The dedicated volunteer corps of the Hindu Temple of New Hampshire, Nashua, NH, and its cultural school Bharathi Vidyashram, pulled off a grand event last Saturday evening (October 18), when they celebrated a musical evening with eminent violin maestro Vidwan Sri Vittal Ramamurthy (who was profiled in the previous issue of Lokvani). The event was as much a celebration and display of the finest qualities of service and volunteerism, as it was of the finest music that one can experience. The event, the idea for which was dreamt up by some Temple volunteers, was as much an attempt to serve the Nashua and Greater Boston community by bringing a high quality concert for everyone’s enjoyment, as it was to help raise funds in support of the Hindu Temple of New Hampshire. It attracted an audience of over 200 rasikas, on a busy pre-Diwali Saturday evening that was already packed with several other events in the area competing for the same audience, and thus was successful in both of its goals.

The Welcome

The care and enthusiasm of the volunteers could be felt throughout - in the neatly organized and beautifully decorated reception area, in their warmth and hospitality, in the beautiful stage decorations including the lectern sporting a floral Ganesha, the expert compering by PremAnand Rao, and the organization of a child care facility to entertain children who had their own priorities. The environment created by the volunteers and the outstanding acoustics of the Performing Arts Auditorium at Nashua High School North (except for a few static clicks that Sri Vittal humorously described as Diwali crackers) resulted in a delightful experience, both for the performers and the audience. The event started with a video show that show-cased the second music album (which was released by Sri Vittal at the end of the concert) in the Dwell on Dharma series -“Madhura Nada Sankeertana - Melodious Meditations” - by talented and accomplished young musicians Janani Ganesh, Lavanya Kothandaraman, and Karthik Gopalratnam. The video show was followed by the recitation of Vidyarambha Shlokas by the children of Bharathi Vidyashram, who then yielded the stage to Vidwan Vittal and his ensemble. Sri Vittal first recognized and praised the Temple volunteers for their great work, and then introduced his team of accompanists, before going on to deliver a wonderful evening filled with serene music.

The Music

Sri Vittal Ramamurthy’s hand-picked team of well-known Boston-area accompanists consisted of his own Sishya Sri Surya Sundararajan on the Violin, Sri Gowrish Chandrasekhar on the Mridangam, and Dr. Ravi Iyer on the Ghatam. The concert opened with a Varnam in Abhogi Ragam. This was followed by the vibrant krithi “Vinayaka Ninnu Vina” in Hamsadhwani Ragam, which provided an opportunity for a playful Jugalbandi between the artists. The Tyagaraja Krithi “Sogasu Chooda Tarama” in Kannada Gowla Ragam that came next generated a big applause from the audience. The soulful krithi “Akhilandeswari Rakshamaam” in Dvijavanthi Ragam composed by Sri Muthuswamy Dikshitar captivated the audience. “Ramaa Ramana Rara” concluded the first half of the program. In this Tyagaraja Krithi in Shankarabaranam Ragam, Sri Surya Sundarrajan took the initial lead on the violin, and the audience was entertained with Thani Avarthanam in percussion - solo Ghatam performance by Dr. Ravi Iyer and solo Mridangam performance by Sri Gowrish Chandrasekhar, as well as a mini-Jugalbandi between the violinists. The second half of the program provided opportunities for audience involvement. Sri Vittal sought input from the audience on what Ragas they would like to hear in the Ragam-Tanam-Pallavi (RTP) session. There were so many requests that Sri Vittal humorously suggested that one has to pull a Shivaratri all-nighter to accommodate everyone. The Ragas that finally made it to the amazing RTP session included Nalinakanthi, Ananda Bhairavi, Panthuvrali, Behag, Bhairavi, Brindavani, Bilahari, Desh and Brindavana Saranga. A mini-lecdem session followed in which Sri Vittal used the songs “Enna Thavam Seithanai” in Kapi Ragam, and “Krishna Nee Begane Baro” in Behag Ragam to demonstrate how his Guru Sri Lalgudi Jayaraman could make lyrics recognizable in instrumental music. He also used the song “Sabhapathikku Veru Deivam” in Abhogi Ragam to demonstrate how the same lyrics can be used to convey different meanings through musical variations. This was followed by a Thillana composed by Sri Lalgudi Jayaraman in Sri Muthiah Bhagavathar’s Karnaranjani Ragam, “Maitreem Bhajatha” composed by Sri Kanchi Paramacharya, Sri Purandaradasa’s “Bhagyyada Lakshmi Baaramma”, and “Mangalam”. Audience reactions to the concert included “Vittalji and team gave a mind-blowing performance”, “they elevated us to a completely blissful state”, “the upbeat music got us tapping and clapping”. The artists were honored with shawls by Temple leaders Suresh and Karthi Chandra, whose invaluable contributions to the Temple community and popularity were called out.

The Leaders

The program also included speeches by the leaders of the Bharathi Vidyashram and Hindu Temple of New Hampshire communities. Veeramani Ranganathan, founder and prime mover behind the Temple identified the four pillars of support for the Temple: spiritual guidance of Paramacharya, volunteers, donors and patrons, and the devotees and community, and exhorted devotees to visit the Temple regularly, for Bhakti does not crop up overnight. Raidu Rayasam, who was the driver behind the organization of the concert, was introduced by the compere as a popular teacher who appealed to both young as well as adult students. Raidu dwelt on the theme of “dharmo rakshati rakshitah” (“righteousness protects those who protect it”), talked about the importance of giving and sharing, and used a pivotal incident in Adi Shankara’s life to illustrate this. Lakshmi Munugoor who directs Bharati Vidyashram talked about the value-based Purna Vidya curriculum of the school, and narrated an anecdote of how one of his students came up with a metaphorical interpretation of an incident in the Ramayana. This student interpreted Rama as the goodness in us and Thataka as all the distractions that we are subject to, and Munugoor used this to illustrate how cultural education helps enrich and refine the thinking of children. The program on stage concluded with a vote of thanks by Usha Dwarakanath.

The Feast

The musical feast was followed by a sumptuous dinner and a raffle draw. All the color and celebration at the event made it seem Diwali had arrived a week early in Nashua! Happy Diwali!

Acknowledgements:  Vish Iyer captured and shared various observations including audience reactions. Usha Dwarakanath filled in information on the RTP. Rajesh Bashyam provided the pictures.

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