A traditional chamber concert without the distortions and sound sculpting of amplifiers presents carnatic music the way it was intended. You will hear the myriad microtones of the tambura and the genuine reverberations and naadam of the instruments led by pure, full throated vocals. This type of concert has become increasingly rare in recent decades but is making a comeback. Dhvani is committed to presenting one or two such performances as part of its annual offering.
Emmanuelle Martin – vocals
Jay Shankar Balan – violin
Vinod Seetharaman – mridangam
FREE for Annual Subscribers
Emmanuelle Martin is renowned in France and broader Europe in the field of traditional and sacred classical music from South India – Karnatik music. She lived for 10 years in Chennai, South India, (2004-2014) where she dedicated herself to learning this style of singing and music from one of the greatest masters of this tradition, T. M Krishna. She now lives in France and travels between India, Europe, and the United States where she gives concerts, teaches and continues her own practice.
During her recitals, which she conceives as musical and human encounters, Emmanuelle projects the raga-s of southern India with her powerful and captivating voice. She performs compositions as well as improvisation from this very rich musical repertoire. In between pieces, she says a few words about her extraordinary experience with this tradition and expounds on its codes and poetic nuances. Indian musicians trained in the Karnatik style accompany her on the violin, the mridangam (percussions), and the tambura, a stringed instrument. She also likes to collaborate with musicians and artists from other traditions.
Emmanuelle Martin grew up with parents who received classical training in Western music. Before she could even speak, Emmanuelle was surrounded by the practice and appreciation of music with merit. She began training in Western music at the age of 4 and was introduced to Karnatik music by her father, André Martin, a student of Shri Seetharama Sharma. Emmanuelle had no interest in this style of music until Shri TM Krishna came to visit her family when she was 18 years old. After a few lessons and after hearing his pure expression of Karnatik music, she was irrevocably hooked. At the age of 19, after completing her studies in France, she moved to Chennai, where she lived for ten years to devote herself to learning Karnatik music and studying with Shri T. M. Krishna. She had the chance to accompany him on the tambura for most of his concerts in Chennai and throughout India for many years, absorbing his music as well as that of many great maestros playing with him. Emmanuelle Martin started performing in public in 2012 in Chennai and has been performing regularly since then. She now lives in France and travels between India, Europe, and the United States, where she gives concerts, teaches, and continues her own practice. A deep commitment to her art drives her, and she is passionate and committed to her work of raising awareness and appreciation of this unique art form in the West. In January 2016, she joined Ariane Mnouchkine and the world-renowned Théâtre du Soleil group to train actors in singing and Karnatik music for their creation « A Room in India.»
Vinod Seetharaman is among the most accomplished and sought after first generation Carnatic percussionists in the United States. His Mridangam performances have won him wide appreciation from audiences. His training in Mridangam started at the age of seven from Shri. Ardhanareeswaran, and he continues his advanced training from Bangalore Shri. Arjun Kumar and Shri. Umayalpuram Sivaraman. The purity and sophistication of Vinod’s mridangam training has enabled him to not only accompany an astonishing variety of musicians, but also given him the freedom to innovate and create meaningfully. Vinod has shared the stage with at least four generations of Carnatic musicians that includes Dr. M Balamuralikrishna, T N Seshagopalan, Dr. N Ramani, Chitravina Ravikiran, Neyveli Santhanagopalan Abhishek Raghuram, etc. Vinod is passionate about keeping up the purity of his traditional legacy even in collaborative ventures. He has composed and arranged the rhythm for many percussion ensembles. He is a popular teacher, and his students are regular features in music festivals and competitions. His vision is to work with a variety of musicians and propagate Indian percussion to diverse audiences across the globe.
