THE SAMI SISTERS IN CONCERT

Nostalgia 2001 was nostalgia in the true sense. Usha Uthup and her sisters, Indira, the eldest and Maya, the youngest, popularly known as the Sami sisters, came together for a charity concert in aid of the Spastics Society of India (organised by the event management company 'Events'). It was their first show at Chennai and the Chennai audience seemed to enjoy every bit of what they had to offer. They were a highly receptive audience with everybody clapping and even getting up from their seats to dance to Usha's pulsating numbers.

The concert consisted of a full spectrum of songs / music in different languages from different lands and indeed different ages. Dressed in a red brocaded silk saree, with flowers, jewellery et al, Usha made a grand entry to thundering applause from the audience. On a query about her way of dressing, Usha replied that in her early years, she was attired only in a saree as she belonged to a fairly traditional family. So it was a totally natural thing to dress up the way she did. As Maya put it, it was a question of a conformist becoming a non-conformist.

Usha dedicated her first two songs to the quake-affected victims of Gujarat. She then invited her two sisters on stage. They blended wonderfully as a trio in harmony, and yet had their own distinctive styles. Indira has a rich voice, while Maya's is vibrant, and wide ranged. Usha, of course, is blessed with a velvety, smooth rich voice that comes straight from the heart. Indira sang a few solo numbers like the hauntingly beautiful 'I love Paris', and that vintage lovesong 'Autumn Leaves' after which Maya took over and sang a sprightly Latino song and a popular number of the 'Beatles'- 'It's been a hard day's work'. The three sisters then came together to sing a medley of popular numbers which included a lilting Sri Lankan song, a sombre Vande Mataram sung in different languages and popular hits like 'Dum Maro Dum', Stevie Wonder's 'I just called to say I love you' and 'Que Sera Sera'. On innumerable requests from the spirited audience, Usha obliged by singing a few songs like the pacy 'Jambalaya' and 'Malaika Aie Amwana'.

The highlight of the evening was the auctioning of three sarees printed with the first few lines written by the poet Bharatiyar, describing the greatness of Tamil Nadu. The sarees were an instant hit with each fetching a cool Rs 5,000/-; all for a cause, of course.

A Tamilian herself, Usha stole the show with her spontaneous showmanship. Superb acoustics by Sekar and good support by Usha's orchestra enhanced the whole show. On a question on what Chennai means to her, Usha rattled off the first few verses of her song :

'Kadalora kanni, Senn Tamilnatin,
Thalainagaram Chennai,
Kadalora Kanni, Senn Tamilnatin,
Arputha Azhagu Chennai,
Yethanai jaadhigal ingay
Yethanai madhangal ingay
Anaivarum Koodia ingay
Anbudan Vaazhndheedum Chennai'

These lines simply mean Chennai is a city of people from different communities, castes and religions, living together in peace, love, and unity and making it a beautiful place.

THE GERMAN PHILHARMONIC YOUTH ORCHESTRA

A symphony of Brahms, performed in Chennai!

You actually had to tell yourself that this was no wishful thinking. The highpoint of the Festival of Germany in Chennai, was the German Philharmonic Youth Orchestra, performing at Music Academy on December 12th 2000.

Under the baton of Rudolph Barschai, the Orchestra presented Wagner's Tannhauser Overture, Haydn's Cello Concerto in D, Hob VII b,1 and Brahms Symphony No. 2 in D major.

While the Tannhauser Overture received a very limp interpretation and the Cellist for the Haydn Concerto - Thomas Demenga appeared a bit wobbly on the trills, the Brahms Second Symphony came out cleanly. Apparently, the sections of the Orchestra (for instance, the strings) by themselves played as one. But the whole, put together (for instance, the strings with the woodwinds or the brass section) appeared disjointed at several points. Yet, when it came to what mattered most in the programme - the magnificent Brahms Second Symphony, it all seemed to fall in place.

For the Classical Music lover in Chennai, though, this wasn't the occasion to criticise and compare with say, the perfection of a Karajan recording. This was a time to just soak in the sheer thrill of that glorious, overflowing of music that comes from a full-fledged Orchestra, performing live. An experience to remember and cherish.

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