://youtu.be/UfjxtcNYKz4). First time when one of my friends mentioned about this band, I watched the above video and that was when I decided to learn a string instrument and it was when I really got interested in music and its depth of knowledge. Its how the music of this band has inspired me. Its simply awesome. As I commented on the video, it is the music of Gods.

Upon asking, father rejected my proposal of learning classical music on violin, though my mother supported me(she is a very good Carnatic vocalist). I was told to concentrate on my studies and prepare for upcoming competitive exams like GATE, GRE, etc.

Since I had a bit knowledge of how a Guitar works(from first semester), I decided to craft my own Mandolin(I am a big fan of Mandolin Shrinivas, Carnatic classical mandolin exponent. He is the pioneer in  introducing Carnatic music on mandolin, a western instrument). Crafting the body is easier than neck part on which fretboard is positioned. It simply cannot be made without crafting skills and good expertise. It needs perfect curvature and correct positioning of frets(metal wires of correct alloy embedded on rosewood slice). I even tried sourcing it from custom string makers but in vain(actually no one sells just a fretboard, that sounds ridiculous). But it was worth trying.

My other interest that I recently developed was towards micro-controllers and single board computers. One of them is Arduino (www.arduino.cc), which I always wanted to own. It is a micro-controller board which gives you the power creating computers that sense and interact with external physical environment, unlike your personal computer which just interacts with you. I read all the documentation and things related to these IC's and software that is used to program the IC. This IC is heart of the intelligent system which accepts ,stores, processes and gives output as it is said.

Now I have one. Received it yesterday by courier. Overwhelmed by number of things possible with the green thing shown below. Its Arduino Uno R3:-)

My new Arduino Uno R3 with laptop computer
Compare the two processors. The board's and that of the computer's.

I will keep exploring and never stay still. Staying still is a nightmare.

Goutham

CT 2 OVER!

Hello!

With today's aptitude test, the second cycle test got completed.

Earlier I mentioned about my disappointment about my performance in the first one. This time It is better but though not up to mark. Few subjects were really better but others went not as I expected. Below is discussion of how this came about. It is an Introspection.

I dreamed of many things before entering 2nd year. Some of them are

-Learning everyday and every hour something new

-Indulging myself in good activities and good relationships

-Trying good ideas and doing really good projects which I sometimes dream

-Blogging about myself and my interests more often(now, I am posting after long time)

Overall, I should say that I am not leading a totally efficient life like I have done in my first year. Something is holding me back. I seem to live in a dogma, constrained, restricted to my inner self.

This can be boring for you to read but I share these feelings to introspect myself. This blog is a reflection of me. I write here like this when I find no hope in myself to change. It has been two months and a week since third semester has started and for me, life seemed normal all the way till now.

Now, the exams are over and don't return for atleast a month. Now its time for phase II. This phase of life involves unleashing myself. Unleashing my talent in whatever I am good in. The next post tells how this is done.

So, its time to rock!!!

Let's ROCK!!!

Goutham