Dr. Ghatam Karthick’s Heartbeat Ensemble presented ‘Rhapsody and Rhythms’, – a multi-genre musical extravaganza as a fundraiser charity concert for redeveloping Siruvapuri and other charity projects of Rotary Club of Madras Temple City at the Music Academy, Chennai, recently.
The Ensemble presented 10 ten pieces showcasing 10 ten different genres. It began with the ever popular ‘Mahaganapatim,’ which was followed by numbers from diverse genres such as Jazz, Reggae, Hip-hop and Blues. There were also cute solos on drums, djembe and Latin percussion.
Then came the surprise package, which was a medley of Bollywood songs hits in combination with MSV hits and ARR hits.
Fusion and devotion
On the fusion front, a piece composed by Karthick in Ratipatipriya, showcased the vivid complex rhythms of Carnatic tani avarthanam presenting the pancha-nadai, the five variations in speed. On the devotional front, the ever-popular ‘Marudamali Maamaniye’ was a presented. An apt choice as the fund raiser concert was for the temple in Siruvapuri village.
‘Raghuvamsa Sudha’ was performed with western percussion, following which a Sufi song with snake music was presented in the Persian/Arabic genre. ‘Raaga Raajangham’ was well received by the audience.
